A SERIES of hard-hitting short films has been created to mark the 60th anniversary of The Samaritans and raise awareness of the charity’s work in York and North Yorkshire.

Inspired Youth, a not-for-profit digital-production enterprise based at York St John University, has made five 90-second films focusing on five people from different backgrounds.

Kevin Curran, of Inspired Youth, said they featured a mum, a soldier, a business man, a teenager and an older woman.

He said: “The films, which were developed as a result of conversations with volunteers at the Samaritans, encourage the audience to identify with the actors’ situations and recognise how reaching out and talking to someone early on can help.

“Our work with the Samaritans will allow the York team to take the charity’s work to other audiences through face-to-face outreach sessions and online campaigns, to widen their reach and help with their outreach work.”

The films were shown for the first time at a private screening at Reel Cinema in York’s Blossom Street, attended by the Lord Mayor of York, Coun Julie Gunnell, the Chief of Staff to the Archbishop of York, the Reverend Malcolm Macnaughton, Samaritan representatives; actors and producers.

Inspired Youth is one of 13 creative businesses which rent affordable space at York St John University’s Phoenix Centre.

Darrell Hooper, Phoenix Business and Innovation Manager at the university, said York’s young businesses such as Inspired Youth benefitted from support and guidance in the centre’s creative environment and from connecting with other creative businesses with which they could collaborate.

He said: “The Samaritans’ production is in fact a good example of how the centre helps create connections, as it is the result of collaboration between Inspired Youth and former Phoenix Centre residents, Spinning Top Films.”