Sand Dancers Premiere: A South Shields Story that Sold Out in Hours

On 19 March 2025, we premiered our latest documentary, Sand Dancers, to a sold-out audience in Boldon, South Tyneside. The film follows Jimmy Simpson, a 25-year-old surfer from Harton, South Shields, who lives with dyskinetic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and discovered surfing just last year.

The response blew us away — tickets to the premiere sold out in a matter of hours, and we ended up moving to a bigger cinema screen to meet the demand. More than 270 people came together to celebrate Jimmy’s journey and the incredible community that has supported him.

A Story of Surf, Support and South Shields

Sand Dancers documents Jimmy’s attempt to compete at the English Adaptive Surfing Championships in Bristol, where he was supported in the water by his personal assistant Lauryn Bell and surf instructor Nick Jones from South Shields Surf School.

Lauryn, who appears throughout the film, described the premiere as an emotional moment:

“It’s been great getting everybody here and seeing how emotional everyone was. It just shows how the community of South Shields came together.”

That same community had already rallied around Jimmy to create an adapted surfboard and help him pursue his dream of surfing.

Behind the Camera

The film was produced by Connor Langley and the Red Stamp Productions team, who captured more than 70 hours of footage over the course of filming.
Connor reflected on the impact of the story at the premiere:

“This is a real story of the community helping Jimmy. Of course it’s popular because we all want to feel included and enabled by the people around us.
When you’re shooting you’re focussed on the moment, but when I watched the first cut, it floored me. It’s powerful.”

Shot on the Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K, the documentary was edited in Adobe Premiere Pro and mixed in Pro Tools at our in-house post-production facility, Red Stamp Post.

What’s Next

With backing from the community and partners including South Shields Surf School, Focus Canning, and local councils who helped secure filming permissions, Sand Dancers is now heading onto the film festival circuit. It’s already been selected for Sunderland Shorts and the New York Sport Film Festival, with more screenings lined up — including a free showing at the South Shields Beach Festival in September 2025.

We’re incredibly proud of this project, not just for Jimmy’s achievements, but for how it showcases the power of inclusion, sport, and storytelling.

👉 If you’d like to keep up to date with festival screenings or opportunities to watch Sand Dancers, make sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and X/Twitter.