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Even before the screening began, there was a buzz in the air. One of the shorts being shown tonight, Mars, had already created a stir. As the audience were waiting for the screening to begin, I overheard two teenagers chatting about it animatedly with their parents. It was a pleasure to hear those teenagers so enthused by the film, and their excitement was indicative of a wonderful event to come. Sophie Black (director of A Different Place) and Aella Jordan-Edge (writer and director of Misnomer) were led by host Niamh Brook’s considered questions, providing a thought-provoking evening. Although the room was not quite full, the engaged and passionate audience made it feel much busier, noisy chatter before the screenings giving way to rapt attention and applause, and then insightful questions when the Q&A was opened up to the floor.

There were definite similarities between the two film-maker’s experiences. Both projects were in development for a similar amount of time – 1.5 years development and research for A Different Place, leading to nearly 2 full years working on the project and nearly 2 years for Jordan-Edge to polish her first draft into a final script. The importance of creating a safe space for their actors and allowing them to bring their own approaches to the characters was also highlighted by both directors, with the sets being closed for at least part of the shoot for both films. As those who have seen the finished shorts can attest, this approach paid off with brilliant and sensitive performances. They also both spoke of the draw of bringing stories that they had not seen represented in cinema at large to the screen, and of the influence of Portrait of a Lady on Fire on their films.

Black talked about the challenges of working with a crew she had not previously worked with due to the impact of the production length and COVID restrictions, as well as the learning curve as a director working with an intimacy co-ordinator, in addition to the importance of featuring older women in such roles – as she said, “[the] shot of putting on spanx most important shot I’ve ever filmed”.

Jordan-Edge also gave some fascinating insights into her directorial choices, explaining how with both handheld camera shots and framing, they “tried to just go really raw” and that the contemporary, DIY feeling the soundtrack gave “just felt right”. She explained that her film was ultimately about communication and that if the audience took anything away it should be to communicate, even when it is hard. She also hoped that it would open up wider experiences for those who eventually see the film.

When asked about any upcoming projects, both directors were eager to tell further diverse stories – Jordan-Edge is currently studying for an MA in Directing Fiction, with an aim to enter the industry fully and produce a feature, whilst Black has an aim of making a feature film as well, with two further shorts being written and directing an episode of an unnamed fantasy TV show already in the works.

There were many more compelling insights provided during the course of the evening, far more than I have space to go into here – it was an enlightening and highly enjoyable evening, and I would recommend looking into both directors’ work and further Q&A sessions held at the festival. As member of the audience put it so eloquently, it was “fabulous to see queer stories that feel really authentic and are positive.”

Review by Margot Tancred

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From a record-breaking 1391 submissions to this year’s festival, we’re proud to reveal the short films from our Official Selection which are nominated for one of our six prestigious awards.

With more films than ever to choose from, deciding on the films to nominate in each category was no easy task, with our executive committee discussing each film at length before settling on the final nominees.

The four films in each award category are being considered by our 2022 Jury as we speak, with this year’s panel including names such as Nat Luurtsema, Jinko Gotoh and Chris Rankin.

The winners are set to be revealed in a physical award ceremony which will take place at Norwich University of the Arts on 18th November, sponsored by Intermission. We’re so excited to be able to share this occasion with filmmakers in-person, and will be allowing audiences to follow along via social media as each announcement happens.

Each winner will receive a £1000 cash prize alongside a commemorative certificate & trophy, as well as a number of additional software prizes.

We’d like to thank this year’s Award Sponsors for allowing us to support and reward the filmmakers in each category:

• Arnolds Keys (British Film)
• Skyline IFE (International Film)
• University of East Anglia (East Anglian Film)
• VisitNorwich (Documentary Film)
• Meantime Media (Animated Film)
• Norwich University of the Arts (Student Film)

Want to see the nominees for yourself? Our full Official Selection will be screening in-person & online from 11-20th November during this year’s festival – tickets are on sale now!

Best British Film Nominees

AN IRISH GOODBYE (Dir. Tom Berkeley & Ross White)

NEITHER SEEN NOR HEARD (Dir. Florence Kosky)

OLD WINDOWS (Dir. Paul Holbrook)

THE OPERATOR (Dir. Matt Riley)

Best International Film Nominees

ACTION (Dir. Benoît Monney)

AUGUST (Dir. Jonathan Berlin)

SIDERAL (Dir. Carlos Segundo)

THE DREAMS OF LONELY PEOPLE (Dir. Marek Leszczewski)

Best East Anglian Film

BIG EARS (Dir. Sam Baron)

GHOST PONDS (Dir. Amanda Sosnowski)

MY FIRST DICK (Dir. Kate McCoid)

OCTOPUS (Dir. Ella Glendining)

Best Documentary Film

SUPERHEROES WEAR HOODIES (Dir. Jason Osborne)

THE OTHER SIDE OF PARADISE (Dir. Elliott Watson)

TWO KINDS OF WATER (Dir. Dan McDougall)

WILD IS THE SPRING (Dir. Adla Massoud)

