Hitting the big screen: shorts and NW filmmakers night
Ten short films created by North West filmmakers were screened at a film and digital media festival in the city centre produced by Chester Performs. The shorts, which ranged from four minute clay animations to a documentary about prisoners attending a patchwork and quilt making course, were followed by a panel discussion at the Screen Deva event.
The panel answered questions from an audience of more than 40 people and discussed their journeys from first time filmmakers to global fame; such as attending screenings of their work on Broadway, in Newfoundland and Montreal, as well as discussing the roles of festivals and offering valuable tips.
Kate Taylor, Board member of the Northern Film Network, chaired the panel, which included Kate Jessop, a Manchester based filmmaker who is currently artist in residence at Manchester Metropolitan University, Martin Talbot, Director of film production company Visual Concepts UK Ltd and filmmaker Fiona Collins.
The panelists work was among the short films, which were shown upstairs at the Screen Deva Studio on Watergate Row. Work included; Martin Talbot’s Northern Cowboys where singers battled it out at a talent show in Blackpool to win a trip to Nashville, Kate Jessop’s When the Telescope Came, which was an animated tale based on a poem, where a woman tries to stop the stars from coming into her house and No Sacks, a documentary from Fiona Collins, about prisoners at HMP Wandsworth who attend a weekly night class in patchwork and quilt making.
A video, photographic and interactive exhibition is also staged downstairs at the Screen Deva Studio, which runs until Sunday June 15th and features the following works: When They Are Gone They Are Gone and I Went There But It Was Closed by Cheshire artist Beth Barlow, Boundary Lane, by North Wales based artist Paul Jones and Kaleidoscopia, an interactive work by Shropshire artist Andy McKeown.
The week long Screen Deva festival runs until Sunday June 15th with screenings in bars, churches, shops and a programme of drive-in movies at Chester Zoo.
Full programme information, details of where to pick up a programme and tickets are available at www.chesterperforms.com or by ringing 01244 409113. Tickets for the films and digital media events are on sale now.
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Background
Chester Performs is overseeing the development of the city’s new performing arts centre, which will open in 2011. Set to challenge audiences with a series of high profile performing arts events and community projects Chester Performs aims are to broaden horizons and raise the level of expectation in the performing arts both in Chester and Cheshire.
Chester Performs is gaining an enviable reputation for staging exciting performances in non-traditional and outdoor spaces across the region. Cutting edge performances will take place on the streets of Chester, by the River Dee and around the Roman walls. These projects will involve street performers and aerial artists, musicians, dancers, actors, visual and sonic artists, installations and performance art. Up the Wall, based on the City Walls, attracted a 3,500 audience in November.
Screen Deva
Info on installations -
When They Are Gone They Are Gone and I Went There But It Was Closed by Cheshire artist Beth Barlow are photographic works reflecting on the loss of local facilities, prompted by the closure of the Northwich Regal and Chester’s Odeon.
Boundary Lane, by North Wales based artist Paul Jones, invites the viewer to experience dialogue and collective memory and consider the effect of boundaries on social environment. The work consists of three screens with headphones showing interviews with residents from the Boundary Lane area of Saltney, Chester.
Kaleidoscopia is an interactive work by Shropshire artist Andy McKeown. The installation converts images inserted by users into revolving kaleidoscopes. The images are projected onto a wall of the gallery and features Chester landmarks like the Eastgate Clock.
Still to come this week:
The Shining Stanley Palace Fri 13th June Kubrick’s most haunting film in Chester’s most haunted venue, and all this on Fri 13th….
Grease (Drive-in) Chester Zoo Fri 13th June The perfect drive-in movie experience, with Travolta, Newton-John, the T-Birds and the Pink Ladies.
Screen Deva Family Day Saturday 14th June / 11am �” 4pm / FREE just drop in Wesley Methodist Church, Chester A fun packed day aimed at families with children aged 12yrs and under.
Bande à part (PG) St Olave’s Sat 14th June One of the most influential films of the French new-wave, inspiring directors such as Bertolucci, Hartley and most famously, Tarantino who named his production company A Band Apart. It tells the story of two crooks with a fondness for old Hollywood B-movies who convince a languages student to help them rob her aunt.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Drive-In) Chester Zoo Sat 14th June Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly sets alight this timeless and romantic classic to be experienced uniquely under the stars.
Everyone Says I Love You Alexander’s Sun 15th June A Fathers’ Day special �” a champagne brunch and Woody Allen’s most light-hearted and musical movie full of songs and stars, including Julia Roberts, Goldie Hawn, Alan Alda, Ed Norton, Natalie Portman and Drew Barrymore.
There is an evening of short films showcasing the best young filmmakers in the region, and a family day on Saturday June 14 at the Wesley Methodist Church aimed at 12 year-olds and under.
More information on the films: Distant Voices Still Lives (15) http://uk.rottentomatoes.com/m/distant_voices_still_lives/
Bande à part (PG) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057869/
Chester Performs Contact: Amber Jones Tel: 01244 409113
Press Contacts: Jane Harrad-Roberts Mob: 07785 395705 Phil Brotherhood Mob: 07884 493370
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