Christmas is a fabulous time of year, but if you fancy doing something between Christmas and New Year Ormskirk's Chapel Gallery has some great festive activities.

The Borough Council-run Gallery will be open 10am–4.30pm from 27 to 29 December. Visitors can see the 'Festival of Tales' and 'Opening the Gates' exhibitions, take the children for free activities and learn about photography and filmmaking. The Gallery Café will also be open 10am-4.30pm on all those days so you can pop in for a hot drink, mulled wine and a mince pie, or some tasty food.

Whether Santa brought you a camera this Christmas or you are interested in photography and film, join professional cameraman Owen Edwards in a series of talks on Friday 28 December, and support him in shooting his own short film.

Owen works on professional short films with a number of companies including with the BBC. In his final year of BSc Film and Television Production, he's shooting a short a film towards his dissertation. To help raise funding for the film Owen is working with the Gallery to provide talks on filmmaking, photography and cameras in return for donations.

An Introduction to Filmmaking - 11:00 - 11:45
Discover how you go about bringing your filmmaking ideas to life and learn what everyone does on set. If you're thinking of making films, or would like to know more about how a film or TV drama is made, this talk is a great introduction.

Short Film Screenings - 12:00 - 12:15
Two short films produced at the University of York that will be referenced in the following talk:
· 'A Man and the Moon’ - A short biopic about Dr Gilbert Fielder, and his life-long passion and research into our Moon. Directed by Owen Edwards.
· 'Close Call' - A determined grandfather sneaks out of hospital to see his grandson's important piano performance. Directed by Darcy Farrant.
How to Take Better Photos and Videos - 12:45 - 13:30
Do you want to capture better images? This talk will cover simple yet effective ways that you can improve your photos when using any camera, even your smartphone! The talk will also cover some camera movement for budding filmmakers.

Camera Settings and How to Use them Creatively - 14:00 - 14:45
Learn about shutter speed, aperture and ISO. Whether you've received a camera for Christmas, or you've owned one for a while. This talk will cover all the fundamental manual settings on your Mirrorless, SLR or DSLR camera so you can learn to use them creatively.

Whilst the sessions are free, donations of £5 (or more) are welcomed. You can donate at http://chapelgallery.org.uk/help-a-film/ or in person on the day.
Councillor Yvonne Gagen, portfolio holder for Leisure, said: "The Chapel Gallery will be a great place to visit between Chriatmas and New Year, so come along to see what is on offer."

Owen's film
Set on the eve of World War Two, Maketh the Man follows Charlie, a talented young musician who dreams of leaving England for America during the golden age of jazz. But as war breaks out, pressure for him to join the RAF from his father and community mounts against him. The film plays on the feelings of uncertainty about the future which many young people are experiencing today.