Best Animated Film

LUCE AND THE ROCK (Dir. Britt Raes)

MEMENTO MORI (Dir. Paul O’Flanagan)

SOFT TISSUE (Dir. Cliona Noonan)

YOUR MOUNTAIN IS WAITING (Dir. Hannah Jacobs)

Best Student Film

CATERPILLAR (Dir. Marcus Anthony Thomas)

HEART FAILURE (Dir. Will Wightman)

LAIKA & NEMO (Dir. Jan Gadermann & Sebastian Gadow)

THE BOY WHO COULDN’T FEEL PAIN (Dir. Eugen Merher)

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Banff is a festival that strikes you as having, or fostering, a real sense of community. Arriving at the Norwich screening, it felt like stepping into a family get-together, where everyone knew everyone – or perhaps was just united by their shared passion. The Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival is the world’s largest mountain film festival, showcasing cinema focusing on the outdoors, mountain culture, and – perhaps most importantly – adventure. 

The films offer a mix of exhilarating instant gratification, and the satisfying reward of a long journey’s conclusion. Some films, such as ‘Follow the Light’ and ‘Ultimate Ski Run’, are composed entirely of incredible footage that evokes a real emotional reaction from the audience: the former follows one mountain biker tackling otherworldly Cappadocian landforms, while the latter tracks one former Freeride World Tour champion skier’s gravity-defying freeski run. Both films receive sharp intakes of breath and audible remarks from the audience at their most daring moments, and deservingly so. This is one occasion where the power of cinema becomes particularly evident – there are few occasions where you can sit and feel completely, collectively, enraptured by what’s unfolding in front of you. 

The selection of films from the festival manage to strike a balance between showcasing incredible natural scenery, and focusing on the people within it. Films such as ‘Deep Roots’ weave the two together particularly well, showing Lonnie Kauk’s journey not only to attempt the legendary Magic Line climbing route, but to reconnect with his father (climbing legend Ron Kauk), his Yosemite roots, and, of course, the natural environment that is the cornerstone of all three. ‘The Farmer’ paid tribute to a Utah snowboarding legend whose skills made for impressive watching in a dazzling snowscape, but whose lifetime passion for sustainability and efficiency was also acknowledged. 

These weren’t the only films in the screening (we were shown the Red strand, one of two being screened around the UK) to focus heavily on their human subject’s story. ‘Action Directe’, ‘West Highland Way’ and ‘From My Window’ all followed the journeys of individuals seeking to overcome a Herculean task: the first showed the culmination of a seven-year journey to complete one near-impossible climbing route; the second, a record-breaking attempt at the 95-mile West Highland Way; and the third, one woman’s decision to pursue her dream of summiting the peaks of Colorado, despite the daily obstacles she faces as a result of cerebral palsy. 

Despite each film coming in under the 40-minute mark (most quite a lot under, with the shortest just four minutes long), each story unravels at a steady pace. While the natural wonders featured across the films are beautiful, they’re never used as a substitute for skilled filmmaking and storytelling, and the focus of each is clear and well-sustained. The subject of each of the films is stunning in its own right; it would almost be difficult to make such spectacular scenery and phenomenal human achievements look bad on screen. However, it stands testament to each of the filmmakers here that they still manage to elevate something brilliant, and present it in such a way that it becomes simply extraordinary. 

I’ve never been to a screening where the audience felt so close to the action – whether it was snowboarding, climbing, or cycling, there were gasps of shock and admiration, sighs of relief, and joyful cheers in response to the films’ events.  At one particularly impressive climbing feat, someone in the row behind whispered, reverently: ‘beautiful’. 

Whether you’re thinking about dipping your toes into the world of adventure sports or you’re already fully immersed, the Banff Mountain Film Festival is an experience that impresses, delights, and inspires in equal measure. Even if adventuring isn’t your cup of tea, these films make for an incredible vicarious experience. Plus, there’s a prize draw at every screening – need I say more? 

Banff is screening at UK theatres throughout 2022 – for more information on dates, and to book tickets, go to: www.banff-uk.com/tickets

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Interview by Niamh Brook

Could you give us a little introduction to yourself? 

My name is Hugo Le Gourrierec. I’m 30 years old and I’m from Chambéry in the French Alps where I grew up for 20 years before studying cinema. I’ve been an assistant director for 8 years now and I’ve been lucky enough to work with directors that I respect a lot and with whom I’ve learned a lot on each shoot

How did the idea for Pipo and Blind Love come to be and what drew you to tell this story? 

The idea for this film was born when I was 15 years old after my first break-up. When I was a teenager, I thought I could only say “I love you” to one person, it was excessive love, passionate love, maybe too strong. So without any hindsight, everything was in the emotion, and of course, you break up. 

Nothing very serious in retrospect but it traumatised me at the time to have given all the love I had in me to a girl who cheated on me. 

Anyway… I grew up with the idea of making a film about the incompatibility of love between a deaf man and a blind woman, then the idea changed over time and I wanted it to be more universal. I discovered the works of G.Orwell, I became interested in geopolitics, in communism and also started to read a little science fiction.  Soon I fell in love again and I gave it my all again until I was exhausted, and I exhausted myself making this film because no one wanted to produce it, I had to fight to find the money. 

