The University of Salford has unveiled the Salford Celluloid Centre of Excellence, extending its teaching to industry professionals through a dedicated centre with the aim of preserving the legacy of celluloid filmmaking and advancing its use in contemporary production.
Located within the Newton Film Hub on the Peel Park campus, the Salford Celluloid Centre of Excellence will make use of 10 in-house free-standing industry film sets and extensive lighting and camera equipment to deliver four new courses from February 2026.
Sam Ingleson, associate dean for enterprise and engagement at the University of Salford’s School of Arts, Media and Creative Technology, said: “It is with this sterling reputation that we will be launching the Salford Celluloid Centre of Excellence.
“It will act as a beacon for filmmakers by offering expert courses on shooting and managing celluloid production whilst housing academic research and development. We aim to preserve this knowledge for future generations and inform contemporary practice.’’
Backed by funding from UK Research and Innovation’s Higher Education Innovation Fund, the centre will position Salford as one of the only universities in the world to provide training in celluloid filmmaking with the ambition to develop the first professional processing film lab in decades.
The centre will be closely supported in its delivery of training courses by the university’s in-house training centre, The Pipeline, which has been working with cinematography lecturers to deliver a suite of courses for industry professionals across the UK and internationally.
Christine Pyke, creative director of The Pipeline, said: “These courses, some of which have been commissioned by ScreenSkills, the UK’s flagship skills body for the screen industries, are designed to address knowledge and skills gaps across celluloid.
“At all levels of film production, from directors of photography to cinematographers to production managers, these new courses are in high demand across the industry, and we are very excited to begin rolling them out early next year.”
The SCCE is founded by cinematographers and Salford lecturers Laura Hilliard and Steven Wyatt.
Their distinguished practice in celluloid filmmaking secured them exclusive access to the Logmar Magellan 65mm camera – among the world’s rarest and most sought-after film cameras.
Their research partnership with the Danish manufacturer, which is informing the development of a future 65mm camera system, also directly shapes the centre’s forthcoming courses – which will consist of one-day and multi-day courses across Super 8, 16mm, 35mm and 65mm formats.
Hilliard said: “We are really excited to be unveiling our Salford Celluloid Centre of Excellence.
“Through the centre, we will train camera crew, collaborate with labs and scanning facilities, develop new technologies, share exposure reports, test footage and camera data openly with the global film community.
“The SCCE is committed to building a community of generosity through inclusivity and collaboration.”
Wyatt added: “The centre aims to democratise access to film education for all who practice filmmaking, ensuring that access to training in analogue filmmaking is not just reserved for the privileged few.”
The centre will be formally launched on Thursday 17 December in an event at the university’s New Adelphi building.
