Amateur film-maker turns 90 but cameras will keep rolling

DOREEN Wood has just turned 90 but she has no desire to stop her camera rolling just yet.

She has been making her own short films since 1978 and could well be the oldest movie maker in Leeds.

Mrs wood, a retired clerical worker, from Meanwood, caught the movie bug after buying a Super 8 camera to capture the early years of a new grandchild.

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These days she uses a modern camcorder and computer editing equipment.

Over the years she has made more than 50 films and, even though she turned 90 earlier this week, she is not thinking of stopping filming just yet.

Her films include documentaries on Meanwood's history, animated versions of children's classics like Hansel and Gretel and even her own fictional short tales.

Her most popular film, however, has proved to be the first one she shot. She said: "A squirrel started coming into my garden and he would do anything for a nut.

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"You could put them on top of a pole or on a clothes line but he'd always get to them, so I filmed him scurrying around doing exactly that. It became very well known. One lady even began calling me Mrs Squirrel."

Mrs Wood, who is now a great-grandmother, said: "I think making films is a wonderful hobby, really fascinating. I like the way you can create something from nothing and see it on the screen in front of you.

In the past her films have been screened for societies, churches and schools. These days her work is mostly shown at meetings of the Leeds Movie Makers Club, where she is secretary. For more details visit www.leedsmovie makers.co.uk

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