Judges – Northampton Film Festival

Judges for the 2026 competitions

The judges for the Narrative Fiction category are:

Jon Brown: BAFTA and multiple Emmy award-winning, showrunner, screenwriter and executive producer, and graduate of the University of Northampton! Jon has just finished EP’ing Mountainhead and showrunning The Franchise for HBO. He wrote on all four series, and EP’d series 3 and 4 of HBO’s highly successful Succession, for which he won two Emmy’s. Jon has created and written a number of successful TV shows including the hit comedy Dead Pixels (E4) which ran 2 series, described by The Guardian as ‘gut-bustingly funny … the sharpest new sitcom of 2019’, Loaded (C4) and Mongrels (BBC). Jon’s debut film Cuban Fury was produced by Big Talk/Studio Canal. His extensive writing and producing credits also include Avenue 5 (HBO), Veep (HBO), Peep Show (C4), Misfits (E4) and Fresh Meat (E4).

Col Goudie: Col Goudie BFE, is a feature film editor with a career spanning over 40 years. Editing everything from 16mm film to Digital 65mm, and has cut films in big studios, hotel rooms and even tin shacks. Most recently, known for editing “Tetris” (2023), Roald Dahl Biopic “To Olivia” (2021), “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (with John Gilroy and Jabez Olsen) 2016 , and the multi award winning “Monsters” (2010). Col doesn’t limit to big budget productions and can often be found editing Indie dramas like Alan Moore’s The Show and Award winning feature documentaries like the multi award winning Funny You Never Knew (2019). Col has been working openly as a non-binary editor since 2019.

Leopold Hughes: Leopold Hughes, who was born in Northampton, has worked on some truly brilliant productions, and now lives in the US working for Rian Johnson’s T-Street Productions. His credits include Producer credits on all three ‘Knives Out’ films and ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi‘ as well as Assistant to Producer credits including ‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation‘, ‘Red 2‘ and ‘Serena‘.

The judges for the new Animation category are:

Liza Rhea: Originally from Northampton UK, Liza moved to the US in 2008 and headed to the UCLA Animation Workshop to gain an MFA in Animation. Over the past fifteen years she’s worked in Theatre, Television, and Feature Film at places like Nickelodeon, Laika, and the Walt Disney Animation Studios, among others. She has directed a short film for Disney called No.2 to Kettering, which is streaming on Disney+. She is currently a Modeler at Dreamworks Feature Animation.

Alisha Fryer: Alisha Fryer is a Film Festival Programmer and Producer at Grey Moth, originally from the Midlands but now based in London. Alisha has been programming for BAFTA and BIFA qualifying Bolton International Film Festival for four years. Now as Lead Programmer, she has used this extensive access to short films from around the world to develop a keen eye for identifying exciting authorial voices. She has produced the Arts Council funded film Nephin Subs, by Fionnuala Kennedy, along with music videos for artists such as Dhruv and Jelani Blackman during her time at Grey Moth, an award-winning production company based in London. She is currently Production Coordinator for Grey Moth’s upcoming feature documentary.

Vanessa Wheeler: Vanessa is an experienced multilingual producer with specialist expertise in animation, European co-productions, and book-to-screen adaptations. She spent much of her career at BAFTA- and International Emmy® Award-winning studio Lupus Films, where she led the development slate of animated and live-action films and series alongside managing directors Ruth Fielding and Camilla Deakin.

Her credits include the feature adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s Kensuke’s Kingdom, starring Sally Hawkins and Cillian Murphy; The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Channel 4’s second most-watched programme of 2019; and Sky One’s RTS Award-winning CG-animated special The Ghastly Ghoul.

Most recently, Vanessa produced BAFTA-winning writer-director Paloma Baeza’s short film Three Hares, a hand-crafted, ecology-themed creation myth. Narrated by Oscar nominee Jessie Buckley and scored by two-time Oscar winner Gustavo Santaolalla with co-composer Juan Luqui, the film was produced by Archer Gray in association with Lupus Films.

In 2023, she relocated to Madrid to join Spanish studio SPA Studios as Story Supervisor on a hybrid animated feature for Netflix, where she continues to live. She now works as a freelance producer and development consultant for studios in the UK and Spain, while building a slate of impactful short films spotlighting individual portraits of resilience.

The judges for the New Filmmaker category are:

Simisolaoluwa Akande: Simi is a filmmaker based in Kettering. From Nigeria to England, Simisolaoluwa’s fascination with the art of storytelling crossed continents before expressing itself through film. Now a multi-award-winning filmmaker, her films embrace a deeply collaborative approach to storytelling that provides black stories the space to be told and retold. After graduating from the University of Warwick with a BA in Film and Literature, Simisolaoluwa continues to navigate the film industry and continue to develop her craft. Her recent documentary The Archive: Queer Nigerians, won Best Short at the BFI London Film Festival 2023, Best Documentary at Norwich Film Festival and was Longlisted at BIFA.

