It seems like only yesterday, I was kicking back with my slippers and pipe listening to the first episode of DN, when MarBelle interviewed good friend of the show Justin Doherty about the short Clandestine. Directors Notes has come a long way since this first show and I think the majority of our regular listeners will have noticed improvements not only to the Podcast, but also the site, over this time.

My input into the site mostly involves lurking in the background, sniffing out new films and posting my occasional rambling thoughts and opinions (and boy can they be rambling, as you’ll probably find out over the next couple of paragraphs). Being a technical person, my interview skills are pretty lacking to say the least and lets not even get started on how whenever my voice is recorded I suddenly sound like some mockney barrow boy. So to be honest, I’m more than happy to keep dwelling in the background, as I think MarBelle has got his interview/presenting style down and is sounding more and more like a smooth Jazz DJ every day (NICE!).

Even though I am pretty strongly connected to the DN site, I do honestly believe that even if I wasn’t, I’d still be an avid follower, as there aren’t many places out there where you get to see such a variety of Independent films, let alone get to hear about the process of making them. If I wasn’t involved in Directors Notes I shudder to think about the fact that I might not have got to see some of the jaw dropping, mind-altering films that we’ve covered over the last 100 episodes. I think every film we’ve covered, in podcast or post, has been put on the site because we really believe that the films not only deserved to be out there gaining recognition, but also truly need to be seen. We believe these are films that must be viewed, must be shared and must be discussed, whether they will simply leave you with an uncontrollable smile on your face or leave you pondering your very existence on the world.

I like to think in someway, we’re playing our part in making the Independent film world a bit more accessible to its adoring public. Back in the day if you wanted to see films of this ilk, you’d have to go deep into London to an Arthouse cinema or buy yourself a Tartan/Artificial Eye DVD – both of which I still do regularly by the way (I love my rows of Tartan/Artificial Eye DVDs – you know what I’m talking about MarBelle). So hopefully, we’re bringing a fine slice of Indie film to your computer/ipod screen, which you all enjoy and best of all…….it’s FREE!

Anyway, that’s enough rambling, hope you enjoy the site as much as we do. Please any comments, feel free to post them, we’re always interested in what you have to say.

Here’s to another 100 episodes, keep up the good work Marbelle.

Rice and Peace
El Vez

• What are words worth?
• We have a look
• Twinklebum in New York
• Sorry I’m late :-(
• PC031: Colin and Ishmael in the Dark

• DN Festival: Britdoc 2007
• We Dreamed America - Alex Walker
• Trusted Computing - Benjamin Stephan & Lutz Vogel
• Tovarisch I Am Not Dead - Stuart Urban
• Tokyo Cowboys - Daneeta Loretta Saft & Patrick Jackson

Our schedules list free entry film festivals right across the planet, all of which will accept both submission and screening copies on either small gauge film or inexpensive and accessible DV media. And, to help you plan with ease, the closing date for each festival is clearly shown.

So you can put the money you save towards that new camera you’ve been lusting after instead!

• DN Special: Screen South - Digital Shorts 2007
• 16th Raindance Film Festival Open for Submissions?
• Twinklebum in New York
• The Ten Steps - Brendan Muldowney
• The Darkside - Shane Sheils

In an industry that is often cutthroat and ruthless, I think it is always worth giving publicity and a lot of respect to those artists that decide to give something back to all us fellow creative types. It is with this in mind I wanted to bring to everyones’ attention the great act of giving from director Bruce McDonald, who with his latest film The Tracey Fragments decided to let all us budding editors have a play with his footage by making it available for re-editing.

Unfortunately, I was too late with my discovery to actually get hold of the footage and have a go at editing something for myself (and from the looks of things it might have only been available to Canadians). However, the entries are definitely worth checking out, as this kind of competition and the publicity that comes with it means they’re always worth entering, whether you want to showcase your skills, practice your editing techniques or just compare your work with that of other editors.

Tracey: Re-Fragmented made available all the footage from the shoot of the film for users to download and re-edit their own related projects including music videos, new trailers or to re-edit the entire movie themselves.

The re-editing initiative also has a competitive element with Bruce McDonald and his editors selecting the best from Canada to win an Apple Final Cut Pro prize pack. The winning project will also appear in the bonus features on the DVD release of The Tracey Fragments.

The entries can be viewed online now. I’d also recommend checking out The Tracey Fragments trailer while you’re at it, looks pretty interesting.

• Hotel Harabati Competition
• DN EP 086: Extraordinary Rendition - Jim Threapleton
• DN EP 071: Good Copy Bad Copy - Andreas Johnsen, Ralf Christensen & Henrik Moltke
• DN EP 067: Four Eyed Monsters - Arin Crumley & Susan Buice
• We Dreamed America - Alex Walker

Something has happened to PBS favorite Charlie Rose. The erudite conversations and sober intellectualism have been replaced by an absurd world where illogic, inane dialogues, and open hostility rule. The one-on-one interview between Charlie and his guest begins as usual but quickly goes awry, so much so that Charlie is warned that, somewhere, a man named ‘Steve’ is not happy. But who is ‘Steve’ and why is he angry? And why does the mere mention of his name stop Charlie cold? Using appropriated footage from a single episode of Charlie Rose, filmmaker Andrew Filippone Jr. creates something both disturbing and farcical in “Charlie Rose” by Samuel Beckett.

• Happy Monday - Andrew Filippone Jr
• DN EP 066: Happy Monday - Andrew Filippone Jr
• Time Piece - Kat Mansoor
• Kitchen Diaries
• Four Eyed Monsters - Arin Crumley & Susan Buice

Long term listeners will know that we’re big fans of our buddy Seth Hardwood’s Jack Palms crime mystery podcast series. Well Jack Palms Sunday has finally rolled round and our chance to help Seth shake down the Amazon charts by buying a copy of Jack Wakes Up.

