Applications are now open for a new training programme from Liverpool City Council’s Film Office, delivered in partnership with Lime Pictures’ L16 Studios Media Academy and Channel 4’s 4Skills, offering placements in post-production, design and accountancy this autumn.
The training scheme ‘Action! Next Take’ – will provide opportunity to gain hands-on experience across a range of departments, working alongside the production teams at Lime Pictures, which produces Channel 4’s continuing drama Hollyoaks.
Participants will develop practical skills, build industry knowledge, and gain invaluable insight into careers in film and TV.
The three-day courses; Introduction to Post-Production, Introduction to the Art Department and Introduction to Production Accountancy, are open to individuals aged 18 and over who live within the Liverpool City Region.
There will be 48 fully funded places across 6 courses and 3 disciplines. One person from each course who shows the most potential will be selected by the tutors and given a paid 12 week contract within the relevant department that will be jointly funded by LFO/4Skills & Lime. The placements will take place at the beginning of 2027. (Date TBC)
This year the Film Office recently launched Foot in the Door Liverpool with the Andy Taylor Foundation which will give 12 young people the chance to kickstart their careers in film & TV and digital media in a fully paid training and work placement programme.
The initiative is keen to hear from deaf, disabled and/or neurodivergent (DDN) young people, with funding available to support individuals’ access requirements. This reflects Lime Pictures and L16 Studios’ commitment to being disability confident employers and demonstrates the Film Office and 4Skills’ continued work to bring DDN creatives into the industry.
Link to full details and application forms can be found here: https://www.l16studios.com/media-academy
Cllr Harry Doyle, Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Culture, said: “This partnership with Lime Pictures and Channel 4 shows the strength of Liverpool’s screen sector and the value of our long-standing relationships with major broadcasters and producers.
“Liverpool is a cultural hub with a national and international reputation in film and television, and this programme reinforces our leadership in the sector.
“By focusing on high-quality training and paid placements, it will create real pathways into the industry and support the next generation of creative talent in the city.”
Kevin Blacoe, Channel 4’s Head of Partnerships and Skills, said: “This training programme is a fantastic opportunity for people with a passion for television to take their first step into the industry and gain real, hands-on experience on one of the UK’s most successful and enduring dramas.
“There is no substitute for learning alongside experienced professionals in a fast-paced production environment, and this programme will give participants the chance to build practical skills, confidence and industry connections while contributing to a series watched and loved by audiences across the country.
“4Skills is committed to opening up broadcasting to people from all backgrounds and ensuring talent can thrive wherever they live in the UK. This partnership perfectly reflects that ambition, creating meaningful opportunities for people to learn, develop and access genuine routes into careers in television. We’re proud to be working with Liverpool Film Office, Lime Pictures and L16 Studios to help nurture the next generation of creative talent and strengthen the future of the UK’s screen industries.”
David Williams, Director of L16 Studios said: “We are absolutely thrilled to be delivering courses that will offer real-world insight and experience into working in areas of television production.
“The teams across L16 Studios and Lime Pictures work across a huge range of programming and have a vast amount of knowledge in their respective fields. L16 Studios’ Media Academy has been established to impart as much of this knowledge as we can, to the next generation of media professionals.”
Liverpool Film Office
Liverpool Film Office is the UK’s longest-established film office and the driving force behind Liverpool City Region’s thriving screen sector. Acting as a one stop shop for film & TV productions, the team supports location scouting, filming permissions, crew and supplier connections, logistics and production support across all six boroughs of the city region.
Since 2019, more than 1,600 productions have filmed in the region, generating £150 million of economic impact and supporting 5,408 full-time equivalent jobs. The region is also the UK’s most filmed area outside London, attracting major productions including Batman, House of Guinness, Time, The Responder and This City Is Ours.
A Liverpool City Council team, supported by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Liverpool Film Office continues to drive sector growth through strategic investment, skills development and industry partnerships, helping position the region as a major national and international production destination.
Action! Next Take has been made possible thanks to funding by Screen Alliance North with the support of the BFI, awarding National Lottery Funding. Support also comes from the LFC Foundation.
Lime Pictures
Lime Pictures is part of media and entertainment group, Banijay Entertainment and is based in Liverpool producing kids and family scripted programming such as Emmy nominated fantasy animation Wolf King for Netflix; CBBC series Girl Troop vs Aliens; Zero Chill and double Daytime Emmy award-winning Free Rein for Netflix. Lime produces the award-winning continuing drama Hollyoaks, which has celebrated 30 years as Channel 4’s flagship soap, marked with a revival of Brookside for a historic crossover episode. With more than 30 years’ experience in producing content for global audiences Lime produces for all platforms, both linear and VOD, and has played a pioneering role in using television as a way of on-screen storytelling, and as an off-screen platform, to communicate with a younger audience.
L16 Studios
L16 Studios, based at Lime Pictures campus in Liverpool, is a purpose-built production facility offering flexible studio space, production offices, post-production suites and a diverse range of standing sets, all in one location.