Kuljinder Khaila: Kully is the Chair of the Royal Television Society in the Midlands which delivers screenings, masterclasses, careers events and premieres across the region for those working in the screen industry.
He is also the Executive Producer of BBC Academy Live, that deliver events across the UK. Kuljinder has worked on a varity of genres and platforms at the BBC including music, entertainment, factual, current affairs and scripted content on radio, television, online and film.

Sarah Cunningham: Sarah is a British/Irish cinematographer who trained at La Fémis in Paris, and has also lived in Bombay, London and now the Shropshire Hills. Her feature film credits include CHUCK CHUCK BABY (dir Janis Pugh, winner of BAFTA CYMRU for best film), FLATLAND (dir Jenna Bass, Best African Feature at the Jo’burg international film festival ) and THE BANISHING (dir Chris Smith). Her latest feature THINK OF ENGLAND (dir Richard Hawkins) is complete and beginning its festival journey this November.

The judges for the Misfits and Mavericks category are:

Sarah adapted and directed the award-winning screenplay of short film TYPICAL?, which she won a ROYAL TELEVISION SOCIETY award in Directing for, and the film has been part of the Official Selection at OSCAR & BIFA qualifying festivals. She also wrote & directed the adapted screenplay ONE FOR THE ROAD based upon a Stephen King short story. Sarah’s screenplay, ONE DAY, was an Official Selection in the Screenplay category of the BAFTA/Oscar-qualifying festival FLICKERS’ RHODE ISLAND FILM FESTIVAL in 2022.

Sarah is a mother to two boys, one of whom is disabled, and her advocacy work includes developing Healthcare Passports with the NHS for children with complex needs and disabilities, and campaigning for CHANGING PLACES toilets. She consults on access and equitable workplaces & practices within the screen industries, and is on the EDI Advisory Group of CREATIVE UK. She was an actor for 15 years and prior to this worked in TV news.

Micallar Walker: Micallar is a marketer, event producer and audience development consultant. She is the founder of Dark Matter, an inclusive marketing agency connecting Global Majority audiences with culture and the arts. Formerly Head of Marketing for Front Row Filmed Entertainment, and Head of Events for Picturehouse Cinemas prior to that, she brings 20 years of film and marketing experience to inform strategies and shape culturally resonant campaigns.

Kate Dow: Kate is an experienced Producer, Line Producer, Assistant Director and currently Head of Creative Operations at Ziggurat XYZ in Northampton. Kate has over 9 years’ experience in the entertainment industry; she has worked on a wide range of projects, including independent feature films, unscripted factual, outside broadcast, children’s television, period comedy and unique YouTube productions. Her producorial debut came with director Jack Spring’s Destination: Dewsbury. The film was shot for £150,000 and was a critical success upon release. Kate’s other credits include’ SAS: Red Notice, Alan Moore’s ‘The Show’, Sky’s ‘In The Long Run’, the Roald Dahl biopic ‘To Olivia’ and BBC’s period comedy ‘The Witchfinder’. Kate is currently in development on a thriller/horror feature film that is due to shoot in the midlands late 2025/early 2026.

Julie Hesmondhalgh has unfortunately had to pull out of NFF 2026 but hopes to be back for 2027.

The judges for the 18yrs and Under category are:

Dan Edge: Dan is an Actor, Model, Pro Wrestler and Circus Aerial Performer which has led to an extensive career. He has performed in various theatre productions, flown in the air at the London 2012 Paralympic Games’ Opening Ceremony, sung badly (on-purpose) in a television commercial and won wrestling championship belts in the US and UK.

He also co-hosted of the Life DownLow’ed podcast in which he and Samantha Renke discuss all things life and disability. Dan is also an award-winning Disability and Access Consultant, and Access Coordinator, working across the arts, broadcast, entertainment, media and business industries with clients including #WeThe15, Sesame Street, Sony, Netflix, the BFI and BAFTA.

His involvement in the trade union movement as part of Equity sees him sit on the Deaf and Disabled Member’s Committee as well as being a member of the Union’s governing Council member. He also previously sat on the BAFTA Disability Screen Advisory group and Currently sits on the BFI Equivalent . Dan campaigns for better access, inclusion and representation of Deaf, Disabled and/or Neurodivergent people in all aspects of life but particularly within the arts and media industries.

Catherine Joy White: Cat is a Northampton-born award-winning filmmaker, actor, author, and CEO of Kusini Productions, recently named on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Her short Fifty-Four Days won Best Northamptonshire Short at Northampton Film Festival 2024 as well as screening at over 50 festivals and winning more than 30 awards worldwide before being acquired by American Airlines. She was honoured to serve on the Festival jury in 2025 and is delighted to return in 2026.

