KEIGHLEY would be the perfect base for a planned Film Studio of the North.

Work already being carried out in the town – plus its proximity to so many locations popular with film and TV crews – mean it would be ideally placed to host the venture.

That’s the view of Keighley College principal, Steve Kelly.

He said he hoped to discuss the idea further with the mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, who put forward the suggestion for a regional film studio.

The Bradford Road college, through a partnership with Screen Yorkshire and the National Film and Television School, already helps young people to gain an industry-recognised qualification.

And students working towards the UK Film & TV Craft Certificate in Costume also get a chance to experience work placements on active TV and movie sets.

Mr Kelly believes the potential for collaboration between the college and a new regional film studio is “significant”.

He said: “Creating a new film studio in West Yorkshire is a wonderful idea and I congratulate Ms Brabin for proposing it.

“She has rightly identified the urgent need for us to ‘upskill’ people to meet the challenges facing the economy as we emerge from the worst of the pandemic and strive to recover.

“The UK Film & TV Craft Certificate in Costume course that the college is delivering, through our partnership with Screen Yorkshire and the National Film and Television School, is doing just that – providing a wonderful training and work experience opportunity for anyone who is hoping to break into what is a very exciting, but also highly competitive, industry.

“Having a film studio on our doorstep would provide many fantastic opportunities for the college, its students and the district’s wider community.

“But the advantages would flow the other way too, with us – potentially through teaming-up with other local organisations – playing a key role in producing the skilled workforce the new studio would need.

“It would also open-up the possibility of the college offering new TV and film-focused courses which, as we go forward, could be tailored to meet the needs of the new studio.”

He added: “The Keighley area is packed with striking locations which is why so many film crews have made their way here.

“We have breathtaking landscapes – including Bronte Country – along with fascinating, historically-significant buildings and the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway which of course featured in The Railway Children.”

For further information about the UK Film & TV Craft Certificate in Costume course at the college, visit screenyorkshire.co.uk/craftcourses.