Framing New Brighton screening and Q&A

Thursday 4 December 2025 / 6pm–8pm / Open Eye Gallery / free, RSVP

Joining us for a special screening of local film ‘Framing New Brighton’, directed by Dylan Cubbin. Framing New Brighton is a short documentary portrait of a seaside town seen through the lenses of three photographers: Ken Grant, Alex Hurst, and Tom Wood, whose work spans decades of social and cultural change.

Once famed for its fairground, landmarks, and holiday crowds, New Brighton has recently reinvented itself with the Victorian Quarter and new retail and hospitality developments. The film looks back to a time before regeneration, when families visited to escape the city and young people flocked to the Chelsea Reach for a night out. It combines interviews, photography, and archive footage to tell the story of both the place and those who documented it.

At its heart, the film asks how we see the places we think we know best, and how that view can differ from another person’s perspective.

After the screening (33mins), director Dylan Cubbin and cinematographer Daniel Frost will be joined by photographer Alex Hurst for a discussion with the audience. Conversation hosted by Susannah Fletcher.

Director Dylan Cubbin said: “New Brighton has always been full of character. This film is a chance to celebrate the town through the photographers who have documented its beauty throughout the years.”

Dylan Cubbin is a filmmaker from the Wirral. His work explores themes of place, memory, and identity, with credits including Liverpool Story (2024) and The Town I Love So Well (2025).

Daniel Frost is a British photographer based in the North West of England. With a quiet thoughtfulness and subtle hand he is focused on capturing ordinary and overlooked moments within both natural and urban environments. He also has an education in Film and TV with a focus on Cinematography.

Alex Hurst is a Liverpool based social documentary photographer and does stills for film and high-end TV. She has been active since the mid-1990s and her work documenting Liverpool is part of the British Culture Archive. 

Susannah Fletcher is a multimedia practitioner with a background in Fine Art Photography (BA) and a recent Documentary Filmmaking (MA) graduate. She works across visual and audio mediums, creating projects that bridge communication and visual expression. Focusing on portraiture and music-based documentary, Suzy is particularly inspired by the music scene and cultural life of Liverpool. She sees the city as a living presence in her work, capturing its energy, complexity, and humanity through layered, observational storytelling.