TWO leading local film-makers are offering a golden opportunity to students interested in a hands-on experience in their trade.

The free workshop, offered by Errol Williams, director of When Voices Rise - the much-lauded documentary on the 1959 theatre boycotts that premiered at this year's Bermuda International Film Festival (BIFF) - and Vance Chapman, is being held in conjunction with the Bermuda College, the Department of Education and the Bermuda Arts Council.

"(The film-makers) felt it was necessary and important that Bermudian students get exposed to film-making," said a College spokesman. "The workshop will give students the opportunity to critically examine a selection of films for their functions as stories, their use of film styles and how such films not only illustrate, but help shape a country's identity. Issues of art, gender, race and citizenship will be explored during the course. At the end of the workshop, the students will produce a short documentary, which possibly could be entered in next year's festival."

Recognised as one of the top young screenwriters in Canada, Mr. Chapman has been based out of Toronto for the past seven years. He studied film-making at the famous London International Film School.

Mr. Williams, a former teacher at CedarBridge Academy, is known for his documentary work, having begun as a film-maker as a result of his participation in a writers' group in Bermuda. The experience led him to join the New Brunswick film-makers' co-operative in 1987.

Admittance to the workshop is open to anyone between the ages of 15 and 21, currently enrolled in an educational programme, although space is limited.

The workshop will run between July 8 and 19 at the Bermuda College between 5.30 and 9 p.m. Those interested in enrolling should call 236-9000 ext. 4371.