24 influential Bristolians under 24

As part of their campaign to celebrate youth talent, Rife Magazine have gathered together 24 of the brightest young people currently making a positive impact in Bristol. Their chosen individuals have been making waves in a vast variety of areas, from art and fashion to technology and activism, highlighting some of the very best the city has to offer. Oh and did we mention, they’re all under the age of 24.

1.    ANNA HOGHTON: FILM

A writer of film, theatre and a published poet, Anna has a MA in Writing for Young People and is a founding member of Tremolo Theatre Company. Her latest work has allowed her to focus on addressing environmental issues, with her award-winning climate change action film ‘Never Land’, made in partnership with Cape Farewell. She directed the BAFTA-nominated crew and cast, which includes John Nettles and Marcus Brigstocke, and the film can be found here.

2.    BECKY DUDLEY: ACTIVISM

Becky is a passionate campaigner and the LGBTQ+ representative for the Bristol City Youth Council. She has a particular focus on addressing the inequalities around identity and mental health and is currently fundraising for Mental Health Research UK, through her 2015in2015 campaign, through which she hopes to raise £2015 by the end of the year.

3.    ELLA MARSHALL: POLITICS

A ranter, writer and campaigner, all at the tender age of 16! Elected onto the Bristol City Youth Council and as the member of Youth Parliament for Bristol, Ella actively engages with issues such as anti-austerity, refugees welcome and mental health campaigns. She is committed to trying to make the world a better place and in so doing has had the ‘honour’ of having George Ferguson call her, in her words, ‘challenging’.

4.    EMMA BLAKE MORSI: FASHION

Conducting the ultimate juggling act, Emma works as a digital marketing apprentice for Saffron Records, takes on opportunites within Young Arnolfini and Watershed among others as well as freelancing as a photographer and journalist. Her digital arts, fashion and music magazine, ‘Nocturnal’, was also featured by the BBC earlier this year.

5.    FINLAY COULTER: FILM

A rising YouTube star, Finlay posts vlogs and little travel videos on the site and loves meeting new people and everything creative. He has a particular love for music and as a graduate of the 2015 BFI Film Academy he looks forward to continuing to collaborate with the friends he made there. Check out his channel here.

6.    GRACIE SODZI: SOCIAL ISSUES

Having only just completed her A Levels, Gracie is already committed to setting up her own social enterprise. Taking inspiration from her own mental health difficulties, she is striving to make a difference in the lives of other young people. She has set up mental health workshops with the unique idea to have each attendee make a gift, often inspired by a friend, to help promote wellbeing.

7.    HASSAN SHERIF: FILM

Currently studying for his AS Levels, Hassan has won awards at both local and international film festivals. His films have been shown in a few outdoor cinemas in Berlin and at screenings at the Watershed Cinema right here in Bristol. Alongside filmmaking, he also enjoys writing, recently receiving the inaugural Rife Award for Feature Writing, as well as directing and starring in theatre productions at school.

8.    ISABELLE ROSE NEILL: FILM

A teller of human stories, Isabelle moved to Bristol in 2011 to study Filmmaking and Creative Media at UWE. Her documentaries have covered a whole host of topics including OAP sea swimmers, pom-pom covered sheep and inspirational nanas! She has just completed her first year as a freelancer and is particularly proud of her work on a documentary project by WaterAid called ‘Across the Tracks’ following a mother in an Indian railway slum.

9.    ITMUSTBEALEX: VLOG

A jack-of-all-creative-trades, Alex loves vlogging, presenting, filmmaking, playwriting, acting and singing and has recently started trying his hand at directing. He focuses on doing what he enjoys, seeing social media and the internet as responsible for inspiring him and allowing young people to get innovative in the creative industries.  You can find him on Youtube here.

10.  LIV LITTLE: MEDIA

Liv is committed to countering the white-washed narrative dominating mainstream media and politics, becoming a force of nature in the process. This year she launched the collective new site, gal-dem, which provides a platform for women of colour which has already caught the eye of The Voice and ASOS.

11.  MO OSMAN: MEDIA

A volunteer at Ujima Radio since he was 16, he has moved from the website to become an integral part of their technical team. An expert on the technical aspects of Ujima’s technical infrastructure, Mo has not only contributed to the award-winning output of the station but helps solve queries surrounding on-air output, outdoor broadcasts and the website. This is a heavy burden of responsibility for a 19-year-old but one which makes him an excellent role model!

