York St John graduate celebrates role on crew of Oscar nominated film
A former York St John University student is celebrating her
role on a film which has been nominated for an Oscar in the short
film category.
Lili Jenkins, who studied BA Film &
Television Production, worked as a casting assistant on
Pentecost, a low budget
film set in Ireland in the 1970s. Written and directed by Peter
McDonald, the film focuses on a young boy and his passion for
football.
Lili, 24 from London, graduated from York St
John University in 2009 and currently works for Independent Talent
Group, Europe’s largest talent agency. Following an internship with
Candid Casting and work experience at Hubbard Casting, Lili’s lucky
break came when she was offered a job as assistant to Amy Hubbard,
one of the UK’s leading casting directors. During this time Lili
worked as casting assistant on a number of films, including
Pentecost.
Describing how her career has been shaped by
her degree Lili said:
“During my degree we were encouraged to try
our hand at various different roles. This enabled us to hone our
skills and also work towards an area we wanted to specialise in.
Whilst writing and directing my short film in the final year of my
degree at York St John, I experienced intense pressure. However,
this not only taught me the importance of good organisational
skills, but also to thrive on stress rather than succumb to
it!”
She added:
“We had three weeks to find the entire cast of
Pentecost. As a large number of them were school boys I organised
mass auditions in Dublin from our office in London which was
difficult but very worthwhile, as the selection of talent we found
was fantastic. I am ecstatic that our low budget Irish film has
been picked out from thousands for an Oscar.”
Fiona Thompson, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of
Arts at York St John University, said:
“We are delighted with Lili’s career success
and it reinforces the important role that the university sector has
in supporting entry into this highly competitive industry. Lili is
a great ambassador for our own course and we will be watching the
Oscars with fingers crossed wishing Lili and the production team
and crew every success on the night.”
Pentecost is nominated alongside four other
short films. Lili and the film crew will find out whether the film
is selected as winner when the 84th Academy Awards are
announced on Sunday 26 February.
For further information please contact Amy Hall, PR
& Communications Officer on T: 01904 876466 or E:
a.hall@yorksj.ac.uk