Check out the Jack Palms promo:

and you can grab a pdf copy of the book to read whilst you’re waiting for your copy to get shipped out to you.

• This post is all alone.

Past guest Robert Seidel (DN065) puts his experimental approach to animation to work on a canvas worthy of his talent. In his own words: “processes: living paintings” is a 35 by 16 meter full facade projection with a corresponding light choreography, ambient music and synced sound effects shown on the 2/2/2008 in Jena, Germany.

Not satisfied with a continuous repeated loop, Seidel created a 17 minute ambient soundtrack that shifted constantly to create singular experiences with each viewing. Clever stuff!

The stills and videos look great, but do make me feel a pang of jealousy at not being able to stand out front and experience the piece first hand.

• _grau - Robert Seidel
• DN EP 065: _grau - Robert Seidel
• Vote Yes to Mind Games
• Virtuosi - Marcelo Garcia
• To Shoot a Rurf - Shane & Paula Sheils

View the King of the Gypsies short

Whilst you’re at it, why not also check out the Le Donk Trailer, another Shane Meadows, Paddy Considine collaboration.

• We Dreamed America - Alex Walker
• Trusted Computing - Benjamin Stephan & Lutz Vogel
• Tovarisch I Am Not Dead - Stuart Urban
• Tokyo Cowboys - Daneeta Loretta Saft & Patrick Jackson
• Time Piece - Kat Mansoor

• Time Piece - Kat Mansoor
• The West Side Episode 3
• The West Side Back…Again
• Stagnate - Miranda Bowen
• Miss D 2007 Top Ten

I’ll be tinkering here and there over the next couple of days so if you notice anything that disturbs your usual DN experience, give me a shout so I can figure out how to unbreak it.

Every time there’s a WordPress rev, I start to ponder updating the site with a new template. It’s not that I don’t love the Drunkey Love theme we’re currently sporting, but as things stand my coding skills leave rather a lot to be desired and Drunkey Love hasn’t been updated since late 2006 which means much like a kid forgotten by the school bus, the tail lights are moving further and further into the distance leaving us stranded by the roadside.

If you’ve seen any kick arse templates that work well with video and images be sure to give me a nod.

• This post is all alone.

On a recent trip to London, I decided to take a trip to one of my favourite cinematic haunts and visit the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square, to see Alastair Fothergill’s documentary, Earth.

Although I was really looking forward to the movie and I knew I was going to enjoy it, my main reason for selecting this movie, above the many others on offer in Leicester Square, was that of technological intrigue. Knowing the movie had been shot in HD, I was dying to have a look at not only how this format looked on a giant screen, but also how using more lightweight, transportable equipment would benefit the shoots.

Anyone who has reservations about HD should really see this movie, I’m a big fan of the look of Film, but I was absolutely stunned by the cinematography on show and the quality of the image. You could argue that the majesty of nature was the real reason for this movie’s stunning visuals and I’m sure that with cameras sporting a much lower resolution or dynamic range than used in the movie, you could still shoot beautiful footage at some of the breath-taking locations in Earth. However, the 40 specialist camera crews used in the making of this feature must really be credited for the closeness we get to some rare and often dangerous creatures, along with the striking shots they get in these situations. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly which section of cinematography impressed me most throughout the movie, as I was consistently wowed and in awe of the camera work on display. The use of time lapse photography was one particular favourite feature of mine. Nature / Wildlife documentaries always seem to show the true magic of time lapse and this was no exception, not only was this method of shooting used to show the life of our planet, but also the how it is evolving (I didn’t want to say dying, too morbid!) due to climate change.

Another section of the movie where specialist shooting really paid off was the filming the great white sharks battering their prey out of the water to deadly effect. To capture one of this planet’s deadliest and quickest hunters in action, the camera men employed specialist cameras which shot continuously on a four second loop, meaning this swift act could be played back at a speed our brains would find easier to process and enjoy.

The use of infra-red cameras to capture a night time lion attack on a group of elephants at a watering hole was probably a necessity, the look and feel of the section added to the tense battle that was slowly erupting. Helicopter mounted aerial shots, swimming with whales and extreme weather conditions, whilst providing even more challenges for the camera crew involved, also added to the inspiring cinematography on show.

As you could probably tell, I could talk about the cinematography in this movie pretty much non-stop until we’re all tired of hearing about it, but the main reason I wanted to wax lyrical about this movie, was because I believe without HD this movie would not have been as effective. I’m purposefully avoiding using the word possible, as obviously wildlife movies and films shot in extreme conditions have been made using Film and go back as far as Robert J Flaherty’s Nanook of the North in 1922, when I’m sure cameras were massive in comparison to today. However, just think how much more demanding this movie would have been to create if it wasn’t shot on HD. By using HD the filmmakers must have saved financial resources (HD is arguably cheaper to shoot on), human resources (would they have been able to have 40 camera crews all armed with film equipment?) and on top of this, the lightweight, portable nature of the HD camera meant that the crews could get closer than ever to their unpredictable subjects.

Personally, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a HD camera after watching Earth, it really inspired me to push my camera skills and test the kind of shots I could get from the Sony Z1 (admittedly full blown HD’s smaller HDV brother). Now if only someone would fly me out to some of these exotic locations, maybe I could rival some of the HD footage the BBC Wildlife crews shot. For all you aspiring camera operators, lovers of stunning of imagery or admirers of the splendour of nature, this movie is a treat to behold. For all of you with doubts over HD, this should ease those worries and provide some positive points for the world of High Definition digital video. Finally, for all of you who aren’t aware exactly what climate change is affecting, then this is definitely a must.

