Bristol’s Watershed Media Centre and two of the city’s film festivals have received cash backing from a £130,000 regional National Lottery fund.
The money has been awarded by South West Screen, the regional film and TV development organisation, under its Audience Development Fund and is aimed at keeping Bristol and the region at the forefront of the UK media industry.
The Watershed receives £75,000 for its latest project, Developing Diversity in Cinema and Developing Diverse Audiences, which is running until March 31, 2012.
It features a programme of screenings and events which presents the rich diversity of world cinema with an emphasis on East Asian, African and European films. According to the Watershed it will provide a high-profile platform for emerging UK creative talent and use moving image as a core element of creative practice, promoting creativity, innovation and participation. Events will include repertory seasons, retrospectives, archive screenings, partnership programming, film festivals and screenings local shorts before features.
Watershed promotes engagement, enjoyment, diversity and participation in film, media arts and the creative economy through its independent cinema programme and associated festivals, events and talks. Last year Europa Cinemas named it as Entrepreneur of the Year selected from 1,000 cinemas across 500 European cities.
Bristol’s Encounters International Film Festival, which is staged between November 16 and 20, receives £15,000. The festival will include gala events, competition short film programmes, high profile guests, talks and cinematography masterclasses, workshops, networking and training events, helping talent build relationships with industry professionals.
The Animated Encounters strand will stage an event discussing the building blocks of pre-school animation, while Brief Encounters – the short-film element of the festival, will coordinate three short conferences discussing emerging trends in the industry, such as developments in digital media, the role of film festivals, and the transition from short to feature filmmaking.
The Shorts to Features strand will also return this year to celebrate those filmmakers who have made the progression from short to feature filmmaking. Last year’s festival featured actor Andy Serkis, comedian Tim Minchin, director Ken Wardrop and cinematographer Chris Ross.
Bristol Silents Slapstick Festival 2012 and a six-date South West tour receives £6,000. The festival, which runs from January 26-29, will feature among its speakers Mark Steele, David Jason, Griff Rhys Jones and regulars Graeme Gardner, Barry Cryer and Kevin Brownlow, while Shappi Khorsandi will present a programme of Charlie Chaplin films.
The festival has established an international reputation for silent film programming enhanced with musical accompaniments and speakers. Next year’s will focus on female comedians, challenging the view that silent comedians were all men. The core festival is held in Bristol Old Vic, Colston Hall, Watershed and Arnolfini, while the tour will visit Strode, Frome, Wiveliscombe, Clevedon and Bath.
The South West Film & Television Archive (SWFTA) also receives £10,000.
South West Screen head of creative and audience development Sarah-Jane Meredith said: “There is some truly exciting work happening in this part of the country and I am delighted that we are able to offer support to help develop this work, and to connect the public in the South West to moving image culture.”
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