The College of West Anglia has helped bring a locally produced short film to life after opening its state-of-the-art nursing training facilities to filmmakers shooting a key hospital scene.
Memoir, written by College of West Anglia Learner Support Officer Holly Trundle, was filmed partly at the college’s School of Nursing Studies in King’s Lynn and was screened at the Fakenham Film Festival last weekend, showcasing a unique collaboration between education, the creative industries and the local community.
The 12-minute drama explores themes of isolation, trauma and recovery. The production brought together partners from across Norfolk and Cambridgeshire, including the College of West Anglia, Anglia Ruskin University, Nine Lives Theatre Company and Welle Film Productions.
When the production team needed an authentic hospital setting for a critical emergency scene, Holly turned to CWA’s School of Nursing Studies after attending a first aid course led by the Head of the School of Nursing Adrian Debney.
The college’s specialist nursing simulation suite, complete with realistic clinical equipment and hospital-standard training environments, provided the perfect setting for filming a crash victim sequence.
Adrian Debney, the Head of the School of Nursing Studies, said: “We were delighted to support Holly and the wider production team. Our nursing facilities are designed to replicate real healthcare environments as closely as possible, so they provided an ideal location for this scene. It’s fantastic to see different parts of the local community coming together in this way and to help bring a creative project with strong local connections to the screen.”
The project also created opportunities for collaboration across different sectors, connecting further education, higher education, theatre and independent film production. CWA Media Make-up students were also given the opportunity to gain experience of a live film production environment, helping them develop practical skills and strengthen their creative portfolios. As well as the main role, Alex Fuller, a music student currently studying at CWA.
For Holly, the support of the college played a key role in transforming a screenplay written during her creative writing studies into a completed film production. Holly, Learner Support Officer, added, “It’s very exciting to have ‘Memoir’ in the Fakenham Film Festival’s screening itinerary, as one of a selection of independent films with links to Norfolk. ‘Memoir’ is definitely eligible, with; Welle Film Productions, the screenwriter, three of the five cast members and the settings all being Norfolk-based.
“We were very fortunate to have the excellent CWA School of Nursing Studies facilities made available to us for filming a hospital scene. The opportunity for Media Make-up students to gain practical film experience was a bonus.”
The film is also set to receive a premiere screening at Luxe Cinema in Wisbech and will be submitted to wider film festival audiences.
The college also plans to host a screening of Memoir in its own cinema facility, celebrating a project that demonstrates the value of collaboration between education providers, creative organisations and the wider community.
Writer of Memoir and Learning Support Officer at the College of West Anglia, Holly Trundle at the Fakenham Film Festival.