A PAIR of south London filmmakers are warming up to release a documentary which tackles perceptions about women’s football.

Freelance director and editor/founder of Plus44 Films Jack Ford has directed A Different League: Where Next in the Evolution of Women’s Football?

Charlton BBC journalist Jamie Whitehead, 29, was writer and producer.

The film focuses on the success, development and future of the women’s game in England.

In making it they had extensive access to leading people at the FA and both Arsenal and Charlton Athletic Football clubs.

The pair picked the topic for their first feature following the success of the sport at the London 2012 Olympics and ahead of the Women’s European Championships in July as they felt it was a pertinent time to address whether it as the potential to be as loved and evolved as the men’s game.

Jack, 28, who lives in Greenwich, the state of the women’s game is “exciting” and getting better, and has increased in profile since the Olympics.

He said: “The standard of the women’s game isn’t any different to the men’s, but I think there is this common misconception that it is.

“The match-day experience is different – it has a much more ‘family day out’ feel to it and offers a cheaper alternative to the ever-increasing prices of the men’s game.

“Whether it will ever reach the same heights, in terms of coverage and support, as the men’s game is probably too far away to contemplate at the moment, but it has to start somewhere and it is important people know about it.”

Jack said the pair wanted to focus on two differing teams and chose Arsenal, the most successful British women’s club with probably the most financial backing, and their local club Charlton Athletic which “ran with the same philosophy but with desperately less financial backing”.

He said: “It was important for us to look at two contrasting teams.

“What we found, and what we hope comes across in the film, is that no matter how much money is behind a club, or how unglamorous a team’s facilities are, the passion and love for the sport and the hard work they put in week in, week out is the same throughout.”

He said there is a real family community feel within the game.

He added: “Everyone that has been involved in the making of this film so far has been really committed to helping the women’s game grow.

“From the players to the staff to the volunteers that do it purely for the love of the game, they are all equally as passionate about helping women’s football become as popular as it should be.”

“Everyone has their own ideologies about how the game can grow, but the important thing is that they are all united in wanting to reach the same goal.”

That enthusiasm extends to Jack and Jamie themselves. Jack said: “We have said from the start that if this film only gets a dozen young girls to ask their parents for a pair of boots so they can go and play for their local team, then this film will have been a success.”

A Different League: Where Next in the Evolution of Women’s Football? will be released in July. Go to adifferentleaguefilm.tumblr.com or @adlfilm or @plus44films on Twitter.