A schoolgirl from Maidstone got to rub shoulders with celebrities on the red carpet at the Shaun the Sheep movie premiere in Leicester Square at the weekend.

Ten-year-old Jessica Warner from Barming Primary School near Maidstone reported from the premiere on Sunday after winning the chance to go behind the scenes at the filming of the Aardman Animations' latest adventure with education charity Into Film.

She was given the opportunity to front a series of three short films as part of the charity’s initiative Green Light to Opening Night which enables young people to follow a film from its inception to release and go behind the scenes with filmmakers.

As a junior reporter on the Into Film Talent Development programme, she was able to go on set at the Oscar-winning studio in Bristol, and explored the model making room and editing suites.

She also got to interview some of the production team including the film’s writer/directors Mark Burton and Richard Starzak, producers, storyboard artists and Aardman Animations co-founder Peter Lord.

She said: "I'm such a huge fan of Aardman Animations so when I heard I was going behind the scenes of the movie I was ecstatic.

"I saw and learnt so much. It was inspirational seeing the dedication and hard work all the people at Aardman put into each production. I was quite nervous before the interviews but the more I did them, the more I became comfortable.

"It was the most awe-inspiring, brilliant experience and I have been lucky to be involved."

Paul Hewlett, Into Film director of content, said: "We thought Jess did a brilliant job behind the scenes. Shaun is a beloved character to many of our members and it was thrilling for one of our young reporters to go on set and find out more about the journey of Shaun and friends to the big screen."

Lucy Wendover, Aardman animations marketing and brand manager, added: "At Aardman we are passionate about film and love what we do, so it's thrilling to be able to share some of our filmmaking techniques with young film enthusiasts to showcase some of the work and fun that goes into making a film. We hope that the films, and Shaun, will help to inspired the next generation of filmmakers."

Jess also got to shoot segments of the short films at the sound recording studio in London and at her home. They have been turned into three short video reports and will be used as part of a resource for teachers to use in class and school film clubs.

Shaun the Sheep The Movie opens in cinemas on Friday, February 6. For more details on Into Film, which is supported by the BFI with Lottery funding, visit www.IntoFilm.org