Boost For Capital’s Film Festivals

Lottery Funding provides greater choice of film for Londoners

Next round of applications now open

12 film festivals and education projects across London are set to receive funding and support from Film London’s Audience Development Fund, designed to increase the range of film available in the capital.

Over the next six months London will host film festivals on Spanish, Bangladeshi, African, Brazilian, and Black cinema, with venues across the capital participating in a wide range of screenings, talks and workshops.

The fund supports a varied calendar of events including the first-ever Fashion in Film Festival run by The Central Martin’s College of Art and Design in May, which will explore subjects as diverse as wartime fashion and wardrobe emergencies; Birds Eye View which will celebrate women’s film-making with a programme of shorts, features and silent films from May to September; and the London International Animation Festival which takes place in August.

Other projects to benefit include the forthcoming East End Film Festival which reflects the many communities in the area, whilst West London’s Portobello Film Festival will train unemployed people in event management alongside screenings of new films. The Curzon Soho Cinema is running a Short Film Summer School and Youth Animation Media will offer digital film-making and animation workshops for young people in Peckham.

Adrian Wootton, CEO of Film London said:

“Film is a great way to celebrate the diversity of the capital and these projects are all testament to London’s cultural vitality. We hope these festivals will also attract new audiences, increase the range of cinema available to local communities and inspire new film-makers.”

Applications are now invited for the new round of the Film London Audience Development Fund from cinema projects and film festivals taking place in the capital between 1 October 2006 and 31 March 2007.

The deadline for the new round of applications for the Film London Audience Development Fund is 12 noon, Friday 30 June 2006. Free information sessions will be held on 18 May, 11am-1pm and 7 June, 4-6pm at Film London, Suite 6.10, The Tea Building, 56 Shoreditch High Street, London E1 6JJ. To attend, please contact: morinade.akinbobola@filmlondon.org.uk.

The Film London Audience Development Fund is the result of RIFE (Regional Investment Fund of England) Lottery Funds, distributed by Film London on behalf of the UK Film Council.

The following projects have received funding in the latest round of awards:

BLACK FILMMAKERS’ MAGAZINE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

£5,000

BFM International Film Festival will run over seven days at the ICA and Prince Charles Cinema in Central London from 8-16 September. This annual event showcases black world cinema and aims to create new audiences for this work. This year’s programme has a special focus on the Nigerian film industry (‘Nollywood’) and will also include a black film retrospective, screening some of the most important films that have shaped British black film-making.

In addition to screenings, the festival provides a platform for the work of UK black film-makers across genre; introduces new film-makers to mainstream audiences through its Short Film Awards; and provides opportunities for black individuals and businesses to network with industry professionals through workshops run in partnership with ITV, BBC and London Film Academy.

BIRDS EYE VIEW

£7,500

Birds Eye View runs special events, festivals and educational programmes to promote the work of women film-makers. This season extends from March to September, and comprises a documentary season at the ICA (11-13 May); a shorts and features strand at Apollo, Regent Street (1-4 May) with screenings, master-classes and Q&As with women filmmakers with new films; a City Screenings and Education Programme with daytime workshops for teenagers at Rio Dalston, Phoenix East Finchley, David Lean Croydon and Watermans in Brent (May-July); and Sound & Silents, with live music accompaniment to screenings of archive and contemporary shorts (September). Highlights of the programme will also tour nationally.

FASHION IN FILM FESTIVAL

£4,000

Central St Martins College of Art and Design will run the first Fashion in Film Festival from 12-21 May 2006. The festival will take place at the ICA, Cine Lumiere and The Horse Hospital as well as at venues in the London Boroughs of Camden, Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea. Partners include the Imperial War Museum, Italian Cultural Institute and a range of other organisations and individuals. There will be 11 screenings and several talks and events. Films to be screened include Vertigo, The Gay Shoe Clerk, Paris is Burning and Chop Suey.


