Press Releases

 Immediate release. 15th February 2010

CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR NINTH YEAR

Planning is underway for the 2010 Cornwall Film Festival, celebrating Cornish and international filmmaking for the ninth consecutive year. The Phoenix, Falmouth’s state-of-the-art cinema and recent winner of the UK Independent Cinema of the Year award, will again host the Festival, which will take place 5-7 November. 

The Festival team welcomes back the 2009 director, Donna Anton. “I’m very excited to have the chance to artistically oversee 2010, with basically the same great staff in place, including Event Cornwall,” she said. “This carryover of staff is a first in the Festival’s history, and we look forward to benefiting from our experience as well as capitalising on last year’s successes.”

The staff carryover will allow for earlier planning and ensure the delivery of a high-quality film festival that will again offer something for everyone, with a focus on providing a platform for Cornish filmmakers to showcase their work.

An open forum event earlier this month allowed members of the public to meet with the Festival team and discuss the Festival’s future. The feedback will play an important role in planning this year’s event.

Donna added: “The Cornwall Film Festival remains a unique event in UK filmmaking and exhibition. It is the only film festival that nurtures professional development of student and established filmmakers, young persons aged 8 to 18 with Screen Actions, and surf filmmaking with Board Shorts – while also promoting Cornish culture and attracting the enthusiasm of film lovers.”

The Festival is also growing its year-round involvement in the community and is currently running a filmmaking project for people with learning difficulties in partnership with the Oska Bright Film Festival, supported by the Cornwall Community Fund.

Submissions for the 2010 Cornwall Film Festival will open on Monday 19 April for all categories: Cornish shorts and features, Another Country international shorts, Board Shorts and Screen Actions, with the early-bird deadline for entry set for 5 July. Filmmakers are encouraged to regularly check the Festival website for updates on submission categories, deadlines and policies: www.cornwallfilmfestival.com.

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IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 9th November 2009

CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL TICKETS SELLING FAST – DON’T MISS OUT!


The eighth annual Cornwall Film Festival takes place at The Phoenix Cinema and the UCF

Woodlane Campus in Falmouth this weekend (13 – 15 November). With some events already

selling out, audiences are urged to book their tickets as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.


It’s a cracking line-up at this year’s Festival - with films from all over the world, workshops,

special events and guest speakers, parties and plenty more. There really is something for everyone.

 

In particular, the Cornwall Film Festival is proud to showcase the fantastic talent here in Cornwall with a selection of shorts, features, documentaries and dance films from the region’s finest filmmakers, including the UK premiere of a Cornish-made documentary, Diary of a Disgraced Soldier.


There is a great selection of international films on offer including the UK premiere of Disgrace, adapted from the Booker prize-winning novel by J.M. Coetzee. The Festival’s Another Country touring programme also returns for a second year, showcasing short films from around the world – and an exciting addition this year will be a screening of the winners of the 2009 Budapest Short Film Festival (BuSho).


Of this year’s guest speakers, the Festival is particularly excited to welcome writer and

documentary filmmaker Jon Ronson. He will be presenting the Festival’s Saturday night feature and Cornwall premiere of The Men Who Stare At Goats, a quirky dark comedy adapted from his bestseller of the same name, as well as giving a Q&A after the film. He will also talk about the real story behind the film, which examines connections between paranormal military programmes and psychological techniques used for interrogation in the ‘war on terror,’ on Saturday afternoon at the Woodlane Lecture Theatre.


As tickets for these events are selling fast, please ensure you book your tickets early to reserve your place.


For a full programme and the latest news visit, www.cornwallfilmfestival.com. Tickets are

available from the Phoenix Cinema box office: (01326) 313072.


Weekend Passes are £35/£28 Concs, Student Weekend Pass £25, Day Ticket £15/£12 Concs, Single Event £6/£5 Concs.

 


 

IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 9th November 2009


THE CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL CLIMATE CHANGE DEBATE


Climate change is increasingly recognised as one of the most critical challenges ever to face

humankind and requires the commitment of all nations in order to protect against it. As international heads of state prepare to meet in Copenhagen next month for the UN climate change summit, the Cornwall Film Festival is preparing for its own climate change event.


On Saturday 14th November the Festival offers a special screening of the climate-change blockbuster The Age of Stupid at the Phoenix Cinema in Falmouth. Two climate change shorts will precede this: Leo Murray’s animation Wake-up, Freak Out – Then Get a Grip, and a counterpoint film by Cornwall resident Andrew Edmonds, A Convenient Deception.