• We Dreamed America - Alex Walker
• Tokyo Cowboys - Daneeta Loretta Saft & Patrick Jackson
• The Super Noble Brothers - Mark Escribano
• The Boy who Plays on the Buddhas of Bamiyan - Phil Grabsky
• Routes Hits a Cinema Near You

As a Lutonian and a devoted film fanatic, I rarely get excited about the choice of films I get to view in my hometown. However, once a year I get 11 days to get truly excited about, the Filmstock festival. For those of you that don’t know what Filmstock is…shame on you!

But Fear not, here’s a brief history. Neil Fox and Justin Doherty, another couple of Lutonians with a great passion for the movies, conceived Filmstock in 1999. However, instead of moaning and whinging about the lack of decent films to watch in Luton, Neil and Justin actually did something about it and the first Filmstock began in the summer of 2000. Over the 8 years Filmstock has been running, there have been visits from legends such as Barry Norman and Ray Harryhausen, preview screenings from Christopher Nolan and Jason Reitman, as well as lots of special screenings (Jaws in the Pool, Romeo + Juliet in a candlelight church). This year’s Filmstock has moved back from the summer months and into the first couple of weeks of November, I mean who remembers Guy Fawkes anyway. As usual, the Fox and Doherty collaboration has outdone itself with what’s on offer to the film loving public:

• 94 shorts from nearly 20 different countries
• Polskistock – Filmstock embraces Luton’s ever expanding Polish community with a collection of films fresh from Poland
• Filmschlock –Filmstockers unite and discuss the worst films to ever grace the big screen
• Le Voyage dans la Lune –A night where live music meets film
• An Endurance session of extreme cinema
• A collection of Experimental films
• Documentaries both Short and Feature length

Over the 11 days I took in as much Filmstock as possible, instead of giving you a round up and review of the events, here’s my festival diary:

Day 13
As a bit of research (yeah I’m getting all professional and serious about my postings now!) I went down to one of Neil & Justin’s Filmelab events, to hear them talk about setting up and running Filmstock (and also got the added bonus off watching Julien Temple’s excellent The Future is Unwritten – hopefully you’ve already read that post though). Neil’s the one to take the stage tonight and it’s obvious within 5 minutes how much he truly loves films, The Clash and films about The Clash. I think the most important thing Neil gets across tonight is that although they put a lot effort into conducting Filmstock, there’s no reason we shouldn’t be able to put on similar events ourselves. Instead of asking others to screen particular films, why not put on a screening yourself? He’s got a good point!

Day 1
Filmstock 8 has now begun! The bar is buzzing, a lot of mingling is going down and everyone is talking about films. Awesome!I leave my mark on the Filmstock wall, which I’m pretty proud of.

I pick up my pass, say hello to Neil and Justin and sample a couple of beers from the full stocked bar. I turned down my ticket to the opening film tonight, as I’ve already seen Robert Rodriguez’s ready made cult classic Planet Terror, I enjoyed it and it seems to go down very well with the Filmstock audience. Since Filmstock has not only a selection of world films, but a fine selection of world beers, I feel it also my duty to sample these along with the films…well it’d be rude not to!

Beerwatch –Punk IPA (had to be done for the name and label) & Lone Star

Day 2
I start my 2^nd day at Filmstock with short films and live music, in my eyes an almost perfect combination. La Voyage Dans la Lune is a night of engaging visuals and intriguing music featuring the likes of “Don’t Move, Play Dead!”, Creeping Jaw Society and DJ Engram. In particular, the music of “Don’t Move, Play Dead!” [MarBelle: band member Ginger John has long been a friend of Directors Notes and in fact provides the theme music for the show. He's still bloody great though!] really hits the right notes tonight, they play haunting melodies over a twisting, looping short film. The tunes keep coming through the night, as do an array of visuals, the people seem happy.

Anyone who knows me will know my love for short movies and every year the short film programme at Filmstock is something I really look forward to. The first session of shorts gets us off to a good start, the quality of the films is high, but to me one movie really stands out head and shoulders above the rest:

La Desgracia Ilega En Sabres Papel Madera – A quirky little short from Argentina, that for many reasons reminds me of Amelie, in both style and story. Director Andy Feldman delivers the story of Hernan, a boy with an irrepressible need to pull a silly face every time a camera is near, with great panache and bags of laughs. Even from the moment I saw the title sequence, I knew I was going to really enjoy this film and I did.

There were some other good films in the session and in particular Hello my Name is struck a few good notes with me, shot in crisp black and white and with a funny little story, it’s worth a watch.

Beerwatch – Sierra Nevada Wheat Beer & Sierra Nevada Pale Ale –Decided to work up from the bottom of the list. Lets see how long that lasts though!

Day 3
Unfortunately, this is the one day of Filmstock I don’t make! As it’s one of the 2 main short film days, I’m pretty gutted. Had a couple of friends go to the sessions, so I talk with them later in the day. They say the day was a real success, saw lots of films and the beer was flowing. In particular everyone seems to be raving about short film Hooded, hopefully it’ll win an audience award and I’ll get to see it again Sunday.

Day 4
Ok, so yesterday I obviously didn’t see any films, none at all! Today I make up for that with a couple of short film sessions, again the quality is really good. Not everyone hits the mark, but the when they do, they really hit hard.

English Language (with English Subtitles) definitely gets the El Vez award for film of the day. Tim Plester writes, directs and stars in this tenderly offbeat comedy about love and communication or lack thereof. As an actor Plester is hugely watchable as Mulligan (a typically English man), with a lack of dialogue from his character throughout the film, he still manages to convey a full range of emotions and makes Mulligan a truly believable character. As a Director, he flicks between styles and mediums with ease, effortlessly switching from sharp black and white images used dominantly throughout the film, to rich, warm tones of super 8 home movies. It’s as a writer though where Plester really makes his mark and the real star of this movie is his ingenious use of subtitles.

A crazy tale of boring jobs, deadly insects and masturbation at work makes Sucker - Keir Black an entertaining watch. The story is definitely the biggest attraction of this twisted short, as we come to find out how a jaded car park attendant wakes up with a strangers finger in his mouth.

