An invite to the House of Commons is on the cards for two rising young filmmakers from Stockton Riverside College after they were chosen to represent Stockton South in a national competition.

Film and TV students Amy Archer and Joe Nolan had their work selected by MP Dr Paul Williams as part of the Film the House competition.

The contest is run by MPs alongside industry sponsors to showcase filmmakers of the future whilst also raising awareness of the importance of protecting intellectual property rights.

It also offers the chance for MPs to engage with a grass-roots creative demographic.

“It was pretty amazing to be selected,” said Amy, whose short film Truth was put forward by the Stockton South MP.

Describing the film as a crime drama, the 22-year-old who is originally from Newcastle and now lives in Stockton said: “I wanted to create something that was quite twisty and keep people interested the whole way through. It took a lot of hard work but I am proud of the way that it turned out.”

She added: “This competition has offered a great opportunity to share what we are doing. It’s always nice to have people watch and enjoy what you have created.”

Joe, 18, of Stockton, created a short comedy titled This Just In, also selected by MP Dr Paul Williams.

“I was really happy to be chosen, it is national recognition,” said Joe.

He explained that his film was inspired by US president Donald Trump and the topical notion of “fake news”.

Both Amy and Joe have been entered in the Best Short Film category for those aged 16 and over.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony at the House of Commons in this month with prizes including mentoring from award winning filmmaker Lord Puttnam and work experience at Sky/Lionsgate.

The competition is sponsored by Nigel Adams MP, Kevin Barron MP and Lord Tim Clement-Jones.