The screenings will be followed by a panel discussion chaired by environmental ‘guru’ Mark

Paterson, head of tertiary education at the Eden Project. Mark will be joined by Age of Stupid cast member and West Cornwall wind-farm developer Piers Guy, Tim German, head of Low Carbon Cornwall, Oliver Baines of Transition Ladock, and David Smart Knight of Plan-It Earth.


Writer/director Andrew Edmonds will provide the counterpoint along with his wife, Karen Tudor. This is a great opportunity for people to get together and discuss their views on climate change and how to be part of the solution. As tickets for these events are selling fast, please ensure you book your tickets early to avoid disappointment.


For a full programme of events and screenings at the 2009 Cornwall Film Festival, please visit

www.cornwallfilmfestival.com. Tickets for all events are available from the Phoenix Cinema box office: (01326) 313072.


Weekend Passes are £35/£28 Concs, Student Weekend Pass £25, Day Ticket £15/£12 Concs, Single Event £6/£5 Concs.

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

16 October 2009

2009 CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL

PROGRAMME ANNOUNCED

 
The programme for the 2009 Cornwall Film Festival has been announced by festival director Donna Anton. Scheduled for 13-15 November, the eighth annual festival will be held in four venues around Falmouth, including the newly refurbished Phoenix Cinema and the UCF Woodlane campus.
 
Board Shorts, the UK’s only short surf film event, will take place the week before, on Saturday, 7 November, on the UCF Tremough campus. Screen Actions, the young persons film festival for 8- to 18-year-olds across Cornwall, will take over the National Maritime Museum all day on Friday the 13th with a ‘spooky’ theme. Bookings for Screen Actions are made through schools and participating organisations.
 
“Whether it’s feature films based on award-winning books, Cornish archival or Cornish-language films, shorts by Cornish filmmakers, dance films, documentaries, talks, workshops, or just plain networking,” said Donna, “this year it can truly be said we have something for everyone.”
 
Some highlights:
 
Premieres galore
This year’s line-up of commercial feature films includes two UK premieres, three South West premieres, and one Cornwall premiere.
  • Disgrace, award-winning film adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s Booker prize-winning novel, starring John Malkovich. UK premiere.
  • Marcello, Marcello, Italian romantic comedy based on the book Marcello’s Date, written by Portscatho resident Mark David Hatwood, who will introduce and provide Q&A. UK premiere.
  • The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, crime thriller based on the first of Stieg Larsson’s Millennium trilogy set in contemporary Sweden. South West premiere.
  • Glorious 39, Stephen Poliakoff’s World War II suspense yarn starring Romola Garai, Bill Nighy, Julie Christie, David Tennant. South West premiere.
  • Beyond the Call, documentary that follows three self-financed humanitarians who deliver goods and money to the developing world. South West premiere.
  • The Men Who Stare at Goats, based on Jon Ronson’s bestselling true tale about New Age beliefs in the US military. Ronson will introduce and provide Q&A. Cornwall premiere.
Also to be screened: Fish Tank, Andrea Arnold’s brilliant new drama about a troubled teenage girl in Essex, and the surrealist-horror classic Eraserhead (1977), digitally remastered in 2000 by director David Lynch.
 
Culture and heritage
  • “Reel Cornwall,” rare, long-hidden footage of Cornish life in the first half of the 20th century. Beginning in 1904, this collection includes promotional clips from Holmans and the Great Western Railway. Presented by BFI archive production curator – and Camborne native – Jan Faull.
  • The world premiere of the Cornish-language film Skath, directed and produced by Paul Farmer, the winner of last year’s £5,000 Govyn Kernewek filmmaking commission. Skath, which means ‘gig’ in Cornish, documents the ambitions of Pol Hodge as he progresses from unfit novice to serious competitor in the World Pilot Gig Championships in Scilly.
  • Another Country, the festival’s second international short film competition, has been touring Cornwall through the autumn. The final Another Country screening and vote will take place at the festival; a cash prize of £1,000 will go to the winning filmmaker.
  • A special screening of award-winning films from the 2009 Budapest International Short Film Festival (BuSho) will be introduced by the director of BuSho, an invited guest of the Cornwall Film Festival.
  • Delegations from rural regions of Poland and Finland will be received by Cornish artist ‘practitioners’ during the festival, as part of the European Region of Culture (EROC) campaign to celebrate rural culture and improve the profile and investment of cultural sectors like Cornwall. The delegates will take part in a private screening of short films themed around ‘What It Means to Be Cornish.’
 
