"The nature of the exercises meant that everyone, regardless of whether they were an experienced writer or not, could participate." Emma Hewett (Spread the Word)

"It does what it claims. You come away with clarity." Tom Cormack (Teacher)

polkadotsonraindrops participants range from aged 8 to 80. Young people still at school or discovering what to do after school or professionals learning new creative skills have all benefitted from working with us. Groups and individuals are drawn from schools, universities, teacher training institutions, corporate bodies, local councils or the film and TV industries.

Participants needs may involve the National Curriculum, learning new creative skills, developing personal confidence, technical film and IT skills or simply a new way to overcome writers block. Courses are generally limited to 6 - 10 participants. This limit ensures a relaxed and intimate approach to expressing and sharing ideas in a non-competitive environment. We encourage participants to inform us of any needs or themes they wish to explore so that we may tailor courses accordingly.

We frequently work on projects in partnership with social service bodies such as the Refugee Council, local education authorities, youth services and schools. We've successfully secured funding from lottery agencies such as the Heritage Lottery Fund, First Light (Film Council), Awards for All, and smaller bodies. Funding ranges from 1 - 5k for a single film project or 20 - 50k for larger multi-platform actvities. In some instances, we are able to secure additional partnership funding for existing projects.

polkadotsonraindrops have established partnerships with The Hayward Gallery, Film Education, The French Institute, Soho House, The British Film Institute, Spread the Word, The London Film Festival, The Arvon Foundation, Skyros Holidays, First Light, Thames Festival, Lambeth Crime Prevention Trust, Vietnamese Refugee Project and the London boroughs of Lambeth, Southwark and Camden.

polkadotsonraindrops was established in early 2003 as a collective of education practitioners who work with digital technology. Recent developments in digital technology have enabled the medium to be more accessible than ever before. The company was established by Mark Aitken who has worked extensively in film production and education since 1990.

Mark founded the Short Film Agency in 1993; taught film production at Central St Martins and worked with numerous schools, colleges and community groups. He has written and directed many short films, commercials and promos including the award winning Vegas Shift and the digital feature, Same Same But Different. The polkadotsonraindrops produced documentary Until when you die was nominated for a Silver Cub award at the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam in 2006 and played at festivals internationally. In 2010 he completed Forest of Crocodiles, an hour long documentary about fear within an isolated white community in South Africa. The film was sold to BBC Worldwide, TV3 Spain and several other TV stations around the world. Mark is also a published writer of fiction - most recently in the Aesthetica journal of new writing.

Other polkadotsonraindrops facilitators and producers include Vaughan Pilikian, Rani Khanna, Kareim Al Jamal, Rachel Tillotson and Olivia Hetreed.

polkadotsonraindrops is supported by Arts & Business.