Rocket Fuel at Hyde Park: A Cinematic Milestone for MetFilm School Leeds

This week marks a major milestone in the short but impactful history of MetFilm School Leeds. Not only are we preparing to celebrate our very first cohort of BA graduates, but we’re also proud to see the achievements of our tutors, students and alumni lighting up the screen in Rocket Fuel — a brand-new BBC comedy that premiered this week at the iconic Hyde Park Picture House and will air on BBC Three on Thursday 22 May.

The synergy couldn’t be more perfect. The same cinema that hosted the glitzy preview of Rocket Fuel will also play host to our first-ever graduation screening on 17 June, giving our Leeds community a powerful reminder of just how far we’ve come since the campus opened its doors in 2022.

A school born for the screen 

When MetFilm School launched its Leeds campus three years ago, the ambition was clear: to bring industry-led, hands-on film education to one of the UK’s most exciting creative regions. Now, with the Class of 2025 preparing to graduate, that vision is being realised — not only in the careers our students are beginning to carve, but in the way the city itself is becoming part of our story.

Rocket Fuel is a case in point. Written and directed by Jordon Scott Kennedy, tutor on BA Acting for Screen, and MA Directing and produced by Casey Shaw, Course Leader for BA Content, Media and Film Production, the show is a kitchen-sink science fiction comedy bursting with northern character. Its logline sets the tone:

“On a Bradford estate, Lenny and Mullet find an abandoned car and turn it into a DIY spaceship. A kitchen-sink science fiction comedy about estate childhoods, big dreams and escaping without going anywhere.” 

The show is produced by Fully Focused Productions and co-produced by Slick Films, with executive producers including Leah Henry, Nicky Bedu, and Teddy Nygh (Fully Focused); and Mustapha Wehbi, Chris Overton, and Rachel Shenton (Slick Films).

It also stars Lucy Francis, alongside Kate Chappell, Course Leader and Deputy Course Leader respectively for BA Acting for Screen.

The production showcases not only the leadership of our tutors, but also the professional involvement of our students and alumni. Among the MetFilm School Leeds names credited on the production are:

• Elden Tennison – Costume Trainee
• Ethan Duckworth – VT Trainee
• Leibonie Hutchinson – Third Assistant Director
• Billy Haigh – Spark (Lighting Technician), and now also a MetFilm School Leeds lecturer

Billy’s path into the industry is a powerful example of career transformation — having retrained as a filmmaker after a career in teaching, he graduated from our MA Cinematography course with distinction and has since gone on to win multiple festival awards and work across high-profile productions.

A full-circle moment 

For the BA Class of 2025, the upcoming graduation screening isn’t just a formal send-off — it’s a moment of celebration, recognition, and pride. To walk the red carpet at Hyde Park Picture House, just weeks after a major BBC premiere took place there, is a wonderful full-circle moment. Many of the students graduating this year were inspired and taught by the same tutors behind Rocket Fuel, and their achievements are deeply interwoven with the energy and vision of the Leeds campus.

“Rocket Fuel really is an amazing piece of filmmaking, and it was a privilege to be present at the Premiere Screening at the Hyde Park Picture House,” said Paul Gormley, Head of MetFilm School Leeds.

“Casey and Jordon have been at the heart of giving our students opportunities within the industry — in their teaching and with projects like this. It is part of what makes MetFilm Leeds a very special place to study and work. We are really looking forward to celebrating all student successes at the Graduation Screenings on 17 June. In the meantime, make sure you catch Rocket Fuel on BBC Three and iPlayer.”

As we approach 17 June, the Hyde Park Picture House will once again become a stage — this time, for the premiere of a new generation of filmmakers. And if Rocket Fuel is anything to go by, it won’t be long before many of them are back, this time with their own credits rolling.