Wales is 'powerhouse of young creative talent' with record film nominations
Wales has received seven nominations across 11 categories for the 2025 awards, the highest of any Celtic nation, with nominees from Cardiff, Conwy, Gwynedd, Merthyr Tydfil, and Swansea.
The nominees will attend the ceremony in London's Leicester Square on June 24.
Jack Sargeant, Welsh minister for culture, said: "Wales is showing itself to be a powerhouse of young creative talent, as can clearly be seen by the record-breaking number of Welsh nominees this year."
The Into Film Awards celebrate the creativity of young people in film and are supported by the UK film industry.
This year's nominations highlight the growing strength of Wales' film sector, following the recent success of productions like Netflix's Havoc and Mr Burton.
The nominated films reflect a wide range of perspectives and experiences.
Animated Voices, made by young people from ethnic minority backgrounds in Cardiff, explores their lives in the UK, while Mariupol tells the story of the war in Ukraine through the eyes of a displaced individual.
Non Stevens, head of Into Film Cymru, said: "We're thrilled to see diverse young Welsh voices achieving record-breaking recognition at this year's Into Film Awards.
"From Penygroes to Cardiff, from animation to documentary, these young creators are telling authentic stories with exceptional creativity and technical skill.
"The record number of nominations this year not only reflects growing confidence and talent but also shows how film education can inspire the next generation of Welsh storytellers."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Yahoo
Millions wasted as work from home government offices sit empty 'it's a scandal'
Wales Online readers have expressed frustration after learning that Welsh Government offices—costing £24.5m annually to operate—are being 'under-utilised.' The First Minister has warned that office closures could be on the cards if civil servants don't start returning to their desks. The Welsh Government employs around 5,700 staff across 20 locations. While the current expectation is for workers to spend 40% of their time—around two days per week—in the office, attendance figures show a stark contrast. In March, average daily attendance was just 16%, dropping to only 9% at a key hub in Merthyr Tydfil. For January and February, the average stood at 15%. The 15 main offices include major sites in Cathays Park (Cardiff), Rhyd-y-Car (Merthyr Tydfil), Rhodfa Padarn (Aberystwyth), and Sarn Mynach (Llandudno Junction). A further five locations are used to maintain a regional presence and meet service needs. READ MORE: Live Lotto results for Saturday, August 2: National Lottery winning numbers from tonight's draw READ MORE: Police issue statement after fourth body found on beach in three days Operational costs for all government buildings are estimated at £24.5m, according to the latest available data. Local independent MS Russell George questioned the Welsh Government's office in Newtown, Powys. In response, First Minister Eluned Morgan said: "We are having a review at the moment, partly because of the change in the way that people work. We can't justify continuing to hold offices open if people don't turn up. There will come a point where you have to say, 'If you don't turn up, we cannot justify keeping this particular office open.'" Steve Thomas, deputy general secretary of the Prospect union, defended the hybrid model: "Our members in the Welsh Government continue to deliver for the people of Wales, working productively by utilising the benefits of flexible working. The hybrid approach, with a mix of office and home working, enables staff to work effectively." But Welsh Conservative leader Darren Millar disagreed, stating: "Back in March I pledged that a Welsh Conservative Government would end unnecessary remote working, and get people off their settees and back into their offices if we enter government next May." Commenter Tomasdetorquemada says: 'Public sector productivity has cratered since the Pandemic and the "working" from home tendencies started. The private sector can do what it wants with its staff, but anyone earning a living from the public pocket needs to be in the office five days a week, or less, if they're on a part time contract. "They have demonstrated that they can't be trusted with the privilege, and their managers can't be relied upon to get the required amount of work out of them remotely.' Styo retorts: 'Office working does not improve productivity, presenteeism provides no benefits and creates a lot of problems for everyone else in terms of congestion etc. People are a populist sentiment so there is little point appealing to reason and leveraging What WFH does, is mean less competition for transport and childcare with those who HAVE to work in person and has allowed public sector wage rises to be suppressed (due to a fall in costs for those workers) It is a massive win-win for those smart enough to grasp the issue.' Extraaz wonders: 'It's been proven jobs can be worked from home since Covid. Why don't they sell these buildings and save the tax payer millions instead of forcing people in? I have to do 60% under the guise of 'collaboration and engagement' despite my team working in different parts of the country and everything is done through Teams. People cry over them working from home but don't they realise millions could be saved by selling the office space?' Malt replies: 'If only 40% of time is going