BUDDING actors, this could be your big break...

Student scriptwriters and film directors are on the lookout for talented performers to star in a number of short films.

The second year media practice students from the University of Central Lancashire are shooting four ten-minute films in Preston during January and February.

And they are calling on inspired debutantes as well as professionals to come forward. "It is so important to get good actors, the better the actors the better the films," said scriptwriter and assistant director Christiane Cantzler, 27, of Carnarvon Road.

Christiane's script, Seeing Double, is about two schizophrenic twins who have never met. "It's a complicated story, a drama, which involves a love triangle," she said.

Although Miss Cantzler said her biggest influence is director Quentin Tarantino, her short production does not include any of the violence characteristically associated with his films like Pulp Fiction.

The actors will be unpaid, but they will get the chance to work in a professional environment, and some of the films will be submitted to competitions, including the high-profile Keano competition at the Corner House in Manchester.

Christiane, from Berlin, came to Preston five and half years ago and, before starting her course as a mature student, was an accounts assistant.

If you are interested in taking part, send a photo and short CV to fishnetproductions@sillysea.com.