'Straight Shooters'
The red carpet was rolled out in December 2007 at the Victoria Theatre in Halifax for the premiere of ‘Straight Shooters’. Straight Shooters was a series of short films created by young people who have been on the wrong side of the law or who might find themselves there. During the evening young people completing reparation were also preparing and serving special non-alcoholic cocktails.

Earlier in the year Richard Shaw, a local filmmaker who has worked on Hollyoaks and is now making short films, ran a creative filmmaking project in Halifax. During the project, which took place in the summer holidays, the participants had discussions about what films they enjoyed and, more importantly, why. The group was then introduced to basic camera techniques. They collaborated on a scene, improvised around a given object and filmed the result. They then developed scenes and full monologues based on their own experiences; again, some were acting, while others operated the cameras and recorded sound.



The group was then taken to Bradford to a professional editing suite. They worked on the film they felt most ownership over, whether as writer, actor or director. Out of this came a DVD complete with menu, behind the scenes footage and picture gallery. The finished footage included a film poem on Halifax, a spoken word piece about what is important to young people as well as a short documentary on a local business chosen by the young film-makers.



Richard said, “the project has been a great success and I feel strongly that the young people have gained more than just knowledge about how to use a camera. They have learned to empathise with characters, both fictional and real, as well as to ask questions and use their time creatively.”



Positive Activities for Young People and the Prince’s Trust funded the project.