Leverhulme Trust Partners With Student Science Filmmakers

One of the first units students work on during their training on the National Film and Television School Directing and Producing Science and Natural History (SNH) MA is ‘Science Documentary: Producing the Science Story’. The unit provides a vital introduction to the skills required to make science documentaries, a genre that has become increasingly popular with audiences worldwide.

Working collaboratively, the students must produce a short film based on an interview. They work across the entire production process including research, camera operation and directing, conducting an interview with a subject, editing and post-production.

To optimise the search for suitable subjects for these films the National Film and Television School called on a close supporter, The Leverhulme Trust, a national grant-making organisation and major funder of UK science. A group from Leverhulme, led by the trust’s director Professor Anna Vignoles, showcased to our students a number of inspiring Leverhulme funded research projects and researchers.

From stereoscopic imaging to volcanology, the students interviewed these Leverhulme funded researchers on fascinating topics, producing a series of engaging short films. Check out a few of the films below to see the incredible quality of work students are supported to make on the NFTS Science and Natural History MA.

Shifting Skins

Synopsis

Professor Daniel Robert investigates what can be discovered when we explore science and nature from new perspectives.



"It was a pleasure to have the chance to talk to Professor Daniel Robert about his research, his fascination with perception was infectious.” Felix



Directed and Produced by Felix Prater and Tushar Bhojwani

Editing and Composition by Felix Prater

Oppenheimer or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Volcano

Synopsis

Featuring Clive Oppenheimer, professor of volcanology, this film explores the links between volcanoes and the beginning of life on earth.



“Working with Clive Oppenheimer was an absolute delight! His expertise in volcanology is unparalleled, and I thoroughly enjoyed absorbing his wealth of knowledge on the subject. An enriching experience.” Somerset



Directed and Produced by Somerset McGourty and Helen Lambert

Editing by Somerset McGourty

 

Mantis Theatre

Synopsis

Professor Jenny Read and Dr Vivek Nityananda explain stereoscopic vision theories and experiments with praying mantis.



Directed and Produced by Link Kraft and Thomas Cassar

Editing by Link Kraft

 

-

NFTS Head of Science and Natural History Peter Leonard said; “The results – as you can see – were a resounding success. This was, for many of our students, the first piece of professional standard TV they had produced, so the fact that it’s far from obvious in the finished result speaks volumes for their emerging talent.”

Historically very separate disciplines in the industry, the boundaries between ‘science’ and ‘natural history’ filmmaking are becoming increasingly blurred and the NFTS Science and Natural History MA is further seeking to remove the either/or aspect by training our students to industry-standard across both pathways.

The National Film and Television School would like to thank Leverhulme, as well as the researchers, for their collaboration on this project and for continued support of the School. Since 2001 the Leverhulme Trust has awarded scholarships to over 120 National Film and Television School students, providing life-changing training opportunities for students to pursue their dream of a career in the creative industries, irrespective of their financial background.