The UK’s Screen Cornwall has revealed the first four recipients of its feature film development scheme for projects in the Cornish language, Kernewek, made by local creative talent.
Callum Mitchell, who was the assistant director on Mark Jenkin’s Bait and Enys Men, has written Lanow (Rising Tide). A 10-year old boy and his father, both victims of a housing crisis, cherish one last summer in their home. Simon Nicholls of Spike Productions produces.
Dedhyow Tesen (Cake Days) follows a young woman is determined to help her terminally ill father complete his bucket list before it’s too late, unaware he has not been entirely honest with her. Julie Norgaard Jensen is the screenwriter, who hails from Cornwall. She has written for upcoming series Amma Assante’s Smilla’s Sense Of Snow. A Cornish producer is in negotiation.
Poll Pri (Clay Pit) is a generational drama set in the clay tips and villages of mid Cornwall, and is written and directed by Cornwall’s Edward Rowe, best known for his performance in Mark Jenkin’s Bait. Rowe teams up with South West-based producer Bex Rose, through production company Delvrys.
Estren Hi (Alien She) unfurls as a 12-year-old girl discovers a dead body, and adopts his hardcore punk identity. Mathy Tremewan, a director of music videos and commercials, and Fran Broadhurst are writing and directing. It is co-produced by My Accomplice, whose credits include documentaries Nasconidno and 8 Bar-The Evolution Of Grime. All four projects will be supported up to the detailed treatment stage. Two will then go on to receive further funding to reach script stage, with writer and producer fees covered.Screen Cornwall was set up in 2019 to grow the screen sector economy in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. The scheme was made feasible by PS150,000 in funding from the devolution agreement for Cornwall, signed between the government and Cornwall Council in 2023. It covers shorts, facts and features. The total pot for the feature film development scheme, including some UK shared prosperity funding, is PS42,000
“This scheme is all about strengthening authentic media representation for Cornwall by enabling distinctive stories to be told in Kernewek, and we look forward to working with these talented filmmaking teams,” said Laura Giles, Screen Cornwall managing director.
Denzil Monk, consulting executive producer for Screen Cornwall’s feature film development scheme and producer of
Bait
and Enys Men, added: “These commissions are a crucial step towards providing a more pluralist and representative public service media that recognises and celebrates Cornish distinctiveness and will have a transformative impact on our burgeoning indigenous screen sector. Splann yw!”UK Shadow Culture Secretary Thangam Debbonaire outlines Labour’s vision of creative industries
