Shooting Stars

“An Ounce of Action”

Trailer

Pitch deck

Amid the ongoing “Black Lives Matter” campaign, we meet the young black photographers documenting the profound effect of this worldwide movement.

These young people are the pioneers of this global phenomenon, given that 10 years ago they were living in abject poverty, bypassed by formal education, employment opportunities, shelter and often basic nourishment. 

 The catalyst to this sea-change was The Wembley To Soweto Foundation. The project began in the townships of Johannesburg in 2010, teaching 8 disadvantaged youngsters how to “feed your family with a camera”. 

15 years later the project is an international charity with young people from around the globe now teaching their contemporaries. South Africans from Soweto work alongside learners from the favelas of Rio; young photographers from the East End of London now teach their Chinese contemporaries in Beijing, in Mandarin! 

We document the extraordinary growth of the programme from eclectic one-off project to global charity working with The Premier League, The Olympic Games, The Rugby World Cup and A-List celebrities from the worlds of film, television and sport. 

As well as charting the story of the project as a whole, we will concentrate on the progress of 5 of our learners: Thapelo from Soweto as he transforms from a boy finding safe-refuge in his small school to international photographer working with the South African government, The United Nations, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Idris Elba; Kasey from her job in Poundland in London’s East End to rock photographer shooting the likes of Paul McCartney and finally moving to China to teach young Chinese students – in Chinese! ; Karmen and Shawdon, both from North London’s troubled Elthorne Estate go from battling with homelessness to producing feature films championing the cause of their contemporaries whilst becoming pitch-side photographers at Arsenal FC; Victor from child-soldier in Sierra Leone to course leader with The Wembley To Soweto Foundation; And finally we trace the transformation of Baqueta, from a family of 12 living in a shack in Jardim Colombo favela, São Paulo to his work as a fixer for the foundation, paving the way for his dream job – as an air steward for Brazilian airline, Avianca. 

All these former students come together as the film concludes at the World Cup in 2026z And this time the students turn teachers as they take the reins, passing on their knowledge to their young contemporaries in some of the most violence-torn communities in East and South-Central LA. Can the guys make a difference, leave a candle burning and fulfil Engels’ great maxim – “An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory” – as they demonstrate over and over again that Black Lives Matter. 

“Shooting Stars – An Ounce Of Action” already has the participation of Adjoa Andoh, Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, David Harewood, Muthutuzehli Matshoba, Idris Elba, Stockard Channing, Emily Watson, Christoph Waltz and a panoply of global young black talent. 

It is supported by Enriched Media, Foundry Media, Wilton Pictures, Leica, IMEX and The Premier League.