Focus Film Festival 2015: for aspiring young film makers

Opportunities for young people to find their feet in the film industry are few and far between. Enter the 2015 Focus Film Festival - aimed specifically at budding film makers between 12-18 years old. For three days his Barbican-based initiative is turning the Capital into an illustrious creative hub, promoting filmmaking for and by teenagers.

What’s on at the Focus Film Festival?

Of the many events spanning three days between the 12-15 March, these are the highlights:

Workshops for those who wish to learn on the job are being held by Chocolate Films Pop Up Media Studio. Participants learn to create their own 'mini films' in a temporary studio and post-production facility. This will be a unique opportunity to meet industry professionals and acquire key technical skills.

A talk aimed at aspiring 'YouTubers' giving advice on creating successful online content (and proving that the Barbican is down with the kids): Like. Comment. Subscribe is on the 15 March.

There is a BAFTA presented Q & A with industry experts discussing the mechanics great visual effects. On the 14 March.

Pick it, Plot it, Pitch it is a beginner’s guide to creating stories from the screen. Young adults learn what aspiring screenwriters struggle with for years, as writer and director James Walker from Young Film Academy introduces the basic pillars of visual storytelling structure, from The Odyssey to Avatar via Finding Nemo and The Lord of the Rings. 14 March.

Best new films

A selection of shorts sent in by young directors will be screened at the Barbican's Cinema Cafe and Bar on the 14 and 15 of March. Films are about adolescent experience from around the world. Even the judging panel are under 25 - themselves participants of collaborating scheme the Barbican Young Programmers.

Best new release films

Favourite films dealing with adolescent experience also being screened this weekend include: Danny's Doomsday is a Danish fantasy-horror about two teenage brothers who hate each other and have to join forces to avoid being killed by flesh eating monsters, starring Lars Mikkelsen (Sherlock, The Killing). Showing on 14 March at 12pm.

We Are The Best! is a Swedish coming of age film following the tribulations of three talentless yet tenacious teenage girls forming a punk band. Showing on 14 March at 2pm.

Baby Blues, directed by Kasia Roslanie will be premiering in the UK. It centres on a 17-year-old mother looking to dismantle teen parenthood stereotypes. It won Best Feature Film at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, and remains a unique and inspiring film. Showing on 14 March at 4.15pm.

Pure, featuring Alicia Vikander (in her features screen début as 20-year-old Katarina, who fears she will end up like her mother: unemployed, broke and alcoholic. Watch a girl discovering her identity in this accomplished Swedish drama. Showing 15 March 12pm.

UK premiere of Keep Rollin' is an authentic coming of age story that takes you on a joyous ride into the world of disability with rebellious teen confined to a wheelchair. Showing 15 March 4pm.

Closing the festival is a special preview of the multi-award winning French drama Girlhood, featuring the spellbinding debut of cast-from-the-street Karidja Toure as the free-spirited Marieme. Showing 15 March 6.15pm.

Whatever you pick, the Focus Film Festival is a wonderful event offering industry access and inspiration for aspiring young filmmakers.