Local filmmakers
Short films submitted by filmmakers across Cornwall will be showcased in various categories, including the first-ever juried competitions for both mature and student films. A Cornish documentary, Diary of a Disgraced Soldier, follows the post-military life of an Iraq war veteran and his struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder. Bad Company, a Cornish feature-length film, spins a classic tale of obsession and twisted love.
 
The Cornwall Film Festival is collaborating for the first time with The Works on a two-day Dance for the Camera workshop. Two screenings of dance films, including a collection shot by local filmmakers, will be open to the public.
 
Talks and workshops
Professional development events, to inspire and inform students, film enthusiasts and experienced filmmakers, will include:
·        ‘The Men Who Stare at Goats and Other True Tales of Everyday Craziness,’ presented by writer and documentary filmmaker Jon Ronson, who will be signing copies of his books after his talk.
·        ‘What Audiences Want,’ an insight into how filmgoers make their choices. Alex Stolz, senior executive, Distribution & Exhibition, UK Film Council
·        ‘The Art of Sound,’ a talk designed to ensure you will never hear films in quite the same way again. Shelley O’Brien, film studies lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University.
·        ‘Everything You Wanted to Know about Film Noir – But Were Too Scared to Ask,’ a look at one of the most popular film genres. Ralph Willett, former senior fellow in American film studies at University of Hull.
·        ‘Costume Design for Film,’ an informative, hands-on look at costumes, their design and construction, and the industry that produces them. Pam Verran, professional costume designer for theatre, film and performance.
·        ‘Stunt Fighting for the Camera,’ a first-time offering on the specialist techniques of stunt choreography. David Greeves, professional performer, stunt fighter and rigger.
·        A drop-in, hands-on technical workshop with Cornwall-based film crew Dogbite.
 
Special events
Ahead of the December climate-change summit in Copenhagen, the festival offers a special screening of the climate-change blockbuster The Age of Stupid, followed by a panel discussion. Panelists will include representatives from the Eden Project, Low Carbon Cornwall, Transition Falmouth, Plan-It Earth, and Age of Stupid cast member and West Cornwall wind-farm developer Piers Guy. Counterpoint will be offered by local filmmaker Andrew Edmonds with his short, A Convenient Deception.
 
In addition to parties on both Friday and Saturday nights, the final evening offers the always-popular Big Pitcher, a chaotic opportunity for filmmakers to pitch their ideas for £100 awards, hosted by o-region. The Big Pitcher will be followed by the awards ceremony, this year hosted by performance poet Murray Lachlan Young.
 
Tribute will also be paid on Sunday afternoon, 15 November, to two members of the Cornwall Film Festival family who died earlier this year, filmmaker and past director Laura Hardman and executive producer Simon Channing Williams. The event will include a screening of silent classic The Battleship Potemkin (1925), accompanied by Truro pianist Benjamin Comeau, a student at Dartington College of Arts. Proceeds from this event will be donated to a scholarship fund for Laura’s two young sons.

 

Press Release in PDF

13 October 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2009 CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL TICKETS ON SALE 21 OCTOBER

