2025 > A little end of Year Reflection
By Neil Graham
17 Dec 2025
It can often feel, particularly as I work near London’s Oxford Street, that Christmas begins sometime in September — when the shops start stacking mince pies or the rickshaws switch from playing Abba or Taylor Swift to Wham and Mariah Carey.
But for me, I have always tried to keep my festive celebrations focused to the end of December — so as not to dilute the experience too much. There really is a thing as too much Slade and mulled wine can lose its appeal if drunk non-stop from the end of November. But a glass or two during the official twelve days of Christmas is a wonderful thing!
As well as a time to catch-up with friends and family, exchange gifts and experience the usual joys of the season, Christmas is a time to unwind and reflect. It seems the one time of the year that most people take sometime off, the wheels of commerce slow down, and you can enjoy some time to think quietly on the year just gone and the year ahead — stripped of the need to deal with the latest urgent e-mail or mild work crisis that needs an immediate response.
It has certainly been a lovely year for me. It started with the somewhat out-of-the-blue news that Something Pointless had been greenlit for production — with the added sparkle of a top-drawer cast and crew behind it. That has certainly brought a touch of tinsel to my life in 2025 — and very much excited by the prospect of its premiere next year and, fingers crossed, an interesting run on the festival circuit.
Preparing material for the festival pack also took me down a rabbit hole of revisiting my older films — and it was fun to revisit some of these early images and memories from 30+ years ago. I did wonder what an earth I must have been thinking with some of my student films — too much early exposure to Jean-Luc Godard probably, but there were a few shots and scenes from a couple of my early short films, such as The Tree, that brought a smile to my face. But my over-arching memory for all these films, regardless of how well they stand up (or indeed whether they ever stood up in the first place!) was how rewarding and fun making movies can be.
I also had a chance to dig out the pen and paper and work on some new material; a couple of short ideas and my first proper attempt at a stage play — for which I have some early ambitions. Another thing to look forward to in 2026.
So this year has been a fruitful one. 2025 has been a nice reminder that life can change direction rather randomly at times. But as we hurtle towards the end of this calendar year, I am certainly looking forward to seeing what treats and unexpected delights will come our way in 2026.
For the next couple of weeks, I intend to unwind, catch-up on quite a few movies and do a spot of re-writing. As well as the compulsory re-watch of It’s A Wonderful Life, I also intend to catch-up on a few shorts. The Oscar short-list was announced yesterday and no doubt is a treasure trove of ‘Short is Better’ creativity.
Hope you have a great Christmas. Don’t forget the early-bird deadline on December 28th, and see you afresh in ‘26.
Happy Writers’ Wednesday. #ww
Submissions are open for the 7th annual Canadian Short Screenplay Competition.
The Early Bird Deadline is December 28th, 2025. The final deadline is April 26th, 2026. Get your entries in via FilmFreeway or also now courtesy of the fine folks over at Stage32, if you’re feeling so inclined to share your latest work.
2025 #WW Laureate