to be required, they could 'hot desk' staff who can be told which days they have to attend the office, that way only one building/ small office will be required.' Danfrap believes: 'It's a scandal. People should be sacked and these buildings sold. I don't pay taxes for this kind of waste.' Scarsdaleblue thinks: ''Use them or lose them', if people aren't going into the office in large numbers now, will they really be that worried if they lose them? As threats go, it's not the worst threat.' JeffWales writes: 'Absolute joke, why aren't staff being told they MUST return to work as opposed to being given choices? Covid was a long time ago and there is no longer a viable reason for anyone to be working from home unless they have a special, verified and thus provable reason for doing so. Many just rush through their work and spend the rest of the day doing their own thing and this is one of the reasons it remains considerably difficult to get through to various organisations etc.' Do you work remotely? Should office-based working be mandatory again? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
'Worthless' flats where people feel stuck as mortgage companies won't touch them
Residents of a Swansea high-rise blighted by fire safety issues say they have been waiting eight years for the problems to be resolved. They claim it's left them unable to sell as mortgage providers won't lend money against the flats. Some suggest their mental health has taken a battering as a result. While some issues have been resolved, several still remain, leaving residents feeling angry, frustrated and exhausted. The residents live in the Altamar building, located in King's Road, Swansea, which was found to have various fire safety issues brought to light by surveys carried out after the Grenfell Fire. During 2017 and 2018, the building was issued an enforcement notice by Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service(MWFFRS). Though the requirements of the enforcement notice were met by October, 2019, other issues still remain. READ MORE: The people left trapped in flats they can't sell because mortgage lenders won't go near them Work to fix fire safety defects at Cardiff flats to take longer than expected When WalesOnline last covered the issue in October, 2024, the developer, Bellway, told us they were 'doing everything we can to give residents the peace of mind they deserve.' Never miss a Swansea story by signing up to our newsletter here Over nine months later, residents claim no significant work has been undertaken, and are now calling on the Welsh Government to sanction Bellway. Bellway has told WalesOnline that the issues are "lengthy and complex" and have been "hampered" by ongoing legal proceedings. The Welsh Government has said it is "monitoring the works closely" and is actively engaging with developers across Wales to address fire safety issues. Geoff Spight, 81, who moved to the building in 2019, said: 'It's been going on eight years now, and it's only because I'm a strong-willed person that I'm not in a mental institution. 'It's all consuming—every day of my life. I've spent 45 hours, since the beginning of this month [July] of my own work and it's all to do mainly with fire, addressing some of the issues that we are responsible to do, not Bellway.' Geoff claimed that despite several surveys being done, there hadn't been any further work. 'It's only surveys—22 surveys we've done on this building now,' Geoff claimed. 'We paid for quite a few and we claimed back and the Welsh Government reimbursed us for quite a few of them under the new law that was passed on self-remediation of fire remediation issues.' Bellway has been a signatory of the Welsh Government's Self Remediation Terms, the Welsh Developers Pact, since May, 2023, which makes it necessary for developers to identify and remediate buildings to agreed standards. Bellway said it was thus legally bound to undertake full new surveys of developments, which have now been completed for Altamar, and have been shared with stakeholders. In addition to the fire safety issues, the building also started experiencing 'serious roof leaks', which led to the property owners spending around £600,000 on repairs. Roofing experts from Bellway have been down to evaluate the roof repairs that are still left to complete, but Geoff claimed this was the only work that had taken place since October, 2024. Due to these issues, property owners are claimed to have been stuck with their properties, unable to sell them as mortgage lenders refuse to lend money in relation to them. 'Nobody can sell, you can't get a mortgage,' Geoff claimed. 'Some of my colleagues here have to ring up their mortgage company every month because their mortgage is coming to an end and the mortgage company won't lend money on the building. 'They're worthless to the mortgage company because even if my colleagues handed the keys back to them they can't do anything with them.' We reported in October last year that Bellway carried out an FRA (Fire Risk Assessment) & FRAEW (Fire Risk Assessment of External Walls) as part of its agreement with the Welsh Government. These reports—as seen by WalesOnline— identified serious breaches. Residents claimed that though these reports were received by Bellway in March, 2024, they were not released to residents for at least five months. Geoff claimed no work had been undertaken to rectify the faults identified in the report until now. He believed issues with the building's structural steel still remained, and were noted in the 2017 enforcement notice, and the fire safety report undertaken by Bellway's expert and the Altamar residents' expert. Apart from these issues, the costs are also said to be adding up for property owners, as they claim their insurance has doubled since the Grenfell tragedy, and rose about £20,000 from last year, Geoff explained. Geoff also felt that property owners were being let down by the Welsh Government. 