Film London has a long and successful track record when it comes to serving and sustaining the capital’s screen industries. A huge part of this has been identifying and supporting new talent while elevating skills and increasing diversity.

Via the BFI's Metro London Skills Cluster (MLSC) and our Equal Access Network we’ve served as a trusted partner for household-name studios, connecting incredible below-the-line talent to hundreds of jobs across the film, TV and games industries. This job brokerage role has been bolstered by developing industry-led training initiatives for in-demand skills, and helping hundreds of talented new entrants connect with industry movers and shakers at major networking events.

Our mentoring scheme, Film London Connect, also serves as a key means of support. By matching new and emerging talent to best-in-the-biz mentors, we aim to help people develop their careers and build practical industry knowledge. Whether you’re a potential mentor or a budding mentee, we hope this interview inspires you to sign up when the scheme reopens on 12 December.

Mentee: Newton Ndukuba

Newton hails from Enfield in north London. He has a BSc in Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and his first industry role was as a runner and production assistant at Working Title Films. A marketing guru in-the-making, he now works across marketing and branding at youth-driven production company Fully Focused Production. His movie go-tos are comedies like Hitch, Norbit and Grown Ups 2.

Mentor: Gareth Lowrie

Gareth’s first role was working in a cinema selling popcorn. Today he is VP of Marketing for Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, where he creates, oversees and launches Universal Pictures’ marketing campaigns for Home Entertainment products across Europe and Latin America. His movie go-tos are Step Brothers, The Empire Strikes Backand Shaun Of The Dead.

What drew you to a career in film and TV, and why marketing in particular?

Newton: I’ve always been drawn to film and TV. I started out acting as a kid and later became the official presenter at LSE, so storytelling and entertainment have always felt natural to me. Marketing became the space where everything I enjoy comes together: creativity, analytics, and audience understanding. Studying Management at LSE strengthened both sides of my brain, but it was film that gave me a purpose for them.

What excites me most is the impact marketing can have. I love that my research and ideas can genuinely resonate with a micro-community, whether that’s creating moments people remember or encouraging someone to experience a story they might never have found otherwise. Being able to shape those emotional connections is what keeps me motivated.

What kind of challenges did you find when it came to breaking into the industry?

Newton: I came from a corporate and academic background at LSE, so stepping into film felt like entering a completely new world – especially when many of my peers had spent years refining their craft. That gap pushed me to work twice as hard. I knew visibility mattered, so I focused on showing my potential through every task, big or small. Instead of letting the unfamiliarity hold me back, I used it as motivation to prove I belonged and to keep moving closer to my long-term goals.

Gareth: When applying for jobs after university and the years thereafter, most jobs required some degree of ‘experience’, but it was hard to gain any such experience to even be considered for the position. This is why I continued working in and managing cinemas for a number of years – it kept me in touch with the industry I loved and wanted to be a part of.

How did you find out about the Film London mentorship programme, and why did you decide to get involved?

Gareth: I saw a friend on LinkedIn share details about it. I was already mentoring within Universal Pictures and felt it was a great opportunity to pass on some advice to those looking to get into the industry or possibly trying to find direction in it. The world of marketing is very broad and can have many different avenues to go down; some of them may not be quite right for people’s skillset.

How would you sum up the mentor-mentee experience to someone who is considering it?

Newton: It’s an experience that expands how you see yourself in the film industry. If you allow yourself to fully engage with the programme, it opens doors to rooms and people that once felt completely out of reach. Mentorship becomes a vessel for opportunity, but the real impact comes from how you choose to use the access, guidance, and resources they give you.

Gareth: It’s really rewarding, and you learn a lot about yourself and others. It makes you analyse how to help or direct people, whilst also allowing them to find their own way.

How would you sum up the mentor-mentee experience?What do you have to put into it yourself to get the most out of it?

Gareth: You should always prepare for each session, but it’s also essential you get into a different mindset. This isn’t your ‘day-to-day’ job – this is about guiding someone, listening and being responsive to what they ask you or bring to the session. You have to listen and be open-minded to questions and new ways of thinking. I’m much older than the mentees I’ve had, and the challenges they face nowadays can often be different to what I experienced in my career.

Newton: You can expect monthly meetings with a designated mentor where you have the freedom to bring in the topics, challenges, or goals that matter most to you.

To get the most out of it, you need to show up engaged, open, and honest – your mentor can only support you with what you’re willing to share. One piece of advice that really helped me was to come to each session with a clear agenda. It keeps the meeting focused, makes the best use of their time, and shows your mentor that you’re committed to your own growth. It’s also important to connect with others in your cohort. Building relationships with people who are on a similar journey means you’re not navigating everything alone; you’re learning and progressing alongside a community with the same goals.

What have been the most important lessons you’ve learned from this experience?

Newton: The biggest lesson I’ve learned is to not shy away from opportunities. I’ve realised that the people at Film London genuinely want to see young creatives grow, so stepping forward confidently isn’t just encouraged, it’s part of the journey. Embracing opportunities, even when they feel big, has shown me that visibility is a strength, not something to be afraid of.

Gareth: The importance of being open minded – to new experiences, to the needs of others and that what I perhaps do day-to-day, could help other people’s understanding of an industry that can look very insular and closed off.

How long have you been Newton’s mentor, and how would you say he has grown or developed his skills in this time?

Gareth: I was Newton’s mentor for six sessions, so six months. During this time I feel he’s developed in many ways. He has huge levels of enthusiasm and an incredible ‘will-do’ attitude, so many of our sessions were designed to help him focus that enthusiasm and effort towards the right areas. Newton is very creatively minded and confident in all that he does, so we also held a session that was more formal, and I asked him numerous questions that would typically be asked in marketing interviews. The goal of this was to give Newton areas to continue refining ready for when such an opportunity comes up within film/TV marketing.

Where do you hope your career takes you?

Newton: I want my career to keep pushing me into rooms where I can learn from people with deep experience, grow creatively, and take on work that genuinely moves culture forward. Over time, I hope to rise through the industry and play a bigger role in shaping campaigns and stories that inspire the next generation, the same way others have done for me.

A big part of my future is also giving back. I want to use what I’ve learned to mentor young creatives, and develop Hidden in the Credits, my talk show dedicated to spotlighting the behind-the scenes roles in film and TV that often go unnoticed. If I can help young people see new possibilities for themselves in this industry, then that’s the kind of career I want to build.