£10,000 bid to put Harrogate on movie map

A one-man Harrogate film industry is aiming to raise a £10,000 budget for the movie he hopes will transform his career - and the town's reputation.
Harrogate independent filmmaker Velton Lishke.Harrogate independent filmmaker Velton Lishke.
Harrogate independent filmmaker Velton Lishke.

Velton Lishke, actor, director, producer and, occasionally, caterer, says Clouded could be the film that breaks him in the industry.

He said: “We’ve got a strong cast and a professional scriptwriter on board. In fact, the script has already been nominated for an award before we’ve started shooting. This will be my big step.”

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A light-hearted comedy on the serious subject of mental illness, specifically, ADHD or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, as always with any movie Velton makes, most of the locations on the prospective nine-day shoot, a remarkably tight schedule, will be local, in and around his hometown of Harrogate.

Harrogate movie - The poster for Velton Lishke's recent movie Double 7 Six.Harrogate movie - The poster for Velton Lishke's recent movie Double 7 Six.
Harrogate movie - The poster for Velton Lishke's recent movie Double 7 Six.

His most recent movie, a ten-minute comedy with a twist in the tale called Stag Do, transformed St Robert’s Club in Harrogate into a film set.

The sets for widely-acclaimed music video The Singer he produced and co-starred in recently for local singer-songwriter Paul Mirfin, the ‘Singing Conductor’, were all based in North Yorkshire.

Not that his tiny budgets and local roots seem to hold this resourceful filmmaker back in any way.

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The Stag Do has been accepted for sceeening at five film festivals so far and was shown at the Edinburgh Fringe this week.

Harrogate movie - The poster for Velton Lishke's recent movie Double 7 Six.Harrogate movie - The poster for Velton Lishke's recent movie Double 7 Six.
Harrogate movie - The poster for Velton Lishke's recent movie Double 7 Six.

And a previous movie, Double 7 Six, has been its success, it is now available on Amazon Prime.

The film was premiered at Ashville College in Harrogate recently in front of a large audience including such movers and shakers as actress Gaynor Faye of Emmerdale fame, comedian Charlie Chuck and This Is England actor George Newton.

The final attribute which makes this indie filmmaker a minor phenomenon after only two years in the basement level of the film business is sheer determination.

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Velton said: “I’ve only paid expenses on my films up to now but the calibre of people I have got involved on Clouded means I need to have a bigger budget.

“I’m looking for local sponsors and am about to launch a crowdfunding campaign to support the project and put Harrogate on the map as a great place for filmmaking."

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