A story of struggles to strength: Alumni student James Homer produces documentary “Night and Day – The Route to Recovery”

James Homer, a former Media Production student of Middlesbrough College, has created an emotional and moving documentary piece commissioned by Middlesbrough Council.

Having already worked with the Tees charity ‘Recovery Connections’, when James was asked to create and lead this film with them, he was eager to get started. The 90-minute production “Night and Day – The Route to Recovery” consists of 6 people across the Tees Valley who have had different troubling pasts involving substance abuse and crime. Recovery Connections helped coordinate and support the filming which made it all possible. Cleveland Police intend to show others in police custody with similar life circumstances that the ‘route to recovery’ is possible, with the right mindset and support.

Before the screening on Wednesday 5th June, James proudly said: “It’s been a challenging past few months to film something as sensitive as recovery. The whole experience has given me a lot of insight into the issues people battle with and overall has been rewarding to work on. I’m proud of how much time, quality and effort has been put into this film and its causes.”

After attending Middlesbrough College, graduating from the University of York, and gaining some workplace experience, James founded his own production company ‘Hue21’ 7 years ago. Since then, he has done most of his productions independently, including ‘Night and Day’ where James did all of the filming, editing, and audio himself!

Looking back on his experience at the College, James commented: “I loved my course at Middlesbrough College, it helped me pursue my passion. I made some brilliant friends and learnt skills for life. My teachers also helped set me up for life, and I still look back on what they taught me to this day.”

To learn more about James and his successes after College, read James’ full Alumni story here.

The screening at ARC Stockton Arts Centre attracted almost a full house audience! Some of our current Media students also attended the screening along with their tutors to base a piece of coursework around James’ production. Below is an article created by Year 1 Media and Games student Emily Nyland-Jones.

James got back to us after his successful day and said: “I wanted to extend my heartfelt thanks for attending the screening. It meant a great deal to see the positive reception of the film. 

“It was also wonderful to see students from Middlesbrough College, who are studying the same course that I did, in attendance. I appreciated the opportunity to spend time answering their questions and hope that sharing some of my knowledge and experience will benefit them. Additionally, it was great to catch up with lecturer, Daniela Lord, who played a significant role in my career progression.

“With each project, I strive to make a meaningful impact on society, particularly among the underprivileged and often overlooked communities in the North East. This film is intended to foster positive change in our region, and this screening was the kick-off event to begin achieving this goal.”

You can find out more about James and his production company Hue21 through his website, Hue21.com.