12.  NEHA MEHTA: POLITICS

Driven to make a difference and cause change, Neha is a youth mayor of Bristol. She got involved in the Youth Council because it was an opportunity to have her ideas heard. In particular, she passionately believes that everyone’s voice matters and particularly wants to ensure that young people are listened to because they are the leaders of tomorrow.

13.  PHRESH BOIIZ 3CULTURE: MUSIC

This Bristol-based hip-hop collective offer a fresh new perspective for the alternative hip hop genre, with a focus on championing growth and self-empowerment. The three members aim to shine a new light on the music industry, bringing attention to issues such as pop culture and politics. Find their Youtube here.

14.  RACHAEL BASKEYFIELD: ART

Rachael is a Fine Art graduate working in Bristol as a digital reporter for public art producers Situations. She is also an artist and writer, passionate about the visual arts and seeking out the unexpected. She has recently joined Young Arnolfini as a member of their steering group and as a feminist aims to advocate new ways of thinking.

15.  SAMMY JONES: MEDIA

Having completed a six month internship at Rife, Sammy is now Crack Magazine’s Junior Digital Editor. Fluent in emoji and able to tackle everything from listicles to thinkpieces, she has a talent for finding the most clickable music news.

16.  SAMMY PAYNE: TECHNOLOGY

Named as one of the Top 25 women in robotics, Sammy is the co-founder of Open Bionic, an award-winning start-up creating 3D printed bionic hands. She came runner-up in a global technology competition run by Intel and is an alum of the Disney TechStars accelerator based in LA. Sammy is fascinated by Bristol’s creative and technology scene, an industry she sees as thriving, covering it as a freelance reporter for the Bristol Business post, where she is now a columnist.

17.  SHAM AHMED (aka ShamPhat): PHOTOGRAPHY

Sham is a YouTube vlogger who is quite easily spotted walking through the city centre by his big beard and smile as he chats away to his camera. His main messages are peace, love and smiles, dwelling on his own experiences and weirdness to create entertaining content. Only a few years ago he was filming videos in his bedroom, but now as a freelance photographer he has appeared on the BBC and has recently joined the Watershed board. He encourages anyone who sees him to give him a hug and go for a coffee with him. See him on YouTube here.

18.  SOPHIE ELLAM: MUSIC

Recently signed to Saffron Records, Sophie is an inspiring young singer with her own unique style. She is all the more impressive not only because she is only 15-years-old but also seeing as she is a self-taught musician. Listen to her on YouTube.

19.  SOPHIE GILTINAN: POLITICS

Sophie represents North Bristol on the Bristol City Youth Council and Member of Youth Parliament, having the amazing opportunity to speak in the Commons on the Living Wage. She enjoys politics but is really passionate about young people and wants to use her position to get important decision-makers to actually listen to them and show that young people can make a difference.

20.  SOPHIE HOSKEN-TAYLOR: MUSIC

Sophie is not only the recent winner of Wath Festival’s Young Performer Award but spent the first half of the year campaigning to save Yeovil College’s Performing Arts Department, gaining support from local Labour and Green parties. She also has her own label, Shabby Cabin Records, through which she independently released her ‘Maps’ EP. Find out more on her website.

21.  THANUSHAN JAYARAJAH: POLITICS

Alongside completing his AS Levels, Thanushan is a Youth Mayor of Bristol and has spent the past five years as an elected member of the Bristol City Youth Council. He is proud to work alongside key decision makers in Bristol to tackle issues he is passionate about, such as work experience and careers advice, an area within the education sector he believes needs more attention.

22.  THOMAS WILLIAMS: TECHNOLOGY

Thomas is a composer and designer who works with technology to design and build interactive installations that create opportunities in public spaces for people to create with music and light. His main inspirations are taken from the fantastical and he hopes to spark curiosity around music composition. He also works with other artists to create bespoke music for film, animation and performance, striving to create work that engages with the city. See more of his work on his website.

23.  YOUNG ARNOLFINI: ART

A collective of creative young people aged between 16-24, Young Arnolfini aims to bridge the gap between young people and contemporary art. They run workshops, live events and exhibitions and are currently working on exploring Bristol as a city for their next project. Find out more here.

24.  ZOE ALKER: FILM

For the past five years, Zoe has worked as a filmmaker and writer/director, specialising in writing and directing drama, short films, music and poetry videos. She has had the opportunity to collaborate with talent from around the world and her debut feature ‘Summers’ is currently in pre-production. 

Rife Magazine are always on the look out for fresh talent. Tweet @Rifemag #24under24 to let them know who you think they’ve missed. The original article was published on Rife here.