Cat’s upcoming projects include documentary Swim Sistas, the Italian-British co-production Villa Amore, animated film To My Daughter and her debut feature Black Samphire starring BAFTA winners Cathy Tyson and Stephen Fry. As an actor, she has appeared in Dracula (Netflix), Ten Percent (Amazon), and Threesome (Channel 4), with upcoming roles in The Librarians: The Next Chapter, a major Netflix series and The Capture.

Colin Salmon: Colin’s mum was from Northamptonshire and he spent a lot of his childhood playing in and around the River Nene. His film credits include Nobody 1 and 2, Mortal Engines, London has Fallen, Resident Evil, Exam and 3 James Bond movies. TV includes Alan Carr’s Changing Ends set in Northampton, Intelligence, Eastenders, the award winning Prime Suspect 2, No Offence, Arrow, Some Girls, Limitless and Krypton.

The judges for the Documentary category are:

Lauren Pizzicaroli: Lauren is a script consultant, screenwriter and film festival strategist based in Canada and the UK. She is the founder of Source Script Consulting and works as Executive Assistant for Dr Rebekah Louisa Smith, The Film Festival Doctor.

Sara Gunn-Smith: Sara is Marketing and Audiences Officer at Film Hub NI (BFI Film Audience Network). She runs Quiet Child Films and produced the NFF award-winning documentary feature Gama Bomb: Survival of the Fastest. She is a Vice-Chair of the Belfast Media Festival and was also previously on the board of the NI Science Festival (2019-2024) and Open House Festival (2013 – 2017).

Timothy Lovell: A multi-award-winning filmmaker, editor, and director with over 40 years of international experience, Timothy believes that a powerful story transcends budget, technology, or trend. His work spans acclaimed feature documentaries including Mugabe and the White African, Hawking, Outbreak, and The Hunt, screened across major broadcasters such as BBC, Channel 4, PBS, and in cinemas worldwide. Driven by a commitment to ethical filmmaking, Timothy uses his craft to amplify underrepresented voices and bring truth-driven narratives to light. A proud member of the Guild of British Film Editors (BFE), Timothy continues to champion the art of storytelling as the heart of great cinema.

Judges for the 2025 competitions

The judges for the Misfits and Mavericks category were:

Kerrie Cosh: Kerrie is a Radio Presenter on BBC Music Introducing in the Northants & Three Counties on BBC Radio Northampton. She has covered BBC Radio 1’s Future Artists 40+ times, and hosted the 6 Music Mixtape twice as well as BBC Introducing on Radio 1. After starting out as a YouTube video editor whilst at University to make money on the side, she then made her first audio documentary called ‘The Men Forced to Marry’ in 2019 about male victims of forced marriages who live in the UK.

Sarah Leigh: Sarah Leigh is a neurodivergent/disabled, working-class filmmaker and advocate. She is the founder of INCLUSIVITY FILMS – a company committed to at least 50% of cast and crew identifying as d/Deaf, disabled and/or neurodivergent on every production. Sarah adapted and directed the award-winning screenplay of short film TYPICAL?, which she won a ROYAL TELEVISION SOCIETY award in Directing for, and the film has been part of the Official Selection at OSCAR & BIFA qualifying festivals. She consults on access and equitable workplaces & practices within the screen industries, and is on the EDI Advisory Group of CREATIVE UK. She was an actor for 15 years and prior to this worked in TV news.

Kate Dow: Kate is an experienced Producer, Line Producer, Assistant Director and Head of Production with over 7 years’ experience in the entertainment industry. She has worked on a wide range of projects, including independent feature films, unscripted factual, outside broadcast, children’s television, period comedy and sponsored YouTube productions. Her producorial debut came with director Jack Spring’s Destination: Dewsbury. The film was shot for £150,000 and was a critical success upon release. Kate’s other credits include SAS: Red Notice, The Show, In The Long Run, To Olivia and The Witchfinder.

Archie Sinclair: Producer Archie Sinclair who grew up in Towcester is a Director of Grey Moth, a film studio bridging the gap between grassroots filmmaking and commercial production based in South East London. Since 2013 Grey Moth has delivered meaningful content to clients from a diverse range of industries. They’ve made work for the BBC, Chanel, Universal Music, Asics, University of the Arts London and the Royal Horticultural Society. In 2020 they launched Grey Moth Originals, an initiative where their profits are invested directly in emerging talent, original ideas and our community.

