When Rachel Millward and Pinny Grylls left university to pursue careers in film they were shocked by the lack of female role models.

They decided to break the mould of the male-dominated business and set up their own independent production company Invisible Films in March.

Now the pair, who set up the company in Brighton, are staging Birds Eye View, a mini film festival for emerging female film-makers at The Curzon cinema in London.

The women met at a film festival in Bristol last year and discovered they were both living and studying in Brighton.

Rachel, 25, was doing a diploma in film direction and cinematography at Brighton Film School, while Pinny, 24, did a masters in fine art at University of Brighton.

Pinny said: "We had gone to the festival not knowing anyone but when we met we clicked."

Rachel said: "Pinny asked a question in a forum on cinematography about why there are so few women role models and I thought, 'Wow, she's thinking the same as me'."

They set their minds to thinking of ways they could increase the number of women in film.

Pinny said: "I've been making films since I was a child but I still couldn't believe just six per cent of directors and ten per cent of writers were women. We decided to make a short film and actively include women in all elements of its production.

"We were shocked at how hard it is to find female sound engineers and crew. Women make up about one per cent of film technicians."

Together they produced and directed a short film called Photographing Invisible Things.

Rachel, who lives in Marine Parade, said: "We filmed it in Brighton with views of the sea. It's a poignant yet quietly disturbing story about a man's desire to create a life of memories by photographing empty locations."

However, making a film wasn't enough.

Pinny, who now lives in London, said: "We wanted to do something to help women coming up in film. Birds Eye View is a sort of forum for women to network."

The duo are amazed how much they've achieved in so little time.

Pinny said: "At first we just wanted a screening of our film at the Curzon.

"Then we thought, 'Why not open it out and see what else is out there?'."

The two women held a competition for films under ten minutes made by women and selected five.

The films include Dog, a portrait of life for a 15-year-old on a housing estate in London; Perdie, a poignant view of life from an eight-year-old girl, and a quirky story about a town where the graffiti Eddie Loves Mary is sprayed everywhere, making Eddies and Marys fall in love.

Rachel said: "We think we've got a really good mix. Some are really low budget like ours, which we shot on £1,200, while Perdie, which was nominated for a Bafta in 2000, had a budget of about £17,000. They all have very strong narratives and visuals, but are totally different."

The women also have other projects on the go.

One is a collaboration with London artist Nicola Lane, who lost her foot in a traffic accident at the age of 18, to produce a short film that deals with issues of disability and creativity.

Rachel said: "We are also developing proposals for projects working with women's groups in and around Kilburn in North London."

They also want to bring their project closer to home.

She said: "Our aim is to make Birds Eye View a quarterly event in London and to bring it to Brighton."

Birds Eye View is showing at the Curzon Cinema, Soho, London, on Thursday at 6pm. Tickets cost £3.

For more information, go to www.invisiblefilms.co.uk