Our 2023 Judges
Introducing our Judges for the 2023 edition of Lowestoft Film Festival!
2023 Awards Decided by our judges
Best British Short Film · Best Animated Short Film · Best Documentary Short · Best Experimental Short · Making Waves Short
Best UK Student Short Film · Best East Anglian Student Short Film · Best East Coast Short Film · Best Short Film made by u16
Caroline Spence
Producer / Screenwriter
Caroline is an actor, producer, and screenwriter. Feature films to date include her debut Do Something, Jake, Spanish-set Agent Kelly in which she plays the lead, and the classy Hitchcockian horror, Casting Kill. Caroline’s films have received official selections at many festivals and best feature awards, and have provided unique opportunities for talented people from many diverse backgrounds in the UK and internationally.
Jasmine Valentine
Acting Editor, FILMHOUNDS Magazine
Jasmine is the Acting Editor of FILMHOUNDS Magazine, having written freelance for the likes of Little White Lies, i-D, and Curzon Cinemas. You may also recognise Jasmine from interviews for Yahoo Entertainment.
Shelby Cooke
Curator & Critic
Shelby is a freelance film critic and curator specialising in British cinema. She has written for various publications and has edited three film criticism anthologies: Screen Dreams, Eating the Screen and Queer Projections. She is the lead curator and a founding member of Award Winning Film East, a film organisation based in Norwich that aims to educate and inspire young audiences through thought-provoking cinema.
Georgia Hunter
Film Programmer
Georgia is a film programmer with experience organising and delivering film events. She was a BFI Film Academy Film Programmer as well as a Film Programme assistant for Fabrica, a contemporary art gallery. She has worked on film programmes in collaboration with the Women’s Over Fifty Film Festival, Cinecity, Oska Bright Film Festival, Screen Archive South East, and Brighton Festival.
Lewis Hurt
TV Sports Director
Lewis is an award-winning producer and director with over 15 years experience in the media industry. He has directed and produced a host of documentary films for ITV and now regularly directs live sport for a global audience.
Katie Evans
Digital Film Marketing
Katie is a digital film marketer currently working at Paramount Pictures in London promoting films such as the latest box office hit Top Gun: Maverick. She's a huge fan of film (especially horror!) and surrounds herself with cinema in as many ways as possible. Kate currently volunteers at multiple film festivals across the country and helps at her local cinema.
Jean Campbell Hogg
Director / Artist-Filmmaker
Jean is a director/filmmaker and works across TV, independent film, and education. She's directed award-winning shorts and features. In addition, she is currently in pre-production for her coming-of-age drama feature, Late Splitters.
Jane Ashmore
Director Film & TV
2022 Award Winner
Jane is a Director in film & TV drama, currently working in the field of continuing drama on television on such programmes as EastEnders and Emmerdale. She submitted her first short film LOVE to Lowestoft Film Festival last year (2022) and was honoured to be awarded Best British Short Film. Her short film has to date won over 30 awards in a number of film festivals.
Dean Parkin
Writer & Poet
Dean Parkin was born in Lowestoft in 1969 and left school to work at a printers and then a bookshop. He is a full-time writer, freelance poet, playwright and workshop leader. Dean has produced numerous experimental short films over the years with his debut short entitled 'Right up Your Street'.
You can check out who our 2022 Judges were here
What Past Submitters have to say:
Eliza Riley – “It was a pleasure to attend and enter Lowestoft Film Festival. Every step of the way we felt supported by the team. The experience of seeing our film at the festival was so special, especially after watching everything else running there. We felt a real achievement in being showcased alongside such great filmmaking talent. We will definitely be entering into the festival again. Thank you Lowestoft.”
Amelia Hunt – “Absolutely wonderful festival with lots of support for filmmakers. Thrilled to have something so wonderful in Lowestoft.”
Louis Holder – “Fantastic place to hold the east Anglian premiere of my latest award-winning short doc – Cinema Now. Josh and the team were so kind and had such a memorable day there… can’t wait to see what the guys have in store for next year’s edition of the festival. Are you coming with?”
