Creative England and the BFI have appointed Celine Haddad and Paul Ashton to lead the new Talent Centres in Sheffield and Brighton.

The hubs are to enhance support for emerging filmmaking talent, and are part of the UK-wide talent network announced in the BFI’s Film Forever plan last year.

They take the posts starting in September.

Haddad is currently the head of development at Passion Pictures (she previously worked at Pathe and also founded production company Connection Films) and Ashton is development producer at BBC Writers Room, where he has worked since 2005.

More details of the Talent Network will be revealed in late September.

Haddad said: “I am thrilled to join the Creative England team and delighted to be involved in such an ambitious partnership with the BFI Film Fund. The wealth of British talent never ceases to amaze me and I look forward to discovering and supporting the next generation of British filmmakers.”

Ashton said: “This is such an exciting time for emerging talent and this is a fantastic opportunity for me to be part of the team flying the flag for that talent. I can’t wait to get started.”

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