Dawson Films

Child Accident Prevention Trust
'Fancy a Cuppa?'
An improvised drama featuring two mums and their kiddies having a cup of tea and a chat in the kitchen. This safety video alerts the audience to the dangers of hot drinks, electrical plugs and loose wires in a home where there’s toddlers about.

'Bill's Story'
Bill came to England five years ago from the West Indies when his home and property was destroyed by an earthquake. A year later he was diagnosed with lung cancer. This is his story of his experience of Garson Therapy: a radical treatment involving a diet of organic juices and coffee enemas three times a day “ They gave me six months to live, Garson has given me five years; I’m out of my bed, walking every day and oh joy, I have the breath to play my saxophone”.

'Fired Up'
Mixing improvised drama and real life accounts from young offenders, this film tells the story of two young people and how they got in trouble with the law.
Jamie was done for knife crime, his sister for assault. Neither meant to do it, both were in the wrong place at the wrong time. But nobody’s interested in that, they’re both going down; for a long stretch.

'Living with Cancer II'
A look at the different treatments offered; both NHS and alternative.

'Fostering: The Skills to Care'
Intercut with docudrama covering a family’s first fostering experience, we have brought together a unique group: foster carers and their birth children, fostered children and their birth parents, social workers and professionals. All recount personal stories of the highs and lows of fostering, from their own point of view.

'Teenagers in Trouble'
A documentary on parenting teenagers who are at risk of offending.

'The Hardest Thing'
A documentary on adoption and fostering, looking at 3 children’s first year in their new homes.

'Yes You Can'
A documentary feature describing the work of The Prince's Trust.

'The Challenge'
A team of unemployed young people, some from the care system, some from prison, work together over six weeks to help each other find employment, training and education. It’s not easy, Sophie’s been out of school for four years, Nat’s never had a job, crime is what he knows and we’re on his patch, Nitin is a refugee and cannot speak English and the Home Office is threatening to deport her family. It feels like there’s not much future for these kids, but can they help each other to turn things around?

'Royal Charter Event'
Factual reportage: first broadcast live from inside Buckingham Palace covering the granting of a Royal Charter to The Prince’s Trust.

'Only a Kiss?'
An educational film about abuse for 14-16 year olds. Using improvised drama we follow the story of Ishea’s Friday night: dad’s got his mates round to watch the football, mum’s out with the girls and brother Dan is at his girlfriends. Ishea’s alone, upstairs in the bedroom…

'Just One Chance'
How hard is it choose the right school? How do you know which is the right school for your child? Just One Chance looks at the options available and highlights ’sneaky ways’ parents use to get their kids into their ‘school of choice’!

'The Gill and Mark Story'
An award winning factual educational film for 12-16 year olds about HIV.

