Festival Focus: LSFF Programme Preview
On Friday, the London Short Film Festival rolls around for its thirteenth edition. With thirty-eight programmes of new British shorts, six dedicated documentary strands, four international shorts nights, as well as a host of unusual retrospectives, it looks to be the most packed, bumper edition of the UK’s largest showcase of short film yet.
Firstly, our congratulations to the 100+ Shooting People members who have work included in the festival. Normally, we’d attempt to list our talent, but with so many individuals involved, we can just suggest you go to a short film programme, and assume that there’s a film from a member there.
We’d also like to take this moment to alert you that we have an event at LSFF, as part of the festival’s industry programme. A session on film funding, ‘Show Me The Money‘ will explore the tricky world of raising finances for your film projects, looking at the opportunities available and how best to exploit them. It’s our first event in the new year, and judging from the success of last month’s Shooters in the Pub it should be a great way to start off your 2016 calendar.
Lastly, such is the scale of the festival’s offering, browsing through the (?)+ films can be a little intimidating. We’ve picked a few strands, films and individuals that we would recommend booking up for.
Cats & Cats & Cats – Thu 14 Jan 19:30 Round Chapel, Lower Clapton
LSFF’s most meme ready programme, LSFF presents a night dedicated to “classic and contemporary cat cinema.” With films from experimentalists Stan Brakhage, Alexander Hammid & Maya Deren, new commissions from Nicholas Abrahams, Vivienne Dick and Jennifer Reeder and live music from psychedelic act Stealing Sheep, its much more than Cat Youtubes projected on a wall. Everyone loves kittens, so this one will sell out. Book here,
New Shorts: Docs – London Stories Thu 14 Jan 20:30 ICA Cinema 1
As fun as it is to be exposed to the unfamiliar in film, sometimes it is comforting to see your city and home portrayed on screen. This doc programme should offer something of both, exploring new angles on familiar places. Films set in Regents Park, Clerkenwell, the Docklands, New Cross and the Wenlock basin look at these areas, and the buildings, businesses, peoples and cultures within them in new ways. Explore real London.
Harmony Korine Weekender Sat 16 – 17 Jan ICA
Harmony Korine, the provocateur extraordinaire who wrote the screenplay for Larry Clark’s influential ‘Kids’ aged only 19, has had a coloured and varying career since, making films across length and format. The LSFF, in this unmissable programme, present three aspects of his work – screening his debut feature ‘Gummo’ along with a symposium on the film afterwards, as well as a selection of some of his shorter films, and an interpretation of Korine’s novel ‘A Crackup at the Race Riots’ by collaborator Leo Gabin. Grab tickets for them at the ICA here.
New Shorts: Best UK Short Award
LSFF’s British Council sponsored competition for the best British short films is a surefire way to see great films. Films that have picked up positive attention across the year, films that have excited and engaged programmers that have seen thousands of films, films you should see. Book up.
Analogue Basement Sat 16 Jan 16:00 Ace Hotel, Miranda
One of the more eclectic offerings in this year’s programme, ‘Analogue Basement’ is a series of 16mm films from the London Filmmakers’ Co-op Catalogue selected by filmmaker and artist David Leister. The festival’s description of the event sounds a little oblique – a celebration of “the tactile quality of film” through shorts that make “integral use of sounds, silences and textures,” but it is nevertheless a chance to see a number of potentially enlightening, rarely screened films on their original format, something which is always worth pursuing. Underground at hip venue Miranda Bar, Ace Hotel.