The judges for the Documentary category were:

Simisolaoluwa Akande, a Kettering-based filmmaker. From Nigeria to England, Simisolaoluwa Akande’s fascination with the art of storytelling crossed continents before expressing itself through film. Now a multi-award-winning filmmaker, her films embrace a deeply collaborative approach to storytelling that provides black stories the space to be told and retold. After graduating from the University of Warwick with a BA in Film and Literature, Simisolaoluwa continues to navigate the film industry and continue to develop her craft. Her recent documentary The Archive: Queer Nigerians, won Best Short at the BFI London Film Festival 2023, Best Documentary at Norwich Film Festival and was Longlisted at BIFA.

Yen Yau: Originally from Corby, Yen is the Director of Training Programmes for The Grierson Trust, where she is responsible for developing and extending the organisation’s profile and support of new voices for the documentary genre and providing training opportunities for under-represented groups in the sector. She is an Exec Board member of Create Central, the screen-industries facing body for the West Midlands; and is a member of The Documentary Film Council, and The Royal Television Society. A great believer in mentoring, she supports new entrants and young people at the London Screen Academy, Social Mobility Foundation and Film London.

Josh Monie: Josh is an award-winning filmmaker who specialises in telling stories of adventure, travel and human endeavour. His career spans over a decade and has seen him craft documentaries & commercials for some of the world’s most respected brands, including National Geographic, Stella Artois, Dr. Martens and more. His latest projects include ‘Above The Noise’, a documentary short featuring Red Bull skydiver Maja Kuczynska, and a yet-to-be-titled travel show for National Geographic, set against a backdrop of some of the planet’s most extreme environments.

The judges for the Drama category were:

Leopold Hughes, who was born in Northampton, has worked on some truly brilliant productions, and now lives in the US working for Rian Johnson’s T-Street Productions. His credits include Producer credits on all 3 Knives Out films and ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi‘ as well as Assistant to Producer credits including ‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation‘, ‘Red 2‘ and ‘Serena‘.

Karen Bryson MBE: Her multi-award winning career spans over 25 years, across various multi-media platforms, both in front of the camera and more recently behind it. She made her directorial debut with award winning short film Monochromatic, which is enjoying success on the festival circuit playing at BIFA, BAFTA and Oscar qualifying festivals in the UK and U.S. Monochromatic was part of the Northampton Film Festivals official selection in 2024. Karen is looking forward to seeing all the films entering in 2025.

Alexzandra Jackson: Alexzandra is a Production Manager and Talent Development facilitator, a 2024 Women in Film & TV mentoring awardee, and an Outstanding Woman in Arts, Media, and Music nominee for the East Midlands Women Awards 2024. She has developed projects that have attracted investment from BFI, Innovate UK, and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Each project she designs is built on principles of equity and creative and environmental justice, ensuring storytellers have the support they need to succeed. Her work is dedicated to levelling the playing field so as many people as possible can access and enjoy bold, engaging, and innovative stories and work. Alexzandra was a BFI NETWORK Talent Executive from 2018-2023, working to discover and develop early-career filmmakers in the Midlands region. There, she Exec Produced 35 short films and developed 19 features. Before this, she led the talent programme for Phoenix Cinema and lectured on Professional Practice in the UK Film Industry at De Montfort University. With a background in development, production, exhibition and education, her career focus is accessibility in and to film and art.

Judges for the 16yrs and Under/17-23yrs New Filmmakers categories were:

Cat White: Northamptonian Cat is an award-winning actor, author, filmmaker, activist and founder/CEO of Kusini Productions. She has been honoured as a member of the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, long-listed for AllBright’s ‘Innovative Trailblazer Award’, heralded as one of ‘Five Activists Who Should Be On Your Radar ’by the Trouble Club (previous speakers including Gloria Steneim and Margaret Atwood), is a BAFTA connect member and We Are Parable/Channel 4 Momentum alumni. She can be seen in Viaplay / Channel 4’s Threesome (S1 & 2), Amazon Prime’s Ten Percent, BBC/Netflix’s Dracula. She recently joined the Royal Shakespeare Company on Sir Gregory Doran’s swan-song production of Cymbeline and was selected from thousands of applicants to be a Director’s Mentee on Black Mirror, working alongside Ally Pankiw (I Used To Be Funny, The Great, Schitt’s Creek.) Through Kusini Productions she has produced a highly successful slate of multi-award winning films including B’Oscar winner Fifty-Four Days, which she also wrote, co-directed and starred in alongside Celia Imrie. Fifty-Four Days was selected for over 50 film festivals worldwide, garnering nominations and awards at BAFTA, Oscar and BIFA qualifying festivals as well as the African Academy Awards and community screenings at schools, museums and theatres. It is now available to watch on all American Airlines flights. Her debut book This Thread of Gold, named by the New Statesman as an essential book for 2023, as the i’s non-fiction book of the month and “extraordinary” by Afua Hirsch, was published in the UK in 2023 to critical acclaim and is forthcoming in the USA in summer 2024 from Penguin Random House. She was selected by Meta for their illustrious Author Programme. She recently announced that she has adapted the final chapter of This Thread of Gold for screen and will direct it as a hand-drawn animated film starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw. Exclusively announced in Variety, the project was awarded funding from the Uncertain Kingdom’s Belief Grant, was ‘Honourably Mentioned ’by Jodie Whittaker/Primetime’s Empower Fund and is being produced by Emmy® winning & BAFTA nominated Lupus Films. Her debut feature is in pre-production and she is currently developing her debut TV series – female-led thriller The Primes, the feature length version of Fifty-Four Days, a doc series on Black womanhood, and writing her second non-fiction book and debut novel.

