Yorkshire actors set up new company to help nurture region’s screen talent

Make Me Productions has been launched in Barnsley, where Ms Kelly’s father, John Kelly, founded the Lamproom Theatre in the old Barnsley Boys Club in the 1990s after setting up a trust to rescue the building amid his determination to set up a theatre.

Sheffield-born Mr Pitts, who was discovered by legendary director Ken Loach in 1981 and starred in his film Looks and Smiles, based on the book written by A Kestrel for a Knave author Barry Hines, told the Yorkshire Post: “We want to make culturally specific work with a universal appeal in Yorkshire.

“We both grew up in Yorkshire and found we’ve had to leave to achieve, we want to address that.”

Based in Yorkshire, Make Me Productions is developing a slate of feature film, television, audio and digital projects rooted in strong storytelling.

The aim is to produce high quality screen content while creating genuine career pathways for young people across the region.

A dedicated Community Interest Company is being established to deliver structured placements, workshops and on set experience for young people, particularly those who might not otherwise see film, television or media as realistic career options.

“It’s harder now, unquestionably, to make your way in our business than it was for me 43 years ago and that can’t be right,” Mr Pitts said.

Ms Kelly, who recently portrayed Post Office Angela van den Bogerd in Mr Bates vs the Post Office and won a British Soap Award for Best Actress in 2009 and a National Television Award in 2012 for her portrayal of Becky McDonald in Coronation Street, said there was an industry in Yorkshire on our doorstep which isn’t really there any more.

The couple says their ambition is for youngsters who leave school in Yorkshire to be able to work in the industry without having to move away.

Ms Kelly added: “When you make things in Yorkshire it’s a production company from elsewhere and I think we need to address that.

“I’ve been to Belfast, Bristol, London in my last three jobs.”

Mr Pitts has been writing work for the company and they are now seeking investment having already secured some funding to put their plan into action.

They already have a major feature film in development, entitled Classic, it is focused around a classic car show.

The film is “good to go”, with plans to film its exteriors in Robin Hood’s Bay, Scarborough and Whitby, and interior shots at Production Park in Pontefract,

But Ms Kelly added: “Our slate is varied across all mediums because the landscape is changing, so we’ve got a bigger budget feature film, a smaller budget horror film, podcasts, we’ve even got shortform YouTube, Tik Tok content.

“It will all be in Yorkshire, that is part of the Make Me ethos - it is infrastructure, it’s not just beneficial to our industry but it’s beneficial to the restaurants, hotels, travel. It’s transformed Belfast, people don’t talk so much about the shipbuilding, they talk about the film industry.”

The next step is to continue to build partnerships with local stakeholders, said Mr Pitts.

“We’re looking for investment, sponsorship deals. Getting the rest of the money, we’re not stupid, we won’t say no to investment from Brighton, but we want people who understand this land and these people to come and find us.”