AN independent film society that has grown its cherished reputation in Leigh has been put forward for two prestigious and national awards.

Starting out as a small film club out of a cafe in Tyldesley, Leigh Film Society has become a revered and respected independent cinema over the past ten years.

Now operating its beloved independent cinema, Leigh Film factory, out of the creative hub inside Leigh Spinners Mill, the film society has been shortlisted from thousands of nominations in the National Lottery Project of the Year.

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Leigh Journal: The Film Factory launched following public donations and a huge effort from volunteersThe Film Factory launched following public donations and a huge effort from volunteers (Image: Leigh Film Society)
The National Lottery Awards is a national campaign that celebrates the inspirational people and projects who do extraordinary things with the help of National Lottery funding.

With the independent cinema funded entirely through public donations and built almost exclusively with recycled materials, thousands of pounds of National Lottery funding enabled Leigh Film Society to get where it is today.

The National Lottery's website notes how the film society has used its group and cinema to fight against social isolation, creating opportunities for young people and supporting community cohesion through the power of film.

In addition to its regular schedule of new releases and classic screenings, the volunteer-led film society also supports local film enthusiasts and young people who want to build a career in the competitive film industry.

Leigh Journal: Paul and Elizabeth Costello are two of the society's co-foundersPaul and Elizabeth Costello are two of the society's co-founders (Image: Elizabeth Costello)
In addition to this nomination, the Leigh based volunteer group has also been recognised in the 'Big Screen Awards', which celebrate the achievements across the cinematic industry.

Nominated alongside huge cinema chains like Cineworld and Vue, and releases such as Barbie and Oppenheimer, the Leigh-based Film Factory has been shortlisted in the 'Green Screen' award, for its efforts to make a fully sustainable cinema and organisation.

The nominations follow the success of winning 'Film Society Of The Year' at the national Cinema For All Awards earlier this year.

Leigh Journal: The team won 'Film Society of the Year' earlier this yearThe team won 'Film Society of the Year' earlier this year (Image: Leigh Film Society)
The film society also has its popular 'Horror Season' returning this month in the run up to Hallloween.

 

Taking place for the second year in a row, every Saturday night in October sees a horror film on the big screen, with extra special events also taking place throughout the month, starting on October 7 with psychological horror St Maud.

Tickets for upcoming screenings can be found here, while votes for the National Lottery awards end on October 9 and can be found here