Leading film education charity Into Film has announced the nominees for this year’s Into Film Awards, with Fletcher, 11, and Jude, 9, from Newcastle upon Tyne preparing to take to the red carpet.
Their short film, Paper Planes, has been shortlisted in the Best Film: 5–11 category.
The glitzy ceremony has previously been attended by some of the biggest stars in the industry including Hugh Grant, Daniel Craig, Lashana Lynch, Olivia Cooke, Eddie Redmayne, Lily James, Luke Evans, Elizabeth McGovern, Gemma Arterton, Charles Dance, Ruth Wilson, James Norton, Bill Nighy, Simon Pegg, Martin Freeman and Naomie Harris.
Paper Planes is a coming-of-age drama about childhood struggles, mental health, and finding yourself. 12-year-old Sebastian is finding growing up difficult until he meets a cool kid at a local art gallery and learns about life, friendship and making paper planes as they explore the Northumberland coast and make a surprising discovery.
Fletcher (11) Jude (9) are two young aspiring filmmakers from Newcastle. This is their second film, having made Ballet D’Or last year, which was nominated in the same category at the 2025 Into Film Awards. Fletcher and Jude are particularly passionate about making films in North East England, helping to showcase their local area. They have been performing from a young age and train at SA Performing Arts Centre in Newcastle Upon Tyne. They have both acted in short films, TV shows and on stage, but have now developed a real passion for filmmaking. Their last short film Ballet d’Or was inspired by Jude’s own experience of choosing between two of his loves – ballet and football. Their new film, Paper Planes, is very different to Ballet D’or which was filmed in very urban areas of Newcastle and had a gritty edge to it. The boys shot Paper Planes on the beautiful Newcastle Quayside in one of the city’s main art galleries, and on the stunning Northumberland coast.
Fletcher and Jude said;
“We are thrilled to be nominated a second time for an Into Film Award! We found last year’s awards ceremony so inspirational, and it really encouraged us to make more films. As young people who love performing, it’s so special to make films. We are brothers from North East England who go to state schools, so access to filmmaking isn’t easy, but we have so many ideas and so much creativity! And the North East is so special to us so it’s great to use film to show the world how much we have to offer here. Hopefully we will inspire other filmmakers to make films here too.”
The Awards, sponsored by the UK film industry, celebrates young people’s creativity in film, showcasing and highlighting the wealth of tomorrow’s creative talent. This year’s Awards received hundreds of entries from every corner of the UK, with stories ranging from light-hearted comedies to thought-provoking films and documentaries. Other nominee topics and stories include being a Ukrainian refugee, staying safe online, youth mental health, tips for supporting young people with special educational needs, Muslim identity, and socio-economic observations.
Into Film is supported by the BFI, awarding National Lottery funding. Discover the rest of the nominees and watch all the nominated films on the Into Film website – https://www.intofilm.org/news-and-views/articles/into-film-awards-2026-nomineess
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