Liza Rhea: Originally from Northampton UK, Liza moved to the US in 2008 and headed to the UCLA Animation Workshop to gain my MFA in Animation. Over the past fifteen years she’s worked in Theatre, Television, and Feature Film at places like Nickelodeon, DreamWorks, and the Walt Disney Animation Studios, among others. She has directed a short film for Disney called No.2 to Kettering, which streamed on Disney+. She is currently a Senior CG Environment Artist at LAIKA and based in LA.

The Director’s Take: Whether it’s our own filmmaking journeys or deep-dives into craft with industry guests, The Directors’ Take Podcast, hosted by Oz Arshad and Marcus Anthony Thomas, offers a look behind-the-curtain to demystify what it takes to Direct Film & TV at the highest level. But, it’s not only about directing. Our guests are from all areas of the Film & TV business, ranging from commissioners, wellbeing charities, development, production, post-production & sales agents. Marcus’ work has screened at several BAFTA and Oscar qualifying festivals and in 2021 he took part in a 16month mentorship scheme shadowing all four Directors on HBOs House of the Dragon. He has since created The Directors’ Take Podcast and his most recent short film, a Sci-Fi called SPACE PLUG made in partnership with Disney UK x NFTS, premiered at BFI London Film Festival 2023. Born and raised in Halifax, West Yorks. Oz attended the National Film and Television School’s Diverse Directors program, earning recognition for his work. He joined Warner Media’s Director Mentorship Program, spending 17 months on HBO’s ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 1 and is mentored by Miguel Sapochnik. His recent short ’Opening Up’ is having a successful festival run and is now BAFTA and BIFA qualifying. Oz was also selected for the BBC Studios and Directors UK Continuing Drama Directors workshop 2022. In July 2024 he is part of Directors UK Inspire programme where he will be mentored by director Tessa Hoffe (Gangs of London, KIN). Oz is part of BAFTA Connect.

Judges for the 2024 competitions

Micallar Walker, the Founder of Dark Matter, an inclusive marketing agency that works collaboratively to connect Black audiences with a broad range of films, books and cinema projects. Formerly Head of Marketing for Front Row Filmed Entertainment, and Head of Events for Picturehouse Cinemas prior to that, she brings 20 years of film and marketing experience to inform strategies and shape authentic campaigns. www.darkmatteragency.co.uk

Tré Ventour-Griffiths, a Northampton-based autistic-dyspraxic creative, public historian, sociologist, writer, speaker, consultant, and freelance educator whose work can be broadly contained under Black British histories, neurodiversity, intersectionality, film and television, and insurgent politics. https://linktr.ee/treventoured

Emily Almond Barr,a multi award winning DP from Australia. In 2021 Emily was nominated for a BAFTA Cymru for her Documentary cinematography. Recent productions are dark romantic comedy for Sky Atlantic “The Lovers”, political action drama “Cobra” Series 3, period drama “Sanditon” for ITV (Series 2 & 3) and the BFI feature “Sweetheart.” www.emilyalmondbarr.com

Tyla Sharp, a Northampton Producer who has recently joined the board of Northampton Film Festival. At the centre of his work are narrative short dramas, featuring BAFTA-nominated actors and new emerging talent. Tyla produced his first short film at the age of 19, which was acquired by Channel 4. Since then, he has found a love for creative producing and, as well as a passion for storytelling, he has a passion for breaking out of the mould and achieving whatever it is the heart desires. www.tylasharp.co.uk

Toby Wharton, a filmmaker from South East London, with a strong acting background, whose short ‘Held’ won Best Sketchy-Link-to-Northamptonshire in the drama category in 2023. He is passionate about making intimate, character driven stories with a social commentary. Throughout his teenage years, Toby was an MC on the UK Garage music scene. He then went on to study acting at RADA and has performed extensively on stage and screen. He co-wrote and played the title role in the critically acclaimed play, FOG, published by Methuen Drama. Toby’s BFI Network short, Held, is currently hitting the festivals and he’s been shortlisted for a 1.4 award. He’s now in post-production on his most recent short, Exchange, and is developing his first feature with Joi Productions and Sona Films. Toby regularly teaches acting at various institutions, including Bronzefield Women’s Prison and RADA. Toby was recently selected as a Film London Lodestar for 2023. www.tobywharton.com

