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Northampton special needs school creates women's rugby film

Martin Heath
BBC News, Northamptonshire
West Northamptonshire Council Participants in the project sitting in seats at Franklins GardensWest Northamptonshire Council
About 20 Bee Hive students took part in the project with Northampton Film Festival

The premiere has taken place of a film made by students with learning difficulties to promote women's rugby.

Pupils at The Bee Hive in Northampton have created the online trailer to mark next year's Women's Rugby World Cup.

Some of the games in the competition will be played at the Northampton Saints ground at Franklins Gardens.

About 20 sixth formers planned and produced the finished film, The Heart of the Game.

Ollie Conopo/BBC Poster for The Heart of the Game written by students from the Bee HiveOllie Conopo/BBC
The finished film will be shown in the run-up to next year's Women's Rugby World Cup

Students from The Bee Hive - the sixth form provision at Northgate Academy Trust - worked with Northampton Film Festival to produce the film.

Woman with medium-length blonde hair standing in front of Northampton Film Festival sign
Becky Carrier from Northampton Film Festival hopes the project will inspire the students to do their own filmmaking

Becky Carrier, the director of the festival, said: "We had about five weeks, which is a really short turnaround, to come up with an idea and get it filmed because we wanted to premiere it at Northampton Film Festival.

"Making a film on a really tight deadline, getting it out on a big screen and watching it together - hopefully that'll kickstart these young people into doing some stuff off their own backs now they've had a go."

Ollie Conopo/BBC Young man with short dark hair and glasses wearing a hooded coatOllie Conopo/BBC
Samuel, who wrote the film, said it had given him valuable experience of the film industry

Samuel, who wrote the film, said: "I think it gave me good experience in what it's like to work within film and getting to know a lot of the technical side of things as well, and also going through the whole writing process."

Ollie Conopo/BBC Young man with long dark hairOllie Conopo/BBC
Ryley wrote the music and said the project was "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity"

The film's composer, Ryley, said: "I've always been into music but when this opportunity came along, I knew for a fact I'd like to do this because it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and if I turned it down I would never get that again."

The film combines an inspirational poem with shots of Northampton and women's rugby.

The students have seen their work have its premiere on the big screen at the Northampton Film Festival, and it will be shown in cinemas in the run-up to the 2025 Women's World Cup.

Ollie Conopo/BBC Man with short dark hair and moustacheOllie Conopo/BBC
Mat Sentance, the deputy head of The Bee Hive, said he was very proud of his students

Mat Sentance, the deputy headteacher of The Bee Hive, said: "I can't put into words how proud I am just to see the film with all of the hard work that the students have put into it over the last six weeks.

"They've recognised and found skills that they've not necessarily realised that they've had."

"Having this shows them they can achieve anything."

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