Noah's Life After Redhill: Film and Theatre Studies

I left Redhill in July 2017, so nearly 5 years ago now. My first step after was of course to go to college. I did enjoy my time as it gave me the chance to keep working with a lot of my friends with Redhill but at the same time meeting new people. It was also the point where I was able to take the interests I had cultivated at Redhill and turn them into a dedicated career path. I also carried on with my work that I had started during my time at Redhill as just a volunteer role, moving forward into a full paid position at a Martial Arts school as an assistant teacher and a receptionist.

I’m now at University studying Film and Theatre. I love just being able to create new pieces of work for people to enjoy, I’ve done a number of theatre performances and I’ve just written and directed my first film which is going to be premiering soon.

Getting involved each year with the productions was of course a big influence for my career path, I did the lighting for each show for 5 years, carrying on even after I left Redhill because I just enjoyed it that much. Surprisingly enough, even my maths and science classes were a big influence on this path because, even though I haven’t directly carried on with these subjects, they got me interested in more technical aspects which is extremely applicable to my field. I had no idea just how much maths was involved with film until I started directing my piece.

I honestly spend most of my free time working in the department. Whether that be writing another project, performing in a piece, editing a sequence -- film and theatre is just what I love to do. I am still in touch with several of my friends from Redhill, some of them now being 10–15-year friendships and still going strong. We still meet up too when we’re all back home at the same time. Over the years I’ve also started climbing as a hobby and sport that’s let me travel all around the most beautiful parts of the country and see its best views. I’ve also taken up a job as a Student Ambassador for my University, which has involved them sending me to conventions across the country to represent them and talk to hundreds of prospective students which is always fun.

For now, I’m just enjoying going through my degree and getting experience in the industry. My plans for the future involve doing a Masters Degree, finding a job involved in Film and Theatre (in any capacity) and hopefully continuing to produce my own work.

Being a part of one big community was something I do miss about Redhill. College and University, while great in their own respects, are massive places. It was quite nice being at high school where, even though it was also a big place, everyone knew each other and was part of one big community, I feel that’s quite unique to high school and is something I miss from time to time.

                There are definitely too many teachers I would love to shout out out to fit in one blog post, but in particular I’d like to thank Mr Sidaway, Mrs George, Mrs Moreton and Miss Weston. Advice and encouragement I would give to the current Year 7s would be: your time there is really not as long as you think it is. Make the most of it; get involved; leave a mark. You’ll miss it when you’re gone.