Tickets for the Eighth Annual Cornwall Film Festival, 13-15 November, go on sale Wednesday, 21 October, at the Phoenix Box Office in Falmouth.
Set to be the best festival yet, this year’s celebration of Cornish and international filmmaking kicks off with Board Shorts, the UK’s only surf filmmaking fest, on Saturday, 7th November, at the UCF Tremough campus. Doors will open at 8pm, with tickets also available at the door. Screen Actions, the young persons film festival for 8- to 18-year-olds across Cornwall, will be held on Friday the 13th at the National Maritime Museum, Falmouth, 10am to 5:30pm. (Screen Actions is a closed event arranged through the schools.)
That night the main Festival gets into full swing with an opening party and the UK premiere of Marcello, Marcello, an Italian romantic-comedy written by Portscatho resident Mark David Hatwood.
Highlights of other feature films include the UK premiere of J.M. Coetzee’s Disgrace, the South West premiere of the Swedish crime thriller The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and the Cornwall premiere of the darkly comic The Men Who Stare at Goats, with an introduction and Q&A by writer Jon Ronson. A panel discussion on climate change will follow a screening of the climate-change blockbuster The Age of Stupid.
In addition to a wide selection of Cornish and international short films, rare footage of Cornwall from the first half of the 20th century will be presented by the British Film Institute’s archivist, Jan Faull, a Camborne native. The programme will include promotional films by Holmans of Camborne and the Great Western Railway.
Lectures, workshops, competitions, awards, parties, tributes and networking will offer something for everyone. Full programme details and daily updates can be found on the Festival website, www.cornwallfilmfestival.com. Tickets can be purchased at the Phoenix Cinema box office in person or over the telephone (01326 313072).
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For more information, contact Donna Anton, festival director, on 01736 753184 or at director@cornwallfilmfestival.com, or Tiffany Holmes, festival assistant, on 01209 204655 or at info@cornwallfilmfestival.com.
Cornwall Film Festival, Krowji, West Park, Redruth, Cornwall TR15 3AJ
Tel: 01209 204655 info@cornwallfilmfestival.com www.cornwallfilmfestival.com

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 
25 August 2009
 
 
CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL GETS FOCUSED
 
The 2009 Cornwall Film Festival team is in place, focusing on the eighth consecutive celebration of Cornish and international filmmaking. Scheduled for 13-15 November, this year’s festival will be held in a new venue, the recently opened Phoenix Cinema, in the heart of Falmouth. 
 
Board Shorts, the UK’s only mini-festival dedicated to surf filmmaking, will take place the week before, on Saturday, 7 November, at the Stannary Bar on the Tremough campus of UCF. 
 
Heading up the team is newly appointed director Donna Anton, who also serves as chair of the British Federation of Film Societies. She is joined by festival assistant Tiffany Holmes and intern Marion Monnier. Coordination will be overseen by Falmouth-based Event Cornwall, led by principal Clare Hearn.
 
As always, the festival weekend will offer a diverse array of submissions by filmmakers and students resident in Cornwall. Screen Actions, the young persons festival run by and for 8- to 18-year-olds, will take place Friday, 13 November. The annual Govyn Kernewek award, a £5,000 commission for the best film proposal to be made in the Cornish language, will be announced following the premiere screening of last year’s winner, “Skath” (Cornish for gig), by Paul Farmer. And the enormously popular Big Pitcher bidding event for £100 prizes will be back for its fourth frenetic year.
 
Planned highlights for the 2009 festival will include a number of South West feature film premieres and invited VIPs; a special presentation of the blockbuster climate-change film “The Age of Stupid,” just ahead of the United Nations climate summit in Copenhagen; the final vote for the second annual Another Country International Short Film award; and a visiting delegation and programme of short films from this year’s Budapest BuSho Short Film Festival.
 
Tributes during the festival will honour the memory of past director Laura Hardman and of executive producer Simon Channing Williams, whose untimely deaths earlier in the year were a huge loss for the local filmmaking community.
 
A registered charity, the Cornwall Film Festival is largely funded by grants and sponsorships, which recognise the festival’s dual ideals of supporting and nurturing Cornwall-based film production and talent, and promoting Cornish cultural heritage through visual media.
 
“The fact that this year’s festival is business as usual, despite the huge challenges thrown at us by the recession,” said Ben Read, festival chair, “is a testament to the passion of filmmakers and film enthusiasts across Cornwall – and to the generosity of our loyal sponsors, to whom we are most grateful.”
 
Tickets for the festival will go on sale in October. For more information, email info@cornwallfilmfestival.com.
 
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Note to editor: The Cornwall Film Festival is an annual celebration of Cornish and international filmmaking, now in its eighth year. The Festival offers local and national premieres, professional development workshops, lectures and parties providing the opportunity to network with the UK’s leading industry professionals. The Cornwall Film Festival is a registered charity (charity no. 1126161).
 
Cornwall Film Festival, Krowji, West Park, Redruth, Cornwall TR15 3AJ
Tel: 01209 204655. info@cornwallfilmfestival.com www.cornwallfilmfestival.com
 
 
Three photo attachments: Donna Anton (festival director), Tiffany Holmes (festival assistant), Marion Monnier (intern)
 
Donna Anton
 
Tiffany Holmes
 
Marion Monnier