WaterDog is a short film filmed and edited by Phill Dixon.

In Phill’s words:

“I came to Wild Island Film school with a background in filming and photographing wildlife for a number of years and technical knowledge of cameras and kit. What I was looking for was a course that would improve my narrative and boy did I choose the right course. I realised within the first few hours of meeting S-J that I was a clip taker who made them into films, while I left this course someone who created wildlife stories and made them into films. It was a revelation and the film I made on this course was a million times better than the one I would have made.

S-J is unflappable, inspirational, encouraging and insightful, willing to offer advice and share her knowledge built up from years working in industry. She won’t dismiss an idea but she will get you to think about not only how it will be accomplished on the technical level, but also how the audience would react and how it furthers your story, not just the fact it makes a lovely shot on paper.

There is also an emphasis on fieldcraft, not disturbing the wildlife and on honesty and authenticity with the viewer, all of which fit perfectly with anyone wanting to get the best out of wildlife filmmaking and ethically produce something.

I think the best summary of the course would be seeing how excited and happy S-J is to see you succeed, and grow as the days rolled on and footage and ideas flowed. She genuinely wants to see people do well and puts her heart and soul into making sure you learn and enjoy learning.

I cannot thank S-J enough for the effort and help she provided by over the 4 days and can thoroughly recommend this course to anyone”