Staff
Rafael Kapelinski
Term 1 and 2 Tutor
Rafael is a London-based, award-winning writer/director, media lecturer, screenplay development and new media technology consultant. Since 2006 he has created some of the most distinctive short and feature films that have won over twenty five international awards at toptier festivals such as Cannes, Oberhausen, Austin, New Horizons and Brest. His feature debut 'Butterfly Kisses' (BBC Films/Film London/Microwave/Blue Shadows Films) won the Crystal Bear at the 2017 Berlin International Film Festival. His feature project 'Up on the Roof' won Cannes Film Festival’s prestigious Cinefondation Residence award. His short 'To Bury The Horse' was a finalist in the 2011 Bosh Stiftung Competition. He also worked as script supervisor on Nina Gantz’s BAFTA-winning short animation 'Edmond' (over fifty international awards). He is currently in development with a comedy Cranley Gardens (Blue Shadows Films, IFP), Budapest Diaries (Domino Films, PISF) and a television series 'Tumbleweed' (Racine Media). He is also attached to adapt and direct Alex Gino’s best-selling novel George (Racine Media). Rafael has taught all aspects of fiction directing, practical filmmaking and script development at The London Film School, The Central London Film School, The London Film Academy and The Northern Film School.
Social links: Twitter
Richard Kwietniowski
Writer-Director and LFS 6th Term Tutor
Writer-director, born in London to Anglo-Polish parents. After studying literature then film at University of Kent at Canterbury, became Visiting Research Scholar in Film at University of California at Berkeley before returning to the UK to work in the independent film sector and higher education. Short films including Alfalfa and Flames of Passion were distributed internationally. Work as a director for British TV received Royal Television Society and D&AD (Gold and Best of Year) awards and a Prix Italia nomination. Feature-films Love and Death on Long Island (John Hurt and Jason Priestley), and Owning Mahowny (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Minnie Driver) both made Best of Year critics’ lists. Awards include prizes from Cannes Film Festival, Berlin Film Festival, New York Film Critics Circle, US National Board of Review, and BAFTA. He teaches directing, screenwriting and acting-to-camera at a range of institutions in the UK and beyond, and has contributed to many European initiatives in feature film development. His LFS directing workshop for film students and actors has just celebrated its 300th edition. His name is easier to pronounce than it looks: Kfee-etnee- ov-skee.
Ronaldo Fagarazzi
Stage Supervisor and Gaffer
Ronaldo has been involved in the theatre, television and film industries for almost twenty years. During that time he has worked as Lighting Designer on numerous stage productions in London, Cambridge, Brighton and the Edinburgh Festival. In 1993 he joined the lighting department at Fountain Television in Wembley, working on numerous productions, including Friends, The Fast Show and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, rising to the position of Studio Manager in 1998.
In 2001 he decided to return to freelance work and was involved in a wide range of projects, including six months in the USA, where he was employed as Lighting Designer at Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Centre in New York on productions which included Sweeney Todd, Les Miserables, Nine and The Mikado. After a tour of Britain and India with Chitraleka Dance Company on their innovative Story of C he joined the London Film School. What was originally intended to be a short-term contract has become permanent and he is now responsible for the schools lighting equipment, stages and health and safety - as well as teaching students safe use of lighting, electrics etc.
Sophia Wellington
Head of Screenwriting
Sophia Wellington began her film career on the floor – literally: placing marks for Richard Gere as a camera assistant. After years in the camera department, working on a number of Anglo-American features, Sophia moved into the cutting room where she is, to her knowledge, the only (living) assistant editor to get an apology out of Harvey Weinstein.
Sophia moved into script development in 2003 when she joined World Productions to develop a feature slate for their production deal with Sony Columbia. During this time, she worked with a variety of writers and directors on films including Layer Cake and Becoming Jane.
Another move, this time to Singapore where Sophia taught screenwriting for the Graduate Film and Dramatic Writing programmes of NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia. Returning to London in 2015, Sophia combines teaching with writing and script development whilst maintaining her links with the South East Asian film industry. She runs feature workshops for the Cinemalaya Institute in Manila and recent script consultancy credits include Remittance (2016) a low budget feature exploring the life of migrant workers in Singapore and the upcoming Polis Evo 2, (2018) a high octane, Malaysian action movie.