Past Work
2008
'Mental Health' a 4 part series of drama documentaries looking at schizophrenia, bi polar disorder, OCD, psychosis and other mental health issues. The documentaries look at how carewrs and patients cope, the medications available and effective interventions. 'Families and Friends' a documentary looking at the support offered to family and friends of someone in prison.	'Dragon Awards' Winners film. 'Belfast' a documentary on life in Belfast today, how young people and their families are managing ten years on. 'PACT' a film on the effects of incarceration on the family.
2007
'Changing Time' A multimedia educational pack on surviving prison, containing posters, stickers, resource packs and a DVD.	'Teenagers: The True Story'
2006
'My Mum and Dad Argue a Lot' Five year olds talk about how they are affected by their parents' rows. 'My Mum's talking with chickens' A documentary looking at how children cope living with a mentally ill parent. 'Children Never Lie' Investigating the allegations that looked after children make against their carers. 'Parents in Prison' A three part series on keeping families together through incarceration.	'Where's Mummy?' A documentary looking at prison incarceration from the point of view of those left behind. 'Space Synapse' Profiling the work of interactive Bafta award winner Anna Hill. 'Changing Minds' An interactive CD-ROM looking at behavioural change for 14-17 year olds.
2005
'Samaritans' A documentary looking at Samaritans innovative work with big business training management teams to cope with stress. NHS Primary Care Mental Health Programme Three educational CDRoms containing audio, visual and text materials on mental health for the NHS. 'It's Not Enough!' A group of teenage parents split into two teams and race around Central London trying to collect as many essential newborn baby items as they can, all within the Sure Start maternity grant of £500. A fast-paced and fun-filled film made by young mums. 'Faraway Fathers' It's hard enough to adapt to life in prison, but combined with not being able to see your family and children, it can be overwhelming. Young fathers in Wormwood Scrubs offer their advice and experience to new fathers in this touching short film.	'Inside Outside' A documentary looking at what happens to the children when parents go to prison. How does it feel to be left on the outside not knowing where you’re going to stay, what to tell your friends and most importantly, when you’re going to see your mum again? 'Brief Encounters' Having a baby is one of the most stressful times of your life. Relationships can be strained. This film looks the crucial role a midwife plays, not only in looking after baby but in supporting mum and dad as well. 'Boy, Life just got serious' A moving film about parenting from jail. Explaining some of their biggest regrets along with their hopes for the future, the boys reveal some of the deepest feelings of a group often over-looked by society.
2003
'I love my Family' Young men in Wormwood Scrubs use therapeutic sessions to look at their childhoods, their career in crime and the factors needed to stop them reoffending. 'How can a kid bring up a kid' Teenage parents from Windsor and Maidenhead show the rest of us the benefits of being young and bringing up a family. 'Living With Cancer III' A film on the latest cancer treatments. 'What Works?' A documentary featuring the work of Victim Support. We look at two people’s lives and how they’ve been helped by the charity. ‘ Dwayne’ is a young gay man suffering from racial abuse, ‘Yvana’ is a Roma refugee living in a one bed flat with her two young children and a violent husband. Victim Support is their only lifeline.	'What about us?' A shocking and heart rending documentary talking to children who live with parents who are mentally ill. What support is there when it’s a Friday night, your mum’s locked the front door, she’s poured petrol over herself, you, and your sister and is running around the flat with a cigarette lighter? What do you do if you’re ten years old and your dad’s in Sainsburys talking to the frozen chickens? We hear from kids who are living this life, day to day, year after year, when they become the parents and their parents are the children. Who needs looking after? 'Looking at the Assessment of Sex Offenders' A documentary looking at the assessment of sex offenders, with case studies and interviews from leading psychologists at Broadmoor. We look at the reasons behind the behaviour and why professionals choose to work in this field.
2002
Child Accident Prevention Trust 'Fancy a Cuppa?' An improvised drama featuring two mums and their kiddies having a cup of tea and a chat in the kitchen. This safety video alerts the audience to the dangers of hot drinks, electrical plugs and loose wires in a home where there’s toddlers about. 'Bill's Story' Bill came to England five years ago from the West Indies when his home and property was destroyed by an earthquake. A year later he was diagnosed with lung cancer. This is his story of his experience of Garson Therapy: a radical treatment involving a diet of organic juices and coffee enemas three times a day “ They gave me six months to live, Garson has given me five years; I’m out of my bed, walking every day and oh joy, I have the breath to play my saxophone”.	'Fired Up' Mixing improvised drama and real life accounts from young offenders, this film tells the story of two young people and how they got in trouble with the law. Jamie was done for knife crime, his sister for assault. Neither meant to do it, both were in the wrong place at the wrong time. But nobody’s interested in that, they’re both going down; for a long stretch.
2001
'A Little Bit of Respect' Young people talk about their relationships with adults: the police, teachers, social workers and parents They tell us what makes a good communicator and the opposite… what makes a bad one! 'Changing Minds' An interactive CDRom about mental health for 12-16 year olds. 'Living with Cancer' Anna's diary of her treatment for breast cancer, both conventional and alternative.	'Living with Cancer II' A look at the different treatments offered; both NHS and alternative. 'Fostering: The Skills to Care' Intercut with docudrama covering a family’s first fostering experience, we have brought together a unique group: foster carers and their birth children, fostered children and their birth parents, social workers and professionals. All recount personal stories of the highs and lows of fostering, from their own point of view.
2000
'Teenagers in Trouble' A documentary on parenting teenagers who are at risk of offending.	'The Hardest Thing' A documentary on adoption and fostering, looking at 3 children’s first year in their new homes.
1999
'Yes You Can' A documentary feature describing the work of The Prince's Trust. 'The Challenge' A team of unemployed young people, some from the care system, some from prison, work together over six weeks to help each other find employment, training and education. It’s not easy, Sophie’s been out of school for four years, Nat’s never had a job, crime is what he knows and we’re on his patch, Nitin is a refugee and cannot speak English and the Home Office is threatening to deport her family. It feels like there’s not much future for these kids, but can they help each other to turn things around?	'Royal Charter Event' Factual reportage: first broadcast live from inside Buckingham Palace covering the granting of a Royal Charter to The Prince’s Trust.
1998
'Only a Kiss?' An educational film about abuse for 14-16 year olds. Using improvised drama we follow the story of Ishea’s Friday night: dad’s got his mates round to watch the football, mum’s out with the girls and brother Dan is at his girlfriends. Ishea’s alone, upstairs in the bedroom…	'Just One Chance' How hard is it choose the right school? How do you know which is the right school for your child? Just One Chance looks at the options available and highlights ’sneaky ways’ parents use to get their kids into their ‘school of choice’!
1997
'The Gill and Mark Story' An award winning factual educational film for 12-16 year olds about HIV.