Tag: open for applications

The Sean Connery Youth Talent Lab launches for applications

Unique new opportunity for young Scottish filmmakers

The Scottish Youth Film Foundation in partnership with The Sean Connery Foundation and the National Film and Television School are delighted to announce that in Summer 2025 they will be running The Sean Connery Youth Talent Lab. 

The summer school will take place near Alness in the Highlands (close to Ardross Castle where ‘The Traitors’ series is filmed) and will be free to all participants.

Designed to mirror and complement the Sean Connery Talent Lab which is coming to the end of its first year, the Youth Talent Lab will take the form of a week-long residential summer school where 12 participants will be guided through a compressed version of the original Talent Lab.

The Foundation are looking for the most talented young Scots, aged between 17 and 22 years old, in the areas of directing, writing, acting, camera and editing to produce two short films of three minutes. The programme will run from the 15th to 21st June 2025. 

Individuals will be recruited through a nationwide call for applications, focusing on existing film access organisations, schools, and youth clubs. This approach will identify young people with a demonstrated interest in a film career, providing them with the opportunity to apply.

The Youth Talent Lab aims to work with talented young Scots at an even earlier stage in their careers and support them in pursuing further education and opportunities as they enter the industry.

Teaching staff will include professionals from the Scottish Youth Film Foundation, industry experts, and contributors from The Sean Connery Talent Lab, including Chris Young (Head of the Sean Connery Talent Lab) and Alison Goring (Head of NFTS Scotland).

The young filmmakers will also have the chance to learn from recent participants of the Talent Lab on what it takes to succeed as they strive to break into the industry.

Scott Mackay of SYFF commented: ‘We are honoured to be partnering NFTS and The Sean Connery Foundation in this project.

“SYFF has been promoting young talent since inception and this initiative will help further identify and promote talented young film makers from across Scotland.’

Alison Goring, Head of NFTS Scotland said: “Across the NFTS, we are dedicated to nurturing emerging filmmakers and creating pathways into the industry.

“The Sean Connery Youth Talent Lab presents an incredible opportunity to support young Scottish creatives at a crucial stage, equipping them with the skills, confidence and inspiration to pursue a future in filmmaking.

“Building on the success of the Sean Connery Talent Lab, we are proud to be part of this new initiative and excited to see the talent and creativity that will emerge over the summer.”

Stephane and Jason Connery, The Sean Connery Foundation added: “Our father was a self-taught professional who believed there’s no substitute for hands-on learning when mastering a craft.

“The Sean Connery Youth Talent Lab will give young Scots an immersive, practical environment to develop their skills, guided by passionate and dedicated mentors from SYFF.

“We’re thrilled to support this initiative, which will challenge young filmmakers to push themselves, collaborate, and take their talent to the next level.”

Applications are now open!

For more information and to apply, visit: www.syff.scot/scytl 

Edinburgh Community Climate Fund is now open for applications

THE Edinburgh Community Climate Fund (ECCF) has officially opened to applications from local groups across the city.

The initiative is designed to support the delivery of the Council’s climate change targets together with providing learning to inform the wider approach to participatory budgeting (PB). Participatory budgeting is a way for citizens to have a direct say on how money is spent. In Edinburgh, PB has been used as an approach to distribute funding since 2010.

The Edinburgh PB Framework was approved in 2021 which included a commitment to a number of PB initiatives including the ECCF.

The ECCF provides £100,000 of one-off funding which is available for local groups to undertake projects which align with the objectives of the Edinburgh Climate Strategy and goal of becoming a net-zero city by 2030. 

Groups can apply for up to £20,000 worth of funding, providing that the activities can be delivered within 12 months, do not replicate or replace a Council service, and are in line with at least one of the project’s aims.

Applications are open until midnight on 12 February. The final projects will then be shortlisted and put to a public vote. We hope to announce the results of the ECCF in mid-March.

To apply please visit the Your Voice webpage where you can download an application form.

Completed forms should be emailed to: communityplanning@edinburgh.gov.uk

For more information, please visit our Participatory Budgeting and the ECCF webpage.

There will be an in-person Application Support Drop-In at the City Chambers on 23 January between 10.00am-12 noon and 1.00pm-3.00pm.  

There will also be two online information sessions on 24 January between 6.30pm-7.30pm and 26 January from 10.00am -11.00am.

For further information or to book a place at these sessions please email: 

communityplanning@edinburgh.gov.uk

Council Leader Cammy Day said: “The Edinburgh Community Climate Fund is a brilliant opportunity for local groups across our fantastic capital city to make their voices heard on how this money should be spent, as we deliver on our key priorities.

“We have a bold and ambitious plan to become a net-zero city by 2030, alongside our wider Climate Strategy. Our citizens and communities should rightly be at the heart of this process. I am confident that in the ECCF projects, Edinburgh and her citizens will once again show the creativity, innovation, and care that we have so often seen over the years.

“I would also like to thank all the organisations and individuals who have contributed to the development of the ECCF.”

Criteria for the ECCF are set out below:

  • Creating opportunities for community leadership and learning on climate change.
  • Reducing greenhouse gas emissions within communities and contributing to the net-zero agenda for Edinburgh.
  • Generating sustainable projects for the benefit of local people to build resilience or adapt to climate change within communities. 
  • Building relationships between neighbourhoods of different socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds to work together on just, equitable and accessible climate and resilience activities contributing to the city’s net zero agenda, also ensuring that activities work towards reducing or removing barriers for disabled people in the transition to net-zero.