Emily Steele-Dias from Gateway Film Festival in Peterborough has worked as a freelance filmmaker, curator, and arts producer since 2018. She is an internationally screened filmmaker whose work primarily focuses on local communities, heritage and unheard stories. Emily founded the organisation Cine-Sister in 2017 which showcases and promotes films with women filmmakers in a leadership role. She is also the festival director of the Gateway Film Festival which launched in 2019 and aims to celebrate local history, and community, often mixing film with other art forms such as dance, music and poetry engaging a range of people across the wider Peterborough area. In 2023, Gateway Film Festival was selected as the Film Hub South East BFI Spotlight Location 2023-2026.

Enrico Tessarin, an award-winning writer, producer with 20 years of experience working in Film, TV, documentary and advertising. He has worked as a Producer/Line-producer/Co-producer on projects for Amazon, Universal, BBC, AL Jazeera and many others, gathering an Emmy nomination, a United Nations award and many other awards and nominations from festivals all over the world. He has also been a Film Professor at The Master in Producing run by Royal Holloway university since 2018. He has previously taught at London Film Academy, Metropolitan Film School and many others. PINCHmedia (pinch-media.com)

Giorgia Cecconi, a rising star in film production and content creation. Giorgia, has been in London for the last decade developing a strong media and business background. An actor, presenter and screenwriter, she is the creative force behind ‘Shorts 2 Features‘ social media presence, acting as the key Digital creator on Instagram, Facebook and Linkedin. Her roots in Italy infuse her work with passion for cinema, theatre, the art of storytelling and interviewing creatives about their craft.

Dr Audrey Tang, Advisory Board member for NFF, is a Chartered Psychologist (British Psychological Society), and award-winning business author with a focus on practical tools for wellbeing. She founded Wellbeing Media Studio broadcasting her show “Mental Health Matters” globally from Feb 2024 while also providing a media platform to the local community. She created The Wellbeing Lounge on NLiveRadio (winning 2nd place Female Presenter of the Year 2022 & 2023, Community Radio Awards), hosts award-winning podcast ‘Retrain Your Brain for Success’, and provided psychology contribution to Channel 4’s “Don’t Diet Lose Weight”, and The Chrissy B Show (Sky). She is a long-time advocate for boosting mental and emotional fitness within the community through her work with CLICK Productions (a theatre group she founded in 1993) offering opportunities to build confidence, boost self-value and learn new skills through shows and performing arts events which she has now turned into the Charity CLICK Arts Foundation.

Tom Dream, a Margate-based director. Tom collaborates closely with artists to create truly original music videos, documentaries, and fashion films. He has created work for Gucci, Nowness, High Snobiety, and artists Arlo Parks, Art School Girlfriend and Celeste. Tom recently signed to Black Dog Films in the UK, and is currently bringing his expertise in filming high-profile music documentaries to long-form human interest features in development this year, including a feature length music documentary about moshing and the return of live music.

Andrei Austin, a Northampton-based Director of Photography and Camera Operator. Andrei’s credits include DoP on Waking the Dead, Jack Eve’s Death of a Farmer and local Director Mitch Jenkin’s short A Heavy Heart, plus 2nd Unit DoP on the BBC’s The Musketeers and Sky One/HBO’s Strike Back as well as Camera Op and Steadicam credits on A Haunting in Venice, The Witcher, The Man Who Fell To Earth, Belfast, Death on the Nile, The Dark Crystal and Outlander.

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Judges for the 2023 competitions

16 and Under: Disney’s Liza Rhea, Director Marcus Anthony Thomas, both originally from Northamptonshire, and Royal Television Society Midlands Chair and BBC Exec Kuljinder Khaila.

Fiction/drama category: Knives Out and Star Wars Episode VIII Producer Leopold Hughes, Broadcaster/Writer Andrew Collins, both from Northampton, Head of Development Dionne Farrell (B-Side, BBC Films, BFI) and Director of Photography Lolly Michaels who is also Founder of #WomenCreateToo.

Documentary category: Director of international Aesthetica Short Film Festival and Aesthetica Magazine Cherie Federico, BAFTA Breakthrough 2022/23 Paul Sng and Screen International Star of Tomorrow 2020 Ella Glendining.

Liza Rhea from Laika, originally from Northampton. Read more here.

NFTS graduate Director Marcus Anthony Thomas, originally from Wellingborough. Read more here.