SHORT FILM SUMMER SCHOOL

£3,000

The Short Film Summer School will run from 12-15 July 2006 at the Curzon Soho and will showcase recent and archive shorts and host panel discussions, Q&As, workshops and networking sessions. This year will have a focus on young people, HD-produced shorts and Behind the Scenes workshops. This project is also to be funded via Film London’s Skills and Training budget.


EDMONTON AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL

£2,000

Run by Enfield Arts Partnership, the Edmonton African Film Festival will take place at the ArtsZone, Enfield from 30 May-4 June 2006, showing films from South Africa, Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal.

THE LONDON INTERNATIONAL ANIMATION FILM FESTIVAL

£8,000

The London International Animation Film Festival 2006 will run from April-November 2006, including over 200 short and feature animated films, several satellite events and open air screenings as well as animation workshops for children and young adults.

PORTOBELLO FILM FESTIVAL

£8,000

The Portobello Film Festival 2006 runs from 3-22 August in West London. The festival will screen over 500 new films in different strands. The programme will include a family circus tent and an award ceremony at The Electric Cinema.

THE 2nd UK BRAZILIAN FILM FESTIVAL

£ 3,000

The 2nd UK Brazilian Film Festival programme will include features, medium-length films and shorts covering documentary, fiction, animation and experimental formats as well as debates, Q&As and a retrospective of director Domingos de Oliveira. The Festival will work alongside the University of London to run a workshop combined with talks from film scholars and will also host a photography exhibition by Brazilian Fernando Barbera and a retrospective of Brazilian video art at the Tate Modern.

Screenings will take place at the Genesis Cinema and at other venues in West and South London. As well as the main festival, a monthly night of shorts will run from March to August at the Corbet Place Bar, Old Truman Brewery.

THE EAST END FILM FESTIVAL

£7,500

The East End Film Festival, 27 April-4 May 2006, will run a week long programme of films, special events and workshops in venues across East London including Genesis Cinema, Mile End; The Rio, Dalston; The Rich Mix, Bethnal Green; Stratford Circus; Picture House, Newham; and the UGC West India Quay.

The Festival has eight main strands, ranging from the main screening programmes, to education and professional development events, and provides opportunities for emerging and established film-makers living in the region, as well as programmes of high-quality films from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, chosen to reflect one of the core communities of the East End. In addition, Eastern European, East Asian and African and Caribbean strands further represents the increasing diversity of the region. The Professional Development strand, comprising workshops, panel discussions, competitions, networking events and master classes is a new development for 2006.

THE SPANISH FILM FESTIVAL

£ 5,000

The 2006 Spanish Film Festival will take place at Cine Lumiere from 22-28 September 2006. There will be a selection of around 15 Spanish films with Q&As, directors’ talks, a schools’ screening, and a seminar at the Institute Cervantes.

YOUTH ANIMATION AND MEDIA

£2,000

Based in Peckham, Youth Animation Media will run digital film-making and animation workshops for young people during the school mid-term break from 29 May-2 June 2006. Completed films will be screened at the centre alongside a retrospective of previous films and the audience choice will be shown on 18 June at Peckham Multiplex.

THE BANGLADESHI FILM FESTIVAL

£3,000

The 7th Bangladeshi Film Festival in East London, 4-11 June 2006, will include seminars and workshops. The festival coincides with the 50th year of Bangladeshi cinema and extra activities around the festival including programming from the last 50 years, a photo/poster exhibition and the publication of a special book on 50 years of Bangladeshi Film are also planned. Bangladeshi films will be screened in at least 10 schools in Tower Hamlets.

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Film London is the capital’s film and media agency. Film London sustains, promotes and develops London as a major international film-making and film cultural capital. This includes all the screen industries based in London – film, television, video, commercials and new interactive media. Film London is supported by the UK Film Council and the London Development Agency through Creative London. Film London also receives significant support from Arts Council England London, the European Regional Development Fund, the Mayor of London and Skillset.

www.filmlondon.org.uk

CUT! HORROR COMPETITION

THE HORROR CHANNEL PRESENTS
UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR ASPIRING DIRECTORS

Bloodthirsty budding directors with a passion for horror are being offered a unique opportunity to have
their work judged by experts in the movie industry.

