“BELONGING”: Film Project Commission

Deadline to apply: Thursday 2 October 2025
Budget: £5,000 (inc. VAT) – to cover some additional filming, editing, and delivery of final film

About Southampton Forward

Southampton Forward are a charity working in partnership across culture, festivals, events, tourism and cultural regeneration, striving to transform Southampton through citywide and regional collaboration.

Through our Cultural Programme, we are delivering a series of legacy projects following Southampton’s shortlisted bid for UK City of Culture 2025.

About the Belonging strand

Belonging is a strand of Southampton Forward’s Cultural Programme that explores what it means to be Sotonian. It brings together creative projects that are co-curated with, and rooted in, Southampton’s communities. We would like all four projects from this strand to feature in the Belonging film:

• City Reflections – transformed Southampton’s medieval city walls with a large-scale projection celebrating over 350 Community Legends, nominated by local people for their contributions to the city. Sponsored and hosted by Westquay, City Reflections ran daily over February half-term, with additional pop-up projections at five community venues across the city.
• City Reflections 2: Illuminating Southampton’s Stories – 6 community curators representing communities across the city have dived into the archives and curated heritage buildings, in line with key themes that celebrate Southampton’s history. City Reflections will be illuminating the city in February 2026 with 6 projections on 6 heritage buildings in Southampton’s Old Town and city centre, with the community engagement and co-creation happening in 2025.
• Home Theatre Southampton – brought together over 100 participants and 33 creative professionals – including directors, theatre makers, stage managers and filmmakers. Together, they co-created 11 intimate performances in homes across the city, inspired by the unique personal stories of their hosts.
• Pub Cultures – with the help of our communities we matched 9 pubs in Southampton and 8 artists to create bespoke artwork that celebrated the pubs communities and their places as essential community hubs. The artwork produced included sculpture, photography, textile, murals and poetry.
• Corner Shops & Portal into Other Worlds – celebrated the cultural importance of 7 local shops across Southampton and recorded their oral histories for the Southampton City Archive. Led by artist Darrell Vydelingum, in partnership with Winchester School of Art and Southampton Solent University, the project included new shop signage featuring playful phrases that reflected the shops’ role in their community. Fashion students created pieces inspired by the shops, culminating in fashion shoots inside the shops and a 3-day public exhibition.

Community Engagement

Alongside the Belonging projects sits our Community Engagement strand, which coordinates and supports a network of more than 25 local connectors across Southampton. These connectors represent a wide range of faith groups, communities, and geographical wards.

Their role has been integral to the delivery of the Belonging series, ensuring that projects are community-driven, inclusive, and genuinely representative of the diverse voices and lived experiences of Sotonians. By working with connectors, we are able to reach deeper into communities, build trust, and make sure the programme reflects the city as a whole. Local connectors took on roles such as nominating community champions, assessing the accessibility of local pubs, matching artists, encouraging participation and choosing locations.

About the Film

We are commissioning a short film (max 20 mins) that weaves together footage from these four Belonging projects, which includes case studies from local connectors, into a compelling creative documentary themed around the idea of belonging in Southampton.

The film will:

• Be premiered in Southampton at a special screening event in March 2026 as part of a short film showcase.
• Be shared online via Southampton Forward and partner channels.
• Serve as a lasting legacy piece telling the story of our Culture Programme

Scope & challenges

This is primarily an editing project using existing footage captured by our project teams and partners. However, there will be:

• Additional filming to create visual and thematic links between the four projects (e.g. street scenes, community events, interviews/vox pops).
• Interviews with community members responding to “What does belonging in Southampton mean to you?” (Southampton Forward can provide a series of options for content capture based on community events happening in the city and can help facilitate)

Footage challenges:

• City Reflections: large volume of footage – will need strong editorial judgement to select the most impactful and relevant content.
• Corner Shops: limited footage – will require creative solutions (e.g. archive materials, fresh interviews, voiceover).

Who We’re Looking For

We want to hear from filmmakers or creative production teams who:

• Are confident working with large amounts of footage and shaping a clear narrative.
• Can deliver strong, people-focused storytelling.
• Are comfortable filming short sequences/interviews in community settings.
• Can work collaboratively with us to manage creative and logistical challenges.
• Have the technical skills and equipment for professional-quality filming, editing, and post-production.

Tone & Style

• Documentary-style with a cinematic visual approach.
• Warm, authentic, and community-focused.
• Uplifting but honest – moments of celebration and reflection.

Key dates

• 2 October 2025: Deadline to submit proposals.
• October–November 2025: Review and logging of footage, plus additional filming.
• Mid-January 2026: First draft cut to Southampton Forward for feedback.
• Mid-February 2026: Final draft for sign-off.
• 1st week of March 2026: Final delivery of film
• March 2026: Film screening and online release.

Storyboard Skeleton

1. Opening – Montage of Southampton scenes with layered voices answering “What does belonging in Southampton mean to you?”
2. Chapters – One for each project, intercut with linking footage from around the city.
3. Closing – A unifying sequence showing diverse communities, shared spaces, and moments of connection.

Hero Shot List

• Wide and close-up shots of each project’s key moments (from provided footage).
• Community interviews and vox pops.
• Street-level linking shots (markets, parks, waterfront, high streets).
• Archival material and stills where needed for Corner Shops.
• Smiling faces and group moments to close.

How to Apply

Please send the following to info@southamptonforward.org.uk by 2 October 2025:

1. A short statement on why you’d like to work on this project (max 500 words).
2. Link/s to examples of previous work.
3. Confirmation you can work to the above timeline and within the £5,000 budget (inc. VAT).