Kuljinder Khaila started out as a runner at BBC Pebble Mill Studios in Birmingham before working across daytime, shiny-floor shows, music, comedy, factual entertainment, documentaries and feature films at the BBC. Kully set up his own independent production company making content for BBC Radio, and worked with a number of commercial companies on developing content and talent before returning to the BBC. He worked with Arts Council England/BBC, helping arts organisations embrace opportunities around digital disruption with The Space project. More recently Kully was Executive Producer of BBC One’s Sunday Morning Live, before moving to the BBC Academy, where he now oversees young engagement projects for the BBC. Read more here.

Leopold Hughes, originally from Northampton. See his credits here.

Dionne Farrell is Head of Development at B-Side Productions, working across film and TV. She began her career working on a magazine youth show, What’s Up, then worked in factual before moving into script development, working for the likes of the BFI and BBC Film. Read more here.

Lolly is a London-based DOP. She has ample experience in working brands, influencers and other creatives to produce authentic, relatable and engaging content. 2022 saw her working with the likes of The Brits, Puma, Nike, Converse and Wray N Nephew, featuring talent such as Nella Rose, DTG and Nikita Parris to name a few. She also expands herself creatively by working on various camera teams as an a camera assistant (2nd AC) for commercial & film productions. Most recently she worked on ÓWÀMBÉ (developed and created as part of the Netflix Documentary Talent Fund) and The Ballad of Olive Morris which has just been shortlisted for Best British Short Film at this year’s BAFTAs.

Lolly continually aims to challenge status quo by being a black female navigating within the film production industry. Being a strong advocate for women of colour who work in the industry, she built a platform to empower the community called #WomenCreateToo. It launched in March 2020, and fast-forward a few months later was supported by Superdrug, after she won the 2020 ‘Faces of the Future’ competition. Visit her website here.

Cherie Federico is Director of Aesthetica Short Film Festival and the internationally-selling Aesthetica Magazine. She co-founded Aesthetica Magazine in 2003 and since then the magazine has become one of the leading British art and culture publications with 500,000 readers across print, digital and social media, and is exported to 20 countries. Aesthetica Short Film Festival is a BAFTA-Qualifying festival and screens films in York City Centre from over 40 countries, as well as attracting key industry from across with sector. Plus she is the Director of the Aesthetica Art Prize, which champions new talent and has 4,500 applications with artists from across the world with artists going on to be commissioned by Absolut Vodka, Channel 4 and participate in biennales and exhibitions worldwide. Visit the ASFF website here.

Paul Sng is a bi-racial British Chinese filmmaker based in Edinburgh, Scotland whose work focuses on people who challenge the status quo. His work has been broadcast on television and screened internationally, and his feature film credits include DISPOSSESSION and POLY STYRENE: I AM A CLICHE (winner of BIFA 2021 Best Documentary, BIFA 2021 Raindance Discovery Award and nominated for several Best Documentary awards including BAFTA and Grierson). He is a BAFTA Breakthrough 2022/23 artist. Read more about Paul on the BAFTA website here.

Ella Glendining is a Writer/Director dedicated to telling authentic disabled stories. She works in both documentary and fiction and has written/directed short films with backing from Film4, the BFI, Arts Council England, Screen South, and the National Paralympic Heritage Trust. Ella has recently completed her first feature film, ‘Is There Anybody Out There?’, a personal documentary about her search for others with the same rare disability as her, supported by BFI Doc Society, Chicken and Egg Pictures and Creative Scotland, and produced by Janine Marmot. Ella is currently developing a historical drama feature for the BFI with disabled characters at its core, produced by Janine Marmot. She currently has a short comedy-drama in post-production called ‘Pyramid of Disunion’ which she wrote, co-directed with Jessi Gutch, and starred in, produced by Justin Edgar for Film4. Ella was a member of the BFI’s Disability Screen Advisory Group from 2018 – 2022. Ella was named one of Screen International’s Stars of Tomorrow 2020. Ella has recently qualified as an Access Coordinator, a new role created to ensure disabled people involved in Film / TV productions get their access needs met. Read more about her here.

Judges for the previous 2022 competition: Actress Callie Cooke, Producer Jim Mooney of EMU Films + Kerrie Cosh of BBC Radio Northampton

Northampton-raised actress Callie Cooke graduated drama school in 2016. Her credits include Firebird (Hampstead Theatre & Trafalgar Studios West End) which she was nominated for an ‘Emerging Talent’ Evening Standard award, Britannia (Sky), The Stranger (Netflix), Rules of the Game (BBC), Cheaters (BBC) and is currently shooting Wedding Season for Disney Plus.

Producer Jim Mooney is one of the founding partners of EMU Films which has some impressive projects under their belt from Mangrove, Lovers Rock, and Education with Steve McQueen, to The Goob, Jawbone and Sacha Polak’s Dirty God, not to mention Northampton’s own The Show.

