Beneath the Skyline

‘Three gravestones of Littlewoods since 1754, standing in St Peter’s Church, Hope’.

Mark Littlewood’s roots are firmly established in the beautiful village of Hope, deep in the Derbyshire Countryside. 

Hope is both his spiritual home and where generations of his family come from.

Hope is not a dream. Hope is a practical awareness that generates positive thought and energy.

Hope when activated, allows potential to be unlocked.

He was born a few miles away in Sheffield, then a city of gruesome grime and bronchial intrusions, his tiny body constantly racked with chronic asthma; only relieved by frequent visits to hospital and farming relatives in Hope. 

As time passed, he was beginning to realise that academic failure was not a life sentence and even without any social, or entrepreneurial skills, that hard work and hope could bring other opportunities. What seemed like hundreds of letters later, he got a job as a tea boy with a small Edinburgh film company, later leaving to form his own film company. 

There were great adventures and compelling prize-winning films to be made, but not without apprehension and significant personal loss. 

This is the true story of how a shy timid boy, debilitated by severe asthma, constant fodder for the school bully, made his way through life, including fifty years of self-employment in the film industry.

In 1968 he was awarded the prestigious Kodak Award for Outstanding Amateur Colour Photography for his self-financed film, ‘Beneath the Skyline’. In 1972; this film opened the Eurovision Song Contest, when broadcast to the world, from Edinburgh’s Usher Hall, by the BBC. 

Forty years later and after a lifetime commitment to making pictures, he was awarded the B.A.F.T.A. for, ‘Outstanding Contribution to Scottish Film’,

‘The eye is a trusted interpreter of the soul’
(paraphrased from Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte)

So, what makes a good picture maker ? 

Mark Littlewood suggests:

It’s, ingenuity, determination, passion and hope

It’s teaching your eyes to see and your brain to convert visibility into feeling and emotion.

It’s recognizing that shadows are just as important as the light.

It’s a commitment to overcoming financial obstacles, personal fear and loneliness.

But most importantly, it’s recognizing and sharing the everyday magic, other people bring into your life.

‘Shaping the Shadows – A Picture Maker’s Story’, lists all the films I have ever been involved with in my fifty-year career, either as producer, director, or director of photography – sometimes all three. For the sake of illustration, I list a few highlights from the following categories.