Beerwatch – Blackened Voodoo (what a name!)

Day 5
There’s only one thing that can spoil a film festival right on my doorstep….WORK! So over the next five days I’m not only going to attempt to squeeze in films after I’ve finished my day job at 5pm, but also a bit of film watching in my lunch break. Taking advantage of my first lunch break of the week, I head down to Filmstock to watch the first half of Statysci/Extras - Michal Kwiecinski. As the film is repeated Thursday lunch time, if I stretch my lunch a little I should be able to see it in two instalments, not ideal viewing, but better than missing it. The first half of the film is very intriguing, as we get to see how a Chinese film crew, shooting a movie in Poland deals with a totally different culture and misjudged impressions of a nation. Definitely looking forward to the next half.

The evening brings us a Filmelab (Film Education for Luton and Bedfordshire) event called Past-Caring, a time travel trilogy made by young people as part of the First Light Movies scheme. Unfortunately, I don’t make it down for the event, which is a shame as I thought it was a good idea and would have liked to support the event.

Beerwatch – None (didn’t know if a beer on my lunch break was a good idea, looking back now I think it would have been!)

Day 6
From the moment I started writing this diary, I decided I was going to be honest and to be honest; I’m not a massive fan of experimental cinema. I like my boundaries and preconceptions to be pushed and challenged, however I also need something to keep my interest from waiving. A lot of the films in the Filmstock experimental session tonight were very well made, but not many managed to hold my attention for their full duration. I know the point of these films is to experiment with the form of film and as art their aim is to provoke a reaction from their audience (whether that reaction is positive or negative), however I felt too many of the films were too random and wandering for my tastes. Canidae –Chapter 1 - Robin Van Rijn [MarBelle: Robin joined us for an interview in EP 026] however, was one film I did enjoy on a visual level, the mix of images combined effectively and along with a hypnotic soundtrack, it managed to entrance me for its 25 minute duration. On the other hand, the last film in the session seemed almost as if it was made to test my patience, over at least a dozen points I thought the film was going to end, however, the false endings kept coming and my interest in the film was totally gone. I rarely walk out of a film before it ends, however with the start of the Endurance session looming I left the last film playing with the lonely street sweeping poet mumbling on about a paedophile puppet.

I knew the Endurance session was going to make for an interesting night and I always believed over the years I had exposed myself to some of the extremer moments of cinema…I was wrong! I arrived at the screening to find it already three quarters full, however I managed to find myself a nice coffin sized space to lay on the floor…did I forget to mention this session involved laying on our backs watching the films projected on the ceiling? After getting myself reasonably comfortable, I tried to get my brain adjusted to my new viewing angle and settled in for some family fun.

Film 1: We Fuck Alone - Gasper Noe – The pounding heartbeat and strobe effects of Noe’s film is so disorientating, it’s almost like someone has slipped something into my drink. It’s a full on assault of the senses and the barrage of masturbatory images makes this a pretty extreme start to the endurance session.

In between the first and second film Justin warns people about texting whilst the films are on. I wonder to myself exactly what these people are texting during the film:

CANT TALK! LAYING ON MY BACK WATCHING A GUY WNK ON THE CEILING! LOL!

Film 2: Cantata in C Major - Ronnie Cramer – It’s nice to see a submitted film in the Endurance session and Cramer’s idea is a good one. Using scenes of screaming from classic movies, he builds a ‘scream opera’ which builds to a crescendo over 11 minutes. Too be honest I was a little disappointed with the film though, I felt the editing could have been snappier and the screaming could have been at more consistent level, instead of the peaks and troughs it hits through the movie. It definitely could have been a more extreme experience, but top marks for the experimentation Mr Cramer.

Film 3: The Right Side of My Brain (Richard Kern) – A black and white piece of experimental/extreme cinema from the eighties, Kern’s film wanders through its female leads internal monologue as we experience her love/hate relationship with sex. Personally, I connected with this film least out of all those on show tonight, I found the structure too lose for my liking and the imagery wasn’t anything I found inspiring either. It did feature Henry Rollins though, which is always a good thing (He’s a liar, yeah he’s a liar!)

Film 4: Haze - Shinya Tsukamoto –We follow the story of a man who wakes confined to a tiny concrete room, he has a life threatening stomach injury and no idea where he is or how to get out. A film of intense horror and paralysing claustrophobia, this is certainly a film that can push its audience to its limits. This is definitely the right film to watch lying in a dark cold room on your back! One particular scene involving a rusted pipe had me shuddering on the floor. A lot of the audience left after Haze, I wasn’t sure if this was a reaction to the film, or just because they were so disorientated from the experience, they just forgot there was still one film left.

Film 5: Aftermath - Nacho Cerda – In regards to subject matter, this is definitely the most extreme film of the bunch. Dealing with the life of a morgue employee and his particular work related perversions, if you’re looking at extreme cinema and how the viewer will react, then a film with necrophilia and dogs eating human organs is a good choice. However, if you look past the subject of this film, it is a well made piece. With a slow pace that’s quite unusual in extreme cinema, it exhibits the work of a filmmaker confident with his subject matter.

Beerwatch – Charles Wells Banana Bread Beer (Banana bread and Beer - two of my favourite things!)

Day 7
For the start of the evening I decided to actually miss the screening of Mojave Phone Booth and head to my local Cineworld. Paris Je T’aime was playing as a one of the Art Wednesday screenings and I’d been wanting to see it for a long time. When I got down there I found out the screening was cancelled, that’ll teach me for abandoning my local film festival. Lesson learnt!

