Gary Halliday

If you want to make a film you're going to need a Plumber

Gary Halliday began his working life as a shampoo boy in a hair salon in the Black Country. He embraced the creative atmosphere of working in a salon and fell in love with the world of fashion. A chance meeting with the legendary hairdresser Sam McKnight lead to Gary becoming McKnight's first full-time assistant and after 5 years of working with many of the worlds leading photographers and directors, Gary was ready to venture out on his own. Before long Gary was working with many of the best fashion designers in the world and was the go-to stylist when Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer or Cindy Crawford were in town.

The legendary Hollywood filmmaker Robert Altman booked Gary for a film and that was when Gary realised he'd like to work in the movie business. Before long Gary was producing, writing and directing his own work. A brief spell in front of the camera saw Gary appear in episodes of 'Eastenders', 'Coronation Street' and the BAFTA Nominated film version of 'The Bill'.

In 2007 Gary set up UK Film School (UKFS) in order to help young people from all backgrounds get involved in filmmaking. UKFS now work with the Duke of Edinburgh residential Gold Award and have provided filmmaking workshops as part of BBC Children In Need.

The UK film industry has an unparalleled reputation for skilled technicians and UKFS gives students aged 12 to 18 years, experience of working in this arena, encouraging them to consider working within the many trades and professions involved in the film industry that are often overlooked.

Gary always reminds students of the many different skills needed to make a film. A big budget film set is buzzing with accountants, electricians, carpenters. It’s important that our students recognise that filmmaking is a huge team effort which requires many talented individuals not just the glamorous jobs of actors and directors.