It was very complicated, but we did it. This film is a bit the result of exhaustion in love and in art, in passion, in the face of disinterest.

The visuals in Pipo and Blind Love have a wonderfully unique and distinct quality to them. What was the process like creating such a dystopian world for Pipo to inhabit? 

I wanted this story of love and transmission to take place in a coal factory. I was fascinated by the factories in the North-East of France, I had the impression that they were enormous metal whales that spewed smoke, that they were alive, a sort of cloud machine. Then I found that I had more and more difficulty formulating what I felt, I couldn’t find the words, as if I was cruelly lacking in vocabulary, so I decided to lock my characters up in a society that recommends that human beings not speak, not communicate, to avoid any exchange, any relationship. 

This universe was then built with Mathieu Buffler (set designer), Juliette Milon (costume designer), Bastien Legros (graphic designer for propaganda posters), Geoffrey Perrier (sound editor) and Vadim Alsayed (cinematographer) – they asked me about my universe, I had to answer them so that they could draw on their ideas, it was a real team effort, they just needed certain elements of my imagination to grasp the atmosphere I wanted, and materialise it. The factory became a big, monstrously beautiful metal fish and my characters could finally come to life in this universe that controls them. 

I love the lack of dialogue within the film, it really draws you to the characters? Why did you choose to leave dialogue out of the film? 

I answered this a bit in part of the previous question but I find that sometimes dialogue is confining. What saddens me is that language was created to bring together and not to divide. I have the impression that we spend more time hearing negative words than words that bring people together. 

That’s why in this universe I preferred to ban language, and it had to be written in black and white on the propaganda posters. In the end, it is in the looks, the facial expressions, the actions that motivate the characters, their emotions, their intentions that we transmit something more universal, love, without words. 

Maybe I don’t know how to write dialogue, but in any case, it will be the same for the next project. 

There will be a few lines of text, but really very few. I think it’s better for a spectator, you tell your own story. 

A character is a shell full of things that are sometimes too complex, I prefer people to make them their own without words. 

Similarly, What was it like directing actors without any dialogue? I imagine it was quite a challenge. 

During the casting with Nicolas Benoît (casting director), he directly recommended that I work with a dancer and a model. Pipo is always moving, his body expresses itself in space, his movements break the rigidity of the architecture of this strict factory. And the young woman is very static, emotionally dead, she needed a face and a look that crosses the screen. 

I followed him in this choice of casting and we worked with Anatole Zangs and Solange Fréjean. Everything was already written in the script, but we had to make it our own in the factory. 

So we looked for the way the characters would walk, their looks, their attitudes (they really don’t look like that in real life, it’s quite amazing), we confronted them with a friend, an assistant theatre director (Quentin Amiot), with various exercises to see how they would react to this or that thing. 

They had to be always in opposition, for example, the sun is soft for Pipo when the sun burns the skin of Solange who goes to hide under a tree to have shade. It was quite fun doing all these exercises. Then we repeated it many times. On the set, it was integrated, they were Pipo and Solange and they could improvise if they wanted to. 

What do you hope people take away from Pipo and Blind Love?

I would like them to feel Solange’s emotion when she rediscovers what the world she lives in is like. Emotion is sometimes hidden in the details, and it is through our imagination that the cold, gloomy veil of a sometimes sad existence slowly falls away, revealing the desire to love, to create and to share. 

There is always a thrill somewhere, a reason to rekindle our dormant imaginations, to share our desires until there are none left. I hope that people will not hesitate to live what they fully want, to stop the machine, because then everything becomes possible, everything is not so ugly, a collage of propaganda posters can become a beautiful canvas like a window on the outside. Imagine for two seconds that a populist speech becomes a humanist poem, let’s have fun with what depresses us. 

The limit is our imagination. 

Did the Covid-19 pandemic affect your production at all? If so, what was the experience like? 

I was lucky enough to see my film exported to over 150 festivals around the world during the pandemic. 

I didn’t have the chance to meet the public, but that doesn’t matter, it’s the film that counts, the rest is a pure ego trip. 

It was shown on the walls of Amman in Jordan during the curfew, Mendelssohn’s music was echoing throughout the city, people sent me videos, it was spectacular to see this film projected in a city under curfew with the inhabitants at their windows. 

It was shown in a Drive-In in the United States, in a church in Armenia, in shanty towns in Mexico, on a nomadic boat in Belarus which shows films in villages with no access to culture, in short, there are those who have not lacked the imagination to show and make our films live. 

It was very moving to see all these photos and selections. 

Are you excited about this years Norwich Film Festival? 

Your festival is one of the best selections we have had for this film, I was very surprised when I read the selection email. 

I didn’t think that our film could be selected for such a big festival. I’m more than honoured and I’m a bit at a loss for words.  I’m quite moved by this selection because the Norwich Film Festival is known and recognised internationally. Thank you for giving it the opportunity to be seen on such a large scale. 

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