The night of Day 7 featured a double bill of documentaries focusing on some of the unseen lifestyles of modern day China. Beijing Bubbles focused on the struggles of wannabe punk rock musicians, as they try to live out the ultimate dream of becoming the next rock n roll superstars. Although funny in places, I found it hard to really like the film as I didn’t particularly care for the subjects. Their desire to become the next Jim Morrison or Sid Vicious made me sympathetic to them, as I felt it was a dream they would never fulfil. At the same time, I also felt a little angry with them and wanted to give them a shake and shout “go out and find your own identity!” I suppose everyone needs to have dreams though and I think I probably shared a lot of theirs when I was younger, that last comment was probably the old man in me coming out. The film was fairly well made though, had a certain punk ethic to its creation and the cameras were always in the right place at the right time to pick up all the best action. I found the second part of the double bill Women at the Wheel a lot more likeable, not that I didn’t like the first part, I just related and connected to this film more. Throughout this documentary we follow the lives of female taxis drivers in Xian, a medium sized town in China. Unlike in Beijing Bubbles where some of the attempting rock stars chose to live a life of poverty to chase their dream, in Fang Yu’s film these women cab drivers work long hours and at times put their lives at risk, just to make enough money to survive. I found throughout the film, I really cared about the subjects of this documentary; their jobs were not glamorous, at times it was dangerous, yet they all seemed to have come to terms with their situations as they knew it was necessary to support their families. The positive spin they seemed to find in their life and their glass half full approach was something I really found inspiring and this is definitely a film to make you glad for what you have. The film making again was nothing spectacular, however, the filmmakers got us very close to our subjects and it almost felt at times we were living their lives with them. The thing I enjoyed most about the films tonight and the thing I often enjoy about documentaries is that a lot of the time we get a glimpse of a life/world we may never get to see if it wasn’t for these films.

Beerwatch –Sun Lik, Sleeman Honey Brown Lager & Three Hearts Stockholm fine Festival (I was thirsty tonight!)

Day 8
My plan was to watch the second half of Statysci/Extras on my lunch break today. Unfortunately, this never happened! My lunch break slowly dissolved away sorting problems at my computer…as it often does. I guess I may never find out how this little Polish gem of a film finishes. If anyone out there knows, get in touch.

“These are the journals of Kenneth Maya: artist and psychotropic man.”

Absentia is another cinematic treasure the boys at Filmstock have managed to uncover. This science fiction puppetry epic is definitely one of a kind, produced on a budget of £5,000 over a two year period, it really is a marvel to behold. The story follows reclusive artist Kenneth Maya on an inward journey as we are taken to the depths of the human soul and beyond. I was totally stunned by this film, the array of materials used to create the film and the level of detail was amazing and in particular the use of videoed human mouths overlaid on the puppets, worked to great effect. However, this film wasn’t just an aesthetic pleasure for me, the story and dialogue was like a cross between a Chris Morris sketch, an episode of The Mighty Boosh, a David Lynch script, a Pink Floyd album and the film Innerspace on Acid. At times hilarious, often disorientating, always original, it was great to watch a film where the story challenged its viewers so much. If you get a chance to see this film, take it, you may never see anything like it again!

Filmschlock is an event that’s been running at the festival for the last 2 years and is back once again this year due to public demand. The bar area is full of people waiting with great anticipation for a night that celebrates all that is rotten in cinema, as Justin says “if you’re here for anything except Schlock, you’re in the wrong place, this isn’t the award winning films”. The night plays out with great humour and the audience really joins in with the spirit of Filmschlock, people are shouting at the screen, busting ribs with laughter and are generally amazed by the level of cinema on show. Tonight we get to witness R.Kelly in a closet, Hulk Hogan in speedos, Predator Island and The Horrible Doctor Bones, it’s so bad it’s almost good, but not quite. It’s good to see a Film Festival that’s not afraid to have a bit of fun and really a night like this should be inspiring to all the filmmakers out there. If films like this are getting made, there is hope for us all.

Beerwatch –Brok, Zbur (A good Polish double)

Day 9

After a week of watching and writing about films, my eyes and head have started to get tired, so tonight, I choose to watch only one film and save myself for the long weekend ahead. Body/Antibody - Kerry Dye & Jordan Hoffman is the film I chose, an independent feature from USA that focuses on Kip Polyard and his battle to overcome his OCD. The script is razor sharp with lots of twists and turns, however, like with many independent features, the acting lets it down in places. On his own the lead Robert Gomes is very watchable, his obsessive compulsiveness is very believable and his awkwardness and discomfort around other people, is so real it’s almost hard to watch at times. It is when Kip starts a relationship with his new neighbour Celine (Leslie Kendall) that I started to have problems with the film. The initial scenes the two characters share are almost like they could be cut together from two separate movies, the actors appear to be delivering lines to an empty space instead of each other. To me the relationship between the two is totally unbelievable for the majority of the movie, it is only in a kinky sex scene involving some pincers Kip has fashioned for himself that chemistry between the two finally clicks. Along with this, I also had problems with the character of Andy, played by Frank Deal this character was supposed to be the villain of the piece, yet I didn’t find him at all threatening and again couldn’t believe in his character. Apart from the problems I had with some of these characters, the film was still an enjoyable piece and shows what you can achieve with a well written script.

So that’s me done for the day, a quiet one film night, but I’ve got the feeling I’ll be seeing a lot more over the final weekend.

Beerwatch – Tatra (Sticking with the Polish brews…they’re GOOD!))

Day 10
As well as short fiction films, Filmstock also celebrates short documentaries and the early part of day 10 has nine of them on show. The screenings are well attended again and like the other short sessions, the quality is very high, even though not every film hits the mark. For me the stands out films were:

Absolute Zero - Alan Woodruff – An account of the grim and ironic death by freezing of a man trapped inside a refrigerated meat wagon on a train. A documentary with a bit of a narrative twist towards the end makes this an engaging watch.