The Horror Channel, in association with Ghost House Mobile, is running a unique short film competition
and has secured a panel of elite judges including US producer Rob Tapert (The Grudge and
The Evil Dead), New York director Lloyd Kaufman (Toxic Avenger, Tromeo & Juliet and the upcoming
Poultrygeist) and internationally renowned film critic Alan Jones.

The aptly-titled competition CUT!, launches in the UK on April 17 and entrants are encouraged to send
in a two-minute horror film. The winners will get the chance to see their names in lights and their films
on the big screen. The films will also be edited for mobile and made available on an exclusive Horror
Channel WAP site launching in mid-April and on Ghost House Mobile.

The winner of the Short Film Competition will receive £5000 and the top three winning films will be
shown to a packed public theatre at the next prestigious Frightfest at The Odeon in Leicester Square.

There are also excellent cash prizes for runner ups.

“The movie industry can be a cut-throat business and we are delighted to be able to provide a platform
for a filmmaker to showcase their work from,” says Zone Vision’s Chief Business Development and
New Media Officer Tanya Gugenheim. “Zone Vision, which owns The Horror Channel, continues to be
at the forefront of new media trends, and working with some of the industry’s top talent such as
Rob Tapert and Lloyd Kaufman, also helps us to reach new audiences.”

“I think this is a great way to find new, exciting talent. The CUT! competition is open to anyone with
a camera, an idea and the desire to shoot something cool and scary. I'm really looking forward to
seeing what the filmmakers of tomorrow create,” says Rob Tapert.

Lloyd Kaufman says: “This competition is more exciting than the Commonwealth Games!”

The closing date for CUT! is June 16
For more information about how to enter, log onto www.thehorrorchannel.tv

HORROR CHANNEL WAP SITE:
http://horror.zonemobile.tv or text the word HORROR to 83239

GHOST HOUSE MOBILE WAP SITE:
www.wap.ghosthousemobile.com or text the word: GHOST to 86222

Vividas launches landmark video streaming suite

Vivcast Encoding Suite solves complexity of publishing large quantities
of video content online

London 25 April, 2006: Vividas, one of the world's leading developers and providers of full-screen video streaming technology, today announces the launch of its Vivcast Encoding Suite. This new range provides an all-in-one digital encoder for any organisation that wishes to publish large quantities of video content on the Internet.

The Vivcast units are a simple, cost-effective means for organisations or resellers to deliver platform independent, full-screen, broadcast-quality video content instantly to an unlimited global audience. Whether it's a broadcaster wanting to stream the latest TV programme, or a company making its annual CEO announcement, Vivcast has been specially designed to stream video content quickly and conveniently, without users needing to download software before viewing.

In the past, companies had to rely on a number of different suppliers to provide the hardware, software and hosting services to make large-scale video communications possible. This caused logistical nightmares, compounded by the management of encoding to a range of different formats. Vivcast technology offers the whole package in one box and one universal format, with a simple pricing structure and product support. Companies will be charged for the box rental, as well as pay per view charge for each user.

Vivcast has a broad market base, developed to cater for the video requirements of anyone from advertising agencies and those looking to set-up an internet TV station, to video resellers and the big internet players like Google and AOL. The unit is simply rented for a monthly flat fee, rather than users being charged confusing tariffs based on gigabytes per month or set-up fees. Vividas uses a standard web server to deliver the video, so it can easily be integrated into existing companies infrastructure.

Vivcast offers the additional benefit of security, allowing organisations to produce, encode and distribute videos with sensitive company data internally, rather than relying on an outside supplier, and with Full Digital Rights Management support (DRM).
Vivcast also provides video that can be viewed by anyone with internet access, from a dial-up connection to high-speed broadband.

Richard Collins, CEO of Vividas, commented: "Until now, large-scale video communications have been complicated to set-up and expensive to maintain. We are offering corporates a one-stop-shop for their video requirements with a simple pricing structure and unlimited number of streams. Quite simply, Vividas is making full-screen, mass video streaming affordable and simple for the first time. We're looking forward to rapid expansion over the next few months as the product suite really takes off."