Summary:
Wolverhampton's Light House Media Centre will play host to the first Disability Film festival to be held in the city from 18th - 20th April 2008, bringing work from regional, national and international disabled filmmakers to the big screen.
Telephone:
01902 716055
Email:
info (at) disabilityfilmfestival (dot) eu
More Information:
http://www.disabilityfilmfestival.eu
DISABILITY FILM FESTIVAL AT LIGHT HOUSE, WOLVERHAMPTON
Wolverhampton’s Light House Media Centre will play host to the first Disability Film festival to be held in the city from 18th - 20th April 2008, bringing work from regional, national and international disabled filmmakers to the big screen.
Featuring a wide variety of genres and styles, including documentary, drama, comedy and animation, both feature length and short films, the festival aims to celebrate the talents of disabled filmmakers, stimulate debate and give disabled people an opportunity to showcase their artistic talents. Many screenings will be free of charge.
The festival will begin on Friday 18th April with ‘Oska Bright on the Road’, a rare selection of short films from Oska Bright 2007, the original festival of short films run by, and for, people with a learning disability. Friday will also feature a selection of disability related archive films from the Media Archive for Central England (MACE) including old silent material from the early days of cinema plus local disability news items from the ITV & Central News Collection; a festival launch party and ending with a preview of a brand new short film and feature film Special People directed by regional filmmaker Justin Edgar.
Saturday will feature a host of short films submitted from around the globe made by disabled people and exploring issues of disablement with a dedicated session on Dance and Disability. Festival organiser Dr Paul Darke will also lead a Q & A session with MACE on the representation of disabled people in archive films.
The last day of the festival will feature SPLIT SCREEN, an installation juxtaposing two films from two cultures: Nache Mayuri, the Indian biopic of classical dancer Sudha Chandran; and Reach for the Sky, the British biopic of World War II fighter pilot Douglas Bader. A half-hour mirror-image narrative reveals layers and contrasts in the representation of disability through time, cultures and gender. This will be followed by a feature film screening of Reach for the Sky (U). Tickets cost: £3.
All events and screenings will have sign language interpretation, with subtitles and/or audio description also available for most screenings. The festival will also offer plenty of networking opportunities between screenings in Lock Works Cafe Bar. Admission to the festival is free, except for the screening of Reach for the Sky, for which tickets cost £3.
Festival Coordinator Paul Darke said, “This is an exciting opportunity for the city of Wolverhampton to see the work and ability of worldclass disabled and Deaf filmmakers from the region and around the world. Uniquely, this festival will look back at past representations of disability – prior to the onset of ‘political correctness’ – by showing a range of archive film from the MACE collection. Equally, the festival is a celebration of current talent and the bright future for disabled filmmakers in the city, the region and nationally.”
The Disability Film Festival is funded by the National Lottery through the UK Film Council and Screen WM, Arts Council West Midlands and is a joint project between Outside Centre, Wolverhampton’s leading Disability Arts organisation, and Light House.
For more info contact Box Office on:
t: 01902 716055
e: info@disabilityfilmfestival.eu
Visit www.disabilityfilmfestival.eu for full programme details.