Evilution - Libbey White –A hypnotizing mix of animation, archival footage and footage of a man who believes the theory of Evolution is totally flawed make this documentary a little one sided, but ultimately very entertaining. It is certainly blessed with its own unique sense of style.

What a Freegan Waste - Craig Rook – An intimate look at the Freegan culture in both the UK and the USA, this documentary provides an informative and compelling insight into a lifestyle many will have never heard of, let alone understand. The ‘characters’ in this documentary are instantly likeable and entertaining, the style flips from almost point of view camera work to animation smoothly and most importantly the films provides us with a message without seeming overtly one sided. [MarBelle: El Vez interviewed Craig on EP 064]

The evening of this penultimate day brings Last stop for Paul, a funny yet touching road movie which follows an unusual trio of backpackers around the world. The most likeable thing about this film, was that instead of pretending they were at certain global locations, like many low budget films might do, all the places shown on the film were the real locations. There was none of this shooting in the desert outside Las Vegas and pretending it was the Sahara, watching this film was almost like visiting the places yourself. Obviously this not only added to the believability of the film, but also provided some great scenery for the camera to focus on. However, not satisfied with making sure all his locations are real, writer, director and star Neil Mandt also ropes in lots of locals to play characters in the film. In Vietnam we get bunny girls in a bar, Thailand we get a machete wielding boat driver and in Jamaica we get a man who explains the phrase ‘Batty Face’. Although some of the acting in the film is a little ropey in places (and I’m not talking about the locals), as a movie it has a lot of charm and is hard not to like. Really this was a good choice for a Saturday night film, lots of laughs, great scenery and nothing too deep for the brain to process.

Beerwatch - Taybeh, Quilmes & Alhambra

Day 11
Last day of Filmstock 2007, here’s hoping they saved the best for last. Filmstock day 11 kicks off far too early for a Sunday, but I drag my arse out of bed and my still half asleep self down to the hat factory for the 11.30 screening of Que Le Viva La Lucha, a documentary focusing on the world of Mexican wrestling. The film is a nice light start entertaining to watch and it’s interesting to see how seriously Mexican’s take their wrestling.

The part of the day I was eagerly awaiting though, was the screening of the Audience Award Winning Shorts, basically the best of the best of the short films screened this year. Every year Filmstock gets it’s audience involved with the short sessions by getting them to vote for their favourite film of every session and as I’d missed a few short sessions this year, I was very excited to see what made it through.

Session 1 Winner: La Desgracia Ilega En Sobres Papel Madera - Andy Feldman - The measure of a good film is often in the second viewing and I enjoyed Andy Feldman’s film equally as much second time round. It’s still funny, still well acted, still well made and the plot still seems strikingly original.

Session 2 Winner: Thirty Five Candles - Stephen Briggs - This slice of black humour sees Shane, a 35 yr old Australian hulk of a man who stills lives at home with his mum, receive a birthday present he’ll never forget. It’s definitely a funny little film, the character of Shane is one designed to be laughed at and laugh we do. I like to see a bit more originality in short films, the character of Shane seems like we have something we’ve seen before, but the film is well made and well acted so I can’t really knock it.

Session 3 Winner: The Vaudevillian - Bryan Nest - A bizarre film looking at how a ventriloquist struggles to copes when he loses his job at a circus, how he adjusts to the outside world and how his unusual relationship with his dummy becomes strained. A tale of morality, Nest’s film is expertly made, the costumes and props are well designed and give a real feeling of the time period the film is set. Again for me, the unusual plot of the films is what makes it so watchable, another original idea, well scripted and well acted. Seems to be a bit of a winning formula!

Session 4 Winner: String - Naomi Wright - An almost silent short, which takes us on the quest of one man, on a journey to find the end of a piece of a string. Such a simple idea, carried out with great drive and a nice twist at the end. I must admit though this film did annoy me! Only the other day I was talking to a fellow filmmaker about an idea for a short I had, an idea where a men is on a relentless journey to find the end of a piece of string. I knew it was such a simply idea someone must have done, but the most annoy thing was Wright’s film was much better than I could have ever imagined mine to be.

Session 5 Winner: The Phonekeeper - Stine Michelsen - definitely has an original plot! Focusing around Valdemar who lives and works in an answering machine, Michelsen’s film wins points for individuality. A quirky idea which translates well to the short film format, this is an enjoyable, yet undemanding film to watch.

Session 6 Winner: New To Laundry - Isa Totah - Almost like an extended scene from a comedians sketch show, Totah’s film was highly amusing and very easy to watch . Focusing on laundry, men’s feeble pick up attempts and male camaraderie this film had something that everyone in the audience could relate to, no matter what gender, race or religion.

Session 7 Winner: Hooded - Adam Randall - A dark comedy from the UK, this was one of a couple of films screened at Filmstock this year, that dealt with the subject of the ‘hooded’ youths that now line the streets of the UK. Randall’s film is well executed and his comic timing is spot on, however with a nod to the western in this tale, it does have a bit of a moral tale, which in my opinion only adds to it’s appeal.

Session 8 Winner: Seeking Wellness Part Two: Daddy’s Time - Daniel Schneidkraut - If there was one short film on display at this years Filmstock, that I’d recommend to up and coming low budget filmmakers to watch, this would be it. The film consists of two shots and a slideshow of old family photographs for it’s whole 24 minute duration, yet it managed to keep me totally engrossed throughout. The acting is superb and even in the voiceover the lead actor manages to portray a wide range of emotions, whilst the children acting in the piece tell us so much without ever uttering a word. Schneidkraut’s film is scarily believable and his basic approach to film making just adds to that believability, it’s a almost like we have a disturbing view into the life of this very dysfunctional family. Whilst speaking to Justin about this film, he brought up a good point, if this is Seeking Wellness Part Two, is there a Seeking Wellness Part One?