'They're weak,' he claimed. 'The only way out is to put sanctions on the developer, to force them. 'Even though it's a legal obligation for them to do this work, and in the pact that they signed, they're supposed to do things at certain stages in certain times, but they're just not sticking to it," he claimed. 'And the Welsh Government is so weak, they can't make them. They can't seem to get any productivity out of them.' A spokesperson for the Welsh Government said: 'We are actively engaged with all major developers in Wales on an extensive programme of work to address external and internal fire safety issues. "We are monitoring the works closely to ensure remediation is completed as quickly as possible." It is understood the Welsh government is holding regular meetings with Bellway to ensure the works progress as quickly as possible, and is also providing support to residents via phone or email. A new Building Safety (Wales) Bill was also tabled at the Senedd on July 7 this year. The bill seeks to form a new building safety regime which would cover the "occupation and ongoing management of multi-occupied residential buildings." In a written statement on the bill, Cabinet Secretary for housing, Jane Bryant said the principles of the new legislation were "safety, accountability and resident voice." When asked about Altamar and the residents' claims, a spokesperson for Bellway commented: 'Bellway has consistently taken a proactive approach to fire safety following the Grenfell fire in 2017. "We are fully committed to delivering remediation works across all of our developments as quickly as possible and have set aside over £665 million to cover the expected costs of doing this. "Delivering these works is often lengthy and complex, and in the case of Altamar, progress has been hampered by ongoing legal proceedings. We are doing everything we can to give residents the peace of mind they deserve and are in active conversations with the Welsh Government to resolve the issues at Altamar. 'Under the terms of the Self-Remediation Terms (SRT) with the Welsh Government, Bellway is legally obliged to undertake full new surveys of developments. "This has been completed for Altamar and shared with key stakeholders. "We are currently in the process of agreeing the remediation strategy with the stakeholders, and have tendered to appoint a contractor, so that work can start on site to deliver a building that fully meets the legal requirements for building safety in Wales.'
USA Today
3 days ago
- USA Today
Royal Porthcawl member Darcey Harry shines with a man who led the British Open on her bag
Welsh player Darcey Harry isn't just the home favorite at the AIG Women's British Open. She's a member at Royal Porthcawl, though she's never seen the venerable club quite like this. "It doesn't really feel like it's at home because there's so many people here and usually Porthcawl is very quiet," said Harrry. And that comment to the press came before Harry teed it up in competition. The 22-year-old LET rookie stormed to victory at the Hulencourt Women's Open in Belgium last month to play her way into what's being billed as the largest women's sporting event ever held in Wales. "I was really nervous. I'm not too sure really how I coped with it," said Harry, who opened with a 2-under 70 to trail by three. "I just tried not to look elsewhere and just keep concentrated on the golf ball and my caddie." Harry's caddie is her boyfriend, Jacob Skov Olesen, a DP World Tour rookie who co-led the men's British Open earlier this month at Royal Portrush. The Dane was also on the bag for her win in Belgium. "I need someone on the bag that's going to make me laugh and take my mind off more of the distractions," said Harry, who became a member at Porthcawl six years ago. This is the first competition she's ever played at the historic club. "I don't think I've ever had a card in hand playing here," she said ahead of the championship. "Usually when I come out, I just play nine holes. I never really come out and play 18. If I do, it's probably with my dad, just walking around, having a bit of a piss about." Olesen said he met Harry for the time around five months ago, and it remains the only round of golf they've played together. They've been dating now for two months and mainly see each other at events. Harry, for example, was in Northern Ireland for Olesen's hot start. Olesen noted that Harry's iron play is typically her strength, though right now everything about her game feels quite rounded. As for friendly competitions between the two, Olesen said, "We tied the only match we played, so no one has the upper hand. I guess she does, a little bit, having a win." Harry made her major championship debut earlier this month at the Amundi Evian and was excited for the opportunity to play alongside 2018 British Open winner Georgia Hall in the first two rounds in Wales. "I was only a junior at the time when Georgia won a few years ago," said Harry. "It was so inspirational seeing her do it. The whole country was so excited when a British player won."
