Festival aims to bring film and TV makers together

Daragh Carville is creator and writer of crime drama The Bay which is set in Morecambe

Organisers of a film and TV festival have said they hope the event will encourage local creatives to collaborate on future projects.

The Bay International Film Festival is under way in Morecambe and 96 films are being screened at eight venues across the town.

"There are filmmakers around Cumbria and Lancashire and most of them don't know each other," producer and co-founder of the festival Anna Henderson said.

"One of the things we are trying to do is create a network to bring them all together and collaborate."

Ninety-six films are being screened at eight venues across Morecambe

The festival is screening a mix of film and TV productions with genres ranging from comedy to horror.

Daragh Carville, creator and writer of crime drama The Bay, which is set in Morecambe Bay, said the ITV show had helped put the town on the map.

"The latest I heard it was being shown in 140 different countries, so people have really responded to it, which is amazing," he said.

"And the people here have responded to it too."

The festival runs until 1 December

Episode one of series five of The Bay was unveiled on the first night of the festival.

Actor Dan Ryan who plays Det Insp Tony Manning in the show said the festival was about celebrating film and TV, adding the town was "so dear to our hearts, we want to be here".

Also being screened at the month-long event is the full length feature film Unicorns, which is nominated for a raft of awards.

One of its producers is Morecambe-born Philip Herd who is also a patron of the festival.

"I grew up watching films here in Morecambe," he said.

"I'm born and bred here. I went away for work, but I'm back all the time when I heard about the opportunity to be involved with the festival it was just something I couldn't resist."

The Bay International Film Festival runs across Morecambe until 1 December.