Session 9 Winner: Anonymous - Cristian Pozo - A wickedly stylish piece, Pozo’s film just oozed class from both it’s narrative and aesthetic pores. The film reminded me of Barton Fink one minute and Fight Club the next, the editing was relentlessly mesmorising and overall the film was absolutely beautiful to behold.

Session 10 Winner: English Language (with English Subtitles) - Tim Plester - As with La Desgracia Ilega En Sobres Papel Madera, I was really looking forward to my second viewing of this film and just like the aforementioned film it was just as enjoyable second time round. The word quirky must have been invented solely for this film, Plester really exploits the medium of film for all the right laughs and his use of subtitles should win awards for ingenuity.

Session 11 Winner: Soft - Simon Ellis - This bitterly realistic film is another film, like Hooded, that deals with the ‘threat’ of the Hooded youth on the streets of the UK. However, unlike Hooded, this film takes a more un-nerving look at the subject of gang mentality and in particular looks at how it feels when a man is unable to protect his family.

This year Filmstock closes with Wes Anderson’s eagerly anticipated The Darjeeling Limited. It’s a good choice for the festivals final film as Anderson’s sense of flair, originality and creativity perfectly compliments the ethos behind Filmstock. I wouldn’t say it’s the director’s best work (then again it’s up against some stiff competition), but its still an inspiring piece of filmmaking, which stands head and shoulders above many films that try to replicate Anderson’s quirkiness and individuality.

After Wes Anderson’s film draws to a close, we head off back to Neil’s and Justin’s office space in Luton, for an apres festival party, one last moment of film talk, mingling and world beers before we’re done

A tired & emotional looking Neil & Justin at the Filmstock closing party - Thanks to Adam Procter for the photo

Beerwatch - Tuborg, Hite (Not really a great deal of choice left on the last night, but Hite the South Korean beer is especially good! Wish I would have discovered it earlier!)

Ok so that’s it for Filmstock for 2007, my eyes feel strained, my beer belly expanded and my brain is swimming with inspiration, looking forward to next year already.

• After all this, won’t you give me a smile?
• MarBelle 2007 Top Ten
• El Vez 2007 Top Ten
• DN Festival: Filmstock 2007
• DN EP 075: Doljer - Adam Procter

As part of the warm up for the Filmstock Film Festival (which starts today - Thursday 1st November), its originators Neil Fox and Justin Doherty have been running a series of screenings and events under the name of Filmelab. It was at one of these events on a recent Friday night, I had the pleasure of being invited into the life of late great musician Joe Strummer, in Julien Temple’s latest film Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten.

As a friend of the one time Clash front man, filmmaker Julien Temple provides a very personal account of the erratic and unpredictable talent that was Joe Strummer. Through interviews from a wealth of friends and celebrities from the world of music and film (including Johnny Depp, Steve Buscemi, Bono, Matt Dillon and John Cusack to name a few), Temple shows us the lighter and darker side of Strummer. Although this personal touch does add a certain warmth to the film and we almost feel as if we, the viewer, are sitting around the fire joining in this celebration of Joe’s life, I did feel a little like I wasn’t being shown the whole story and perhaps some of Joe’s darker moments were being bypassed a little; saying that at one point in the film, Strummer is described quite aggressively as a “coward”.

Technically, I really felt the way in which Temple constructed his film, almost told us as much about Joe as the people being interviewed. Strummer was a man infamous for not living life to its rules and it’s almost like Temple employed the same approach to his filmmaking. This film strayed away from a lot of the classical rules of filmmaking and by employing an almost punk ethic to its approach, really captured the spirit of not only Strummer and the Clash, but the whole punk movement. In particular, as a bit of an obsessive perfectionist when it comes to filmmaking, I found the shakily shot still images and interviews lit by campfire, particularly inventive. As a musician, Strummer was almost revered, much like John Peel, for the love he showed to a wide variety of world music and this love always shone through in his music. Again Temple almost seems to have borrowed this ethic for his filmmaking, just as Strummer would borrow from Reggae & Rockabilly in his music, this documentary borrows from fiction films and archive footage to tell its story. Temple constructs a scrapbook of moving imagery from the period and in one particular impressive move, uses the story of Animal Farm to relate to Strummer’s life.

I’d say watch this film if you want to be inspired into taking an alternative approach to documentary filmmaking.

I’d say watch the film if you’re a big music fan.

Finally though, I’d say watch this film to enjoy the pure entertainment that was Joe Strummer.

• Filmstock #8
• A Gift for Dickie
• DN EP 075: Doljer - Adam Procter
• DN EP 064: What a Freegan Waste - Craig Rook
• We Dreamed America - Alex Walker

Amidst the two weeks of screenings and events that was The Times BFI 51st London Film Festival sat the calm oasis of the filmmakers’ breakfasts, which along with being a perfect opportunity to load up on coffee and croissants for the day, meant that I got to speak to some of the directors with their films fresh in mind.

It’s rare that cinema takes a step back from the perceived God complex persona of the all mighty surgeon to consider the difficult and weighty decisions these people have to make every day of their careers and often with mere minutes of deliberation. I spoke to Geoffrey Smith about his documentary The English Surgeon which follows the work of neurosurgeon Henry Marsh as he travels to the Ukraine to assist his friend and fellow neurosurgeon Igor Kurilets.

Showlinks
The English Surgeon
Geoffrey Smith
London Film Festival
Nick Cave
Your Life in Their Hands
BBC Storyville
JVC HD251
Pinewood Sound
John Hillcoat
The Proposition

• MarBelle 2007 Top Ten
• DN LFF07: My Kid Could Paint That - Amir Bar-Lev
• DN LFF07: A Walk into the Sea - Esther Robinson
• DN LFF07: Import Export - Ulrich Seidl
• DN LFF07: Far North - Asif Kapadia

Every month the guys at Digital Heaven release a free video podcast called ‘Hot Tips’, which features Apple certified trainer Martin Baker letting us viewers in on all his time saving secrets. Personally, I love the podcasts, they are really well put together, Martin obviously knows what he’s talkng about and I honestly end up using most of the tips in my day to day editing. My only little complaint would be that they don’t do them often enough……..I WANT MORE!!