Sue Austen
Producer and LFS 6th term Tutor
Sue has worked in independent film and television production since 1982. Her career began at the now legendary Goldcrest Films, where she worked for four years on programmes produced for the new Channel 4. After Goldcrest’s collapse Sue spent a short time as a freelance script editor, before joining Granada Films as Head of Development. Whilst there she worked on a number of feature films including David Hare’s STRAPLESS and Aisling Walsh’s first feature, JOYRIDERS. Sue left Granada to co-produce the medical thriller, PAPER MASK, co-funded by Film 4 and British Screen, released in over 70 territories and selected as the closing film in Director’s Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival in 1990.
Sue then spent 5 years working at the European Script Fund, part of the MEDIA (Creative Europe) organisation and returned to production in 1997 with her first television film, VICIOUS CIRCLE, developed and produced for BBC Films and Irish Screen. This was followed by the BAFTA nominated comedy drama DONOVAN QUICK starring Colin Firth. Over the next twelve years she produced more than 50 hours of primetime television drama for BBC1, BBC2 and ITV and received a second BAFTA nomination.
She continues to develop new productions as well as tutoring and lecturing part time at the London Film School, Goldsmiths University, Serial Eyes and Regents University.
Terry Hopkins
Visiting Lecturer
Terry is a member of the International Cinematographers Guild and began shooting 16mm documentaries in New York in the late 1970s. His work appeared on America's PBS, Britain's BBC and Channel 4. The trend toward incorporating dramatic recreations into documentaries provided Terry with a means of linking his love of documentaries with lighting for drama. This led to his work as Camera Operator and 2nd unit DP on 35mm feature films.
Three programmes or series Terry has filmed have won Emmy Awards and two have been nominated for Academy Awards (Oscars). His last project before turning to full-time teaching was a documentary on The Rolling Stones directed by Michael Apted, a two-camera shoot on which he worked with Seamus McGarvey ASC, BSC.
Timo Heinänen
Head of Camera
Timo Heinänen F.S.C., cinematographer and previously a professor at Aalto University, Finland. Heinänen’s established career as a cinematographer and educator is irreprehensible; he is skilled across features, short films, documentaries, tv and commercials for over 30 years, with deep educational practice alongside serving as deputy board member of the European Federation of Cinematographers (IMAGO) educational committee, Vice President of Finnish Society of Cinematographers (F.S.C.) and speaker at the ASC International Cinematographers Summit. Heinänen is currently in pre-production on ‘Puluboin ja Ponin leffa’ (2018).
Umpha Koroma
Head of Projection
Of Sierra Leonean origins, Umpha is a highly respected technician having risen through the ranks in projection and exhibition in Sierra Leone from an apprenticeship at the Rivoli Cinema in 1977 to senior and then chief operator in various cinemas in his career. Umpha later became the regional film programmer for Morta Theatres which led to the position of general manager of Metro cinema/Morta theatre Makeni branch where he presided till the infamous dissident rebel incursion in the country in 1991 which prompted his return to the United Kingdom that same year. Since 1991 Umpha has been involved in top London cinemas doing many major film festivals, high profile screenings and premiers at venues like The Prince Charles Cinema, The Electric, Mainline’s Screen Cinemas and as technical manager of the former Oasis Cinemas Ritzy in Brixton and The Gate in Notting Hill. After a stint at the luxurious Himalaya Palace in Southall, Umpha decided to leave mainstream exhibition venues and render services in technical, creative and educational institutions like MPC – The Moving Picture Company screening room and London Film School where he currently works. Umpha was also Screentrade magazine’s technical advisor and chief troubleshooter, and amongst other things, wrote 'From Beyond the Porthole', which offered projectionists valuable time and money saving tips.
Wojciech Wrzesniewski
Acting Head of Sound Department
Studied Electrical Engineering, after graduating worked for a number of years as a service engineer and industrial product designer. Sound recordist on a number of factual, educational and documentary strands for BBC and Channel 4 such as Inside Tracks, On the Record, Panorama, Breaking the Fear (independent feature) and shorts You're In There Ltd. and Konfident.