From Wolverhampton chippy to international film festival

From a Wolverhampton chip shop to the big screens of Montreal, a filmmaker is getting ready for a star turn at an international festival.

Lauren Riley, 20, wrote and directed the short film 'Salt 'n' Malt', which has been selected for the YoungCuts Film Festival in Canada.

Shot at Pennfields Plaice fish and chip shop, the three-minute film follows the 'larger than life' characters who use the chippy on a daily basis.

Members of the Wolverhampton Central Youth Theatre (CYT) produced the film, with a £5,000 grant from Into Films.

They worked on all aspects of the production including starring on screen, helping with technical production in sound and camera operation, and editing.

Miss Riley, a CYT member-turned-director, said she approached company director Jane Ward with an idea she had for a short film, inspired by her part-time job at a fish and chip shop as a teen.

After securing £5000 funding from Into Films, the comedy took several months to put together - including whittling the finished product down to three minutes from the 67-minute director's cut.

Miss Riley said: "It is a Wolverhampton-based comedy with Wolverhampton accents. I wrote it because I am very keen to get Wolverhampton on the map. As a young person I am very proud of where I am from."

Jetting off to the Quebec city on Monday, sponsored by the James Beattie Trust, Miss Riley and CYT project manager Joe Twilley will be rubbing shoulders with other filmmakers and industry insiders at the event.

Mr Twilley, who was also a member of CYT as a teenager, said the film had been a great opportunity for the young people who had starred in the film and worked behind the scenes with professional filmmakers.

"It is great their work is getting shown internationally as well."

The YoungCuts Film Festival was founded in 2001, and is estimated to have the largest global reach of film festivals in its category.

More than 1000 films were entered in this year's event, with the best 100 selected to screen at the festival, from 17 countries.

'Salt 'n' Malt' has previously won the collaboration award at The DIGIs, Wolverhampton's digital media awards, and the 'Round my Corner' award at the National Youth Film Festival in London.

Miss Riley has already written the sequel, 'Cod Almighty', and hopes to get funding to make the 30-minute episode which sees health inspectors visit the chippy.