Kerrie Cosh, BBC Introducing for Northamptonshire.

Judges for 2021 Short Film competition: Actor Julie Hesmondhalgh, Comedian Hugh Dennis and Actor Colin Salmon

Northamptonshire-born comedian, writer and actor Hugh Dennis is the first judge to be announced on the panel of this year’s Northampton Film Festival short film competition. Hugh Dennis began his performing career in 1985 as one half of double act ‘Punt and Dennis’. Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis have just released Series 56 of ‘The Now Show’ on BBC Radio 4. Hugh’s has starred in BBC1’s Outnumbered, Not Going Out and Mock the Week.

And our second judge is actor Colin Salmon. Colin’s mum was from Northamptonshire and he spent a lot of his childhood playing in and around the River Nene. His film credits include Mortal Engines, London has Fallen, Resident Evil, Exam and 3 James Bond movies. TV includes award winning Prime Suspect 2, No Offence, Arrow, Some Girls, Limitless, Krypton and Intelligence.

And Julie Hesmondhalgh becomes the third person to join this year’s Northampton Film Festival short film competition judging panel alongside comedian Hugh Dennis and actor Colin Salmon. Julie’s credits including current series The Trouble with Maggie Cole, Castastrophe, Doctor Who, Broadchurch for which she was nominated for a BAFTA, Happy Valley, Inside No. 9 and of course Coronation Street for which she won Best Serial Drama Performance for her role as Hayley Cropper at the 2014 National Television Awards.

Becky Adams, Director of Screen Northants which runs the festival says, “My business partner and I were driving in to Screen Northants late last year and caught Hayley’s ‘Only Artists’ on BBC Radio 4. She was discussing with poet Tony Walsh how much of a closed shop the Creative Industries can feel if you don’t see people like yourself working in them. You need to be able to “see it to be it” and this is exactly this reason that Northampton Film Festival and Screen Northants exist, so we knew we had to ask Julie to be a judge this year.”

Meet our panel of judges from 2019:

Alan Moore, born in Northampton in 1953, is a writer, performer, recording artist, activist and magician. His comic-book work includes Lost Girls (2009) with Melinda Gebbie, From Hell (1991) with Eddie Campbell and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (for which he won a Bram Stoker Award in 2000) with Kevin O’Neill. He has worked with director Mitch Jenkins on the Show Pieces cycle of short films and on forthcoming feature film The Show, while his novels include Voice of the Fire (1996) and his epic Jerusalem (2016). He lives in Northampton with his wife and collaborator Melinda Gebbie.

Photographer and Director Mitch Jenkins is a visual storyteller who specialises in filmic, narrative-driven work. Most recently Mitch Jenkins directed EMU Productions’ BFI and Lex Records-backed feature film The Show in Northampton, written by the revered comic book writer Alan Moore. The ongoing partnership with Alan is built on the pair’s complementary skillsets, shared artistic vision and mutual love of Northampton.

Mitch started his career at the Chronicle and Echo before photographing celebrities for the Times and Sunday Times Magazines in London, shooting the likes of David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen and Patrick Stewart. During the last 10 years he has been shooting advertising campaigns all over the world, along with producing key art for major TV Networks. In recent years he has also been part of rebranding both the A&E Network and BSKYB.

Editor Colin Goudie grew up in Northamptonshire and was a Foundation course Art student for two years at Northampton’s Nene College. His credits include Rogue One – A Star Wars story, the award-winning sci-fi film Monsters, the BAFTA winning Between the Lines as well as TV movies Attila the Hun, Lusitania, Murder on the Atlantic and Holy Cross for which he won the RTS Award for Best Drama Editor. He has given Q&A’s around the world including at BAFTA, the National Film Theatre and Skywalker Ranch.

Rebekah Louisa Smith runs The Film Festival Doctor, the name a nod to her academic past. Rebekah has a PhD in Film and Audience research. The company- which has offices in London and Los Angeles- has helped win over 500 awards for their clients and her team have supported over 585 creatives across the world.

In 2018, Rebekah worked extensively on the feature length documentary George Michael Freedom: The Director’s Cut which has been screened at over 25 international festivals. It has won 5 awards and was shown in competition at the 26th Raindance Film Festival.

The Film Festival Doctor has assisted on triumphant film festival and awards campaigns for Martin Kemp’s Stalker, The Boy With A Camera For A Face (45 festivals and 13 awards), Commune (30 festivals including the BAFTA-qualifying London Short Film Festival), the BAFTA- shortlisted documentary Noma: Forgiving Apartheid and the South African long-listed Oscar entry film Kalushi: The Story Of Solomon Mahlangu.

The Film Festival Doctor’s production arm is also working on a number of full length horror movie projects with an array of Great British talent.