Teenager shoots war film in honour of hero grandfather

Niall Horn, 15 from Great Ayton, near Northallerton, decided to make the charity film inspired by his grandfather, who served in the Second World War in the Royal Navy as a gunner.

He directed the film with the help of the Northern World War 2 Association, which specialises in wartime re-enactment and found a filming location as well as providing actors and pyrotechnics.

The film is to be presented to members of the Royal British Legion during the Northallerton Wartime Weekend on Saturday June 16.

The young director said: “I wanted to make a film about World War Two and decided to make it a charity film for the Royal British Legion.

“My grandfather served in World War Two in the Royal Navy as a gunner. I wrote the film over three nights after watching many World War Two films and TV shows.

Robin Carr, from the Northern World War Two Association, said: “We get many requests to assist with film work, many of which we have to decline because they simply are not viable, but we were more than happy to help Niall both because of his age and his motives for making the film in the first place.

“He is a very enthusiastic young man and such talent needs to be encouraged every step of the way. Now that he has completed the project we were happy to arrange for it to be formally handed over as part of the Northallerton Wartime Weekend festivities.”