This blog is a part of my body of research that seeks to analyse civil society's and academia's understanding of national security models from an academic perspective with a focus on Canada, Israel and the UK.
After 10 years of activity and nine international film festivals, Birds Eye View will no longer produce film festivals from 2015. Activity will continue in the form of Filmonomics, training for women filmmakers as devised by BEV’s recent Creative Director Kate Gerova, continued bespoke exhibition programmes and an International Women’s Day screening on March 8 at the BFI Southbank.
Birds Eye View began as a short film event in 2002 and an international film festival in 2005 in order to throw a spotlight on the fact that only 7% of feature film directors were women. The aim was to celebrate diverse female filmmaking talent, and inspire and equip the next generation to break new ground. There was, at that time, no other platform for women filmmakers in the UK, and the overwhelming support received from both press and industry made clear that this was a much needed focus. Since then, the conversation around women filmmakers has been taken on by press and industry; Underwire, a festival for British women making short films, has begun to champion and support emerging talent; and the Women Of The World (WOW) festival at the Southbank Centre gives women across the arts a dedicated space each year.
Founder Rachel Millward states: “I am proud that the Birds Eye View Film Festival has been such a dynamic part of the conversation around women filmmakers over the last decade. I think it’s a loss to British film that we will no longer have an annual celebration of international talent, but we simply have not been able to find a way financially to sustain the work of the festival any longer. The journey for women filmmakers continues and progresses, and I am delighted that Birds Eye View will turn its attention to equipping women filmmakers to succeed in film through brilliant new initiatives like Filmonomics.”
Former creative director Kate Gerova who stepped down at the end of 2014, said, “one of the clearest messages I heard as the director was that filmmakers want to be judged by their work and not their gender. Lack of equality and diversity is an industrial problem and addressing this will be to the benefit of audiences everywhere when they see better representation on screen facilitated by a more diverse filmmaking community. At BEV we have turned our resources into developing training to address some of the barriers that seem to come up repeatedly.”
Filmonomics is supported by Creative Skillset and develops film finance, marketing and distribution knowledge for participants. Mia Bays, Project Director commented “feedback from the first iteration shows that bespoke filmmaker training which is both inward and outward looking makes an impact. Filmonomics II has developed to support a new group of talented practitioners across 2015”. Birds Eye View recently completed an international training programme in Cuba in association with the British Council and is now looking to partner with international platforms for the development of Filmonomics International.
For further information please contact Jo Duncombe: jo@birds-eye-view.co.uk
NOTES FOR EDITORS The Birds Eye View Film Festival ran from 2005 to 2014. It showcased the best new work by international women filmmakers. Programmes included UK premieres of Sisters in Law (Kim Longinotto), Whip It, (Drew Barrymore), Tiny Furniture (Lena Dunham) as well as programmes of films made by women from developing countries, including African Academy Award Winning Wanuri Kahiu and a festival dedicated to Arab Women Flimmakers in 2013. Birds Eye View Film Festival commissioned over 30 female musicians through Sound & Silents to compose and perform new live scores to silent films celebrating the contribution of pioneer women filmmakers from the beginning of cinema, and provided development to over 30 female screenwriters through three Labs.
Pioneering Canadian Films at BEVFF14 Gabrielle | Barbican | Sat 12 April | BOOK Watermark | ICA | Sun 13 April | BOOK BEV 2014 boasts two screenings showcasing the strength and diversity of Canada's fertile film industry. We're proud to host the UK premiere of Louise Archambault's radiant Quebecois drama Gabrielle, which picked up gongs for Best Picture and Best Actress at this year's Canadian Screen Awards (formerly the Genies), plus a London premiere for Jennifer Baichwal and world-famous photographer Edward Burtynsky's Watermark, fascinating winner of the Best Feature Length Documentary prize. Read a festival blogger Manish's write up here.
WHAT'S DAVID LYNCH'S FILM OF THE MOMENT? BOODY BEANS ICA | Weds 9 April | 9pm Recently selected by David Lynch to play in his private screening club - Silencio - in Paris, Bloody Beans is a trance-like, hallucinatory exploration of the Algerian War of Independence through the eyes of a group of children. With a Q&A with director Narimane Mari just confirmed, and hot on the heels of its Copenhagen Film Festival prize, this is really not one to miss. BOOK
BEV TEAM TOP PICKS EACH WEEK, ONE OF THE BEVFF14 FESTIVAL TEAM PICKS THEIR FESTIVAL FAVOURITE...
WILL PICKS: ELAINE STRITCH: SHOOT ME CURZON SOHO | SUN 13 APRIL | 4.20PM Will (producer): "Haven't hear of Elaine Stritch? Well you should have done. Anyone good enough to be best friends with Tina Fay, James Gandolfini and Lena Dunham should be your friend too. Get along to this movie". BOOK
ON OUR RADAR
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Submission Deadline: East End Film Festival
It's your last chance to submit your film to the brilliant East End Film Festival! The deadline for late submissions is tonight (!) so what are you waiting for? More info here: http://www.eastendfilmfestival.com/submissions
‘Twinning’ Film Night Presented by Noor Cultural Centre and Temple Emanu-El Please join us for the second film night in our Jewish-Muslim film festival. Everyone is welcome. Where Do We Go Now?- A Film by Nadine Labaki When civil strife in Lebanon threatens the peace and friendship between Christians and Muslims living in a remote village in the country, the women in the community attempt to diffuse tensions through various means. Awards and Nominations for Where Do We Go Now? - Ecumenical Special Mentions and the François Chalais Prize at the Cannes Film Festival (2011)- People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival (2011)- Selected to represent Lebanon at the Academy Awards (2012) Date: Saturday January 18, 2014 Time: 7 pm Location: Auditorium, Noor Cultural Centre Admission: Free
