Film / News
Nearly 50 events at first Bristol Film Fest
When local musician and filmmaker Owen Franklin was finishing off his debut feature, She Moved Through the Fair, he noticed a peculiar anomaly. “There wasn’t a film festival in Bristol that I could enter it into. It’s too long for Encounters and it didn’t fit the niches of some of the other film festivals. I’ve always thought it’s bizarre that out of all the things we’ve got going on in this great city, we haven’t got a film festival that can be branded as our own.”
That’s not a particularly novel observation. Even our much smaller neighbour Bath has an annual film festival of national and international renown, after all. But Owen is the first person to do something about it. His feature is still uncompleted, but after months of planning the inaugural Bristol Film Festival is upon us. It’s an ambitious undertaking, with a packed programme of almost 50 immersive events taking place across the city over the weekend of March 11-13, ranging from a full programme of horror movies in Redcliffe Caves to after-hours screenings at the RWA. And that’s just scratching the surface of what’s on offer.
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It’s the first time Owen has organised anything on this scale. Rather than emulating traditional film festivals, with their emphasis on premieres and press conferences, his plan was always to create a film-based arts festival based on the successful model of the Cheltenham festivals. “The ethos is that no matter what event you go to – whether it’s scaring yourself silly in the caves with a horror movie or going to a really in-depth talk on masculinity in modern film – it makes you engage with film in a way that you might not have done before,” he explains.
With an overall budget approaching six figures, the festival has been financed in part through imaginative sponsorship packages tailored to local firms and national businesses that have a local presence, from FOPP to Harvey Nichols. But Bristol’s cultural success worked against bagging any loot from traditional arts funding bodies. “I won’t name them, but as soon as I mentioned Bristol to one of the big ones they said, ‘Let’s stop you there.’ They were very helpful, but so limited with funding that they only support locations that don’t have any other cultural presence to speak of.”
You might expect local venues to be wary of becoming involved with an untested new festival, but Owen found he was pushing at an open door. “The really encouraging thing is that they all just jumped at the chance. I think they see that it’s something that could benefit both of us. It’s a chance to get involved with a start-up festival with some big ideas as well as an opportunity to show off their venues in another light. Quite a lot of these places are keen to interact more with Bristol. I confessed to several of them that I hadn’t been there for years. When you’ve lived in the city all your life, you don’t go back to them as often. So they’re excited by the idea of being used in a different way and getting Bristolians in rather, than just tourists coming to see the sights.”
So given the programme’s embarrassment of riches, which events would Owen be most excited about as a punter? “You can’t make me choose my favourite!” he objects. “I’m really looking forward to the two concerts we’re doing. As a musician myself, I’d really like to get to the Music from the Movies Goes A Capella at St George’s on the opening night. And we’ve got a screening of Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr, with members of the Bristol Ensemble playing along. We’re keeping under wraps what the music is going to be, suffice to say that it won’t be anything like what people are expecting.”
The Bristol Film Festival takes place at venues across the city from March 11-13. See our comprehensive daily film listings for full details of individual events.
FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS
Horror in the Caves
Three packed days of terror in Redcliffe Caves. On day one, you can see The Blair Witch Project and The Ring (US remake). Day two brings Creep, The Thing (John Carpenter version), Alien and Aliens. And on day three, there’s The Babadook, As Above So Below, The Descent and new local feature Dark Vision, which was partly shot on location in these very caves.
Global Village Cinema
Three screenings at the Arnolfini: The Motorcycle Diaries (Fri 11), Amelie (Sat 12) and Run Lola Run (Sun 13).
Madagascar at Bristol Zoo
Two screenings of an animated film about zoo animals on Fri 11 at the zoo. See what they did there?
Sideways & wine tasting
Oenophile flick Sideways in the suitably boozy surroundings of Avery’s wine merchants. The first screening on Fri 11 sold out so quickly that a second one has been added on Sat 12.
Night at the Museum at Bristol Museum
Family romp screened after hours on Sat 12. Exhibits coming to life not guaranteed.
Sherlock Jr at Bristol Cathedral
Buster Keaton classic with live musical accompaniment from the Bristol Ensemble on Sat 12.
Curated Films at the RWA
Three after-hours screenings with expert introductions: Frida (Fri 11), Far from the Madding Crowd (Sat 12) and Diva (Sun 13).
Made in Bristol
The festival celebrates local film-making talent with screenings of several features. On Sat 12, they’re showing Lynchian drama The Twisted Death of a Lonely Madman; alien invasion web series Horizon, which has been recut as a feature; and comedy spy thriller Eliminate: Archie Cookson. On Sun 13, you can catch The Fold.