Revellers at Glastonbury Festival this weekend were treated to a unique silver screen experience, when short films by filmmakers and animators from across the West Midlands were broadcast as part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad.
17 short films made by West Midlands based film-makers have been submitted by the West Midlands Creative Programmer for London 2012 and the regional screen agency Screen West Midlands, shown on a specially erected BBC Big Screen, called The Village Screen, at Glastonbury on Saturday 27 June 2009.
The project is a unique collaboration led by the London 2012 Creative Programmers across the UK, Glastonbury Festival, Team South West, Relays (Legacy Trust UK programme) and the BBC’s Live Sites team. Throughout the festival, which runs from the 24-28 June 2009, two 25m² screens have been broadcasting a mixture of specially-commissioned short films from around the English regions, interactive gaming sessions and archive Festival footage from 10am to 3am each day. The films made by West Midlands film-makers were a focus for Saturday’s screening, with most submitted films making it on to the big screen and each short lasting between 5-15 minutes in length.
The project has been awarded the London 2012 Inspire Mark – which recognises unique projects inspired by the London 2012 Games – and has been realised as part of the four year London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is the official UK-wide cultural programme for the London 2012 Games that will see celebrations of culture and creativity taking place in every corner of the UK in the run up to 2012. This project celebrates the creative talents of young and established film-makers working across the UK and will provided an alternative source of entertainment for the thousands of people attending this year’s Glastonbury Festival.
The West Midlands films range from dance films, a comedy about a group of disabled young people visiting the country which won the ‘best short film award’ at the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, to a magical contemporary fairytale called ‘Momster’ and a Royal Television Society award-winning tale of a girl’s descent into heroin addiction.
Paul Kaynes, the West Midlands Creative Programmer for London 2012, who along with Screen West Midlands (the region’s screen agency) helped to curate the West Midlands ’ selection of films, said:
“This is a brilliant project and an excellent example of how the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is bringing creative and cultural experiences to new audiences right across the country who wouldn’t ordinarily have the chance to see this work. It’s great for our region as well as we have such fantastic film and screen talent based here in the West Midlands . And with Glastonbury being such a huge, global festival – and the weather set to be half decent – it’s fantastic to see the region’s talent getting the kind of exposure it deserves..”
A full list of West Midlands films that have been submitted for screening is below and further information about the Village Screen is available at: www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk
Decsurveillance
Caroline Bridges and Dom Breadmore
8 mins approx
Interesting dance film by London-based team; film made in West Mids. No dialogue. Suitable for late night watching as it’s very dark (light-wise not content).
Made in West Midlands
I Saw a Girl
Arty Party performance Group
8 mins
Film made by group of adults with learning disabilities in Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire. Won best film award 2008 at the Oska Bright Disability Film Awards, Brighton.
Filmaker based Shropshire
RE…..Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Dance film by Sajja Arts Collective and Rising Brook Films
10 mins
‘’RE…reduce, reuse, recycle’’ is a dance film that attempts to draw attention to the environmental emergency we are faced with. Funny.
Filmaker based Staffordshire
Special people
Justin Edgar/104 Films
12 mins
A short film about the outing of a group of disabled young people to the country. Funny. Won Best Short Film award at Chicago International Children’s Film Festival.
Set in West Midlands
Momster
Steven Spencer
16 mins
A stylised contemporary fairytale. A magical tale of a girl and her hugely huggable imaginary friend who escape from a council skyscraper where they are violently abused.
Filmaker based Birmingham
The Gleaming
Screen WM/Swish
25 mins
The story of a couple who find themselves stranded and helpless set against picturesque woods. Haunting, and filmed on the beautiful Long Mynd in Shropshire.
Filmaker based Birmingham, set in Shropshire
The Visit
Screen WM/ Paul Fogg/Matt Cope
10 mins
A plumber, a priest, a man with a dictaphone and a suitcase with a child's remains...tenuous family links are brought into sharp focus in this provocative drama. Enigmatic and intriguing.
Filmaker based Birmingham
Eclipse
African and African-Caribbean Support group part of Arts for health project in Stoke on Trent
5 mins
A journey into the depths and despair of depression and mental illness.
Film maker based Stoke on Trent and film set there.
My Brown Friend
Steven Spencer
04:20
RTS award-winning tale of a girl's descent into heroin addiction; doesn’t glamorise drug-taking at all. Highly charged and powerful piece. No dialogue.
Filmaker based Birmingham
The Animal Book
Second Home Productions
10:01
Highly acclaimed stop-motion short set in a clockwork metropolis. No dialogue
Set in West Midlands.
Train Track
Big Red Studio
05:44
An oil painting brought to life by animation. No dialogue.
Filmaker based Stoke on Trent.
Flash Harry
SMA Studios
02:22
CGI short involving an obnoxious speed camera.
Filmaker based West Midlands
Tom Cruise: Back in Action
Joe Butcher
03:37
Very funny Flash-based web animation of a brief animated interview with Tom Cruise.
Filmaker based Brierley Hill.
Runner
Ravi Deepres/Michael Baig-Clifford
11 mins
WM regional film makers, commissioned by Great North Run and made in the North East. No dialogue
Filmaker based West Midlands.
Into Pieces
Babis Alexiadis
5.5 mins
Animation and dance, produced by someone who has been commissioned for our regional dance programme. No dialogue.
Filmaker based Birmingham
Don't Touch
Dice Productions
03:10
250,000 and counting views on YouTube so far for this comedic short.
Filmaker based Birmingham
William the Cog
Paul W J Martin
6mins
2006 short about a man trying escape the system
Film maker based West Midlands
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