PQA Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Jennifer Berrisford - Principal PQA Chester

Passionate about performing arts training for children and young people.

I have worked for PQA for the last 8 years initially I started my PQA journey as a Film and TV teacher. I very quickly fell in love with making wild films on my weekends, and helping to tell our students hilarious stories through the art of cinema. I found teaching young people about film, camera, storytelling and working as a team to create something was incredible. Seeing the students grow in confidence and see their ideas on the big cinemas screen was something I loved!

While I am not at PQA, I am a professional filmmaker and actress. I have performed and toured the country in plays and musicals and adverts and also spend lots of time behind the camera as a Director, Camera Operator and Producer. I started my Film and TV career with a 1st Class Degree in degree in Media and Performance from the University of Salford. While I was at university, I undertook various placements with production companies. including working with the BBC and ITV on shows such as Surprise Surprise and Emmerdale. I then went onto work for Into Film, and with the British Film Institute teaching film making and television production. This lead to making award winning shorts with young people all over the UK. I then undertook a Masters in Film, TV and production at The University of Birmingham where I then went on to be part of Channel 4s young directors scheme Random Acts. At PQA we are a warm welcoming place for any child to develop a love of themselves and creativity!