• The Take-Away Shows - Vincent Moon
• Taxi!!
• DN EP 077: The Take-Away Shows - Vincent Moon

Has anyone else noticed how the majority of Television minutes dedicated to the movies recently seem to be assigned to the all conquering ‘List’? Every week we seem to have a new list of top movie moments, decided by some unknown panel, yet we the movie viewing public rarely get a say in these lists.

Whether it’s the 50 Scariest moments in Film, The 20 most Tear Jerking moments in the movies or the 29 worst Sequels in Cinema History, every week it’s something new and now, finally, someone has decided to give us a say.

The BFI has launched its Listmania competition in conjunction with the publication of Faber and Faber’s Ten Bad Dates with De Niro: A Book of Alternative Movie Lists. This competition finally gives us, the regular film going public, a chance to decide on your very own top ten lists, however weird and wonderful we decide to make them. Whether you want to choose the 10 best CGI moments in film, the 10 Worst Kevin Costner films ever made (I think I wouldn’t know where to stop) or the 10 goriest deaths in movie history. Not only is this competition a chance for you to share your particular likes and dislikes of film, but 10 lucky winners will be invited to present their lists at a special event organized by the BFI as part of the Times BFI 51st London Film Festival. Personally, I’m writing up my list of the top ten Steve Buscemi cameos as we speak.

Update
MarBelle butting in here, so as El-Vez mentioned above, the BFI organised a special event for listmania at the London Film Festival at which I’m currently sitting - yep got to love the combo of a laptop, wireless and an overriding OCD nature for being able to update your site in real time.

Along with book editor Richard T. Kelly a panel comprising Ryan Gilbey (film critic of the New Statesman), novelist Matt Thorne (Eight Minutes Idle, Cherry) and author and film critic Anne Billson (Suckers, Stiff Lips) are kicking about the draw of composing lists so we can agonise over their relative positions as if our lives depend on it. You only have to look at our Films of 2006 posts to see just how much hand wringing goes into it.

So anyway ten people were chosen to present their lists to us and battle it out for the position of the best top ten list…see we even have to make lists about lists.

The list makers & lists are:

• Adam Fergus - We Have All the Time in the World
• Beverly Hetherington - Top Ten Characters Who Knit in Movies (Have to admit, this was my favourite)
• Henrik Hansen - Top Ten Otherwise Wonderful Films Let Down by Naff Endings
• Sally Harlow - Growing Up in 60s/70s in Essex - Films That Left Their Mark on Me…
• Shamini Sriskandarajeh - Top Ten Actors Who Sing in a Film, which is Not a Musical
• Steve Rutherford - Top Ten Movies That Did Not Pass the 10 Minute Test
• Trine Malde - Top Ten Song Performances in Film
• Hope Dickson Leach - On the Other Hand - Top Ten Cinematic Changes of Mind
• Fraser MacDonald - Ten Video I Rented as Pubescent Teen in the 80s
• Nick Cox - Top Ten Great Cowards

• MarBelle 2007 Top Ten
• El Vez 2007 Top Ten
• DN LFF07: The English Surgeon - Geoffrey Smith
• DN LFF07: My Kid Could Paint That - Amir Bar-Lev
• DN LFF07: Import Export - Ulrich Seidl

Ever dreamt of having a world renowned musician compose the score for your latest flick?

For a low/no budget film-maker this dream would usually stay in the realms of fantasy, however, now due to the ever giving Moby, it can become reality.

As a film-maker, one of the hardest tasks I find when creating a movie is trying to discover inspiring royalty free music to compliment the film. In the past when searching for music on the internet, the only decent tracks I have found have come at a financial cost or the free tracks just haven’t been good enough. One way to get around this problem is to get in contact with a composer, who will hopefully produce music for your film just to get a credit on your piece and get some recognition. However, how many of you budding artist out there have dreamt of being able to use the music of a big time music star without having to apply/pay for the use of the track or fear being sued. Well now that dream can become reality, thanks to the generosity of Moby, who is now offering nearly 70 tracks of Moby music to independent and non-profit filmmakers, film students, and anyone in need of free music for their independent, non-profit film, video, or short. Just visit the website, create a log in and check it out.

If only more musicians would be as generous as Mr Moby. Whilst you’re at his site, if you’re a fan of photography it is also worth checking out his photography, some pretty interesting stuff.

• This post is all alone.

I know it’s hard to believe, but Directors Notes has now celebrated its first birthday and to commemorate this milestone, I’ve actually decided to write something (something I’ve been promising to do for a while now)!

It seems like only yesterday MarBelle was giving birth to this little baby web venture and having sleepless nights as it had it’s first teething problems and adjusted to it’s new environment. However, now it’s passed the momentous 1yr mark since the site was launched, everything is ticking along nicely, we’ve reached episode 53 and we are constantly looking at ways to help the site grow and improve.

Since Directors Notes started in 2006, we have spoken to numerous film-makers from not only all around the country, but from all around the world. Personally, I’d like to thank all the filmmakers who took time out to talk to MarBelle and allowed us to show all the amazing films, we’ve been lucky enough to have on the site. Hopefully, all you out there who visit/subscribe to Directors Notes have been inspired by at least one of the film-makers we’ve featured. I know throughout the last 53 episodes I’ve been inspired numerous times:

• Jerome Olivier (Missing Pages) made me want to get into ‘Fotomation’ (it looks so cool)
• Lana Schwarcz (The Upper Hand) made me want to hang out in strip clubs with puppets
• Mark Craig (Talk to Me) made me wish I’d