Poetry film festival news: Liberated Words program reveals unprecedented international focus, and more
September and October are the best months for seeing poetry films on the big screen, from the UK to Germany, Argentina, Canada, and Ireland.
The third annual Liberated Words poetry film festival, scheduled for September 13th, 19th and 20th in Bristol, sounds very interesting indeed. The program is described in detail on the front page of their website, which I like — no hunting about. I’m especially impressed by the number of exchanges they’ve initiated with other poetry film festivals from around the world. On the 19th,
Sarah Tremlett, poetry filmmaker and theorist has curated a screening looking at different poetry films forms, including films not only from VideoBardo in Buenos Aires and Visible Verse in Vancouver, but exciting new collaborators Zebra, Oslo and Tarp, Lithuania, Poetry Film Festivals. In conjunction she is hosting a discussion on ‘What exactly are poetry films?’ with: Gabrielė Labanauskaitė, Adele Myers, Martin Sexton, Penny Florence, Marc Neys and Lucy English.
On the following day, one can take a day-long masterclass in poetry filmmaking with Marc Neys, A.K.A. Swoon. And the events the week before, on the 13th, reflect some highly imaginative programming as well. The day’s theme is Memory:
Showcasing Memory competition finalists, commemorating the anniversary of the 1914-18 war, and entries based on Ivor Gurney’s poem The High Hills Have a Bitterness. A very warm welcome to returning best music judges from L.A. –Rich Ferguson (mesmerising spoken word with music poet) and Mark Wilkinson (top music video and feature director), and judges for best editing –last year’s brilliant finalists and this year’s workshop leaders poet Helen Moore and filmmaker Howard Vause. See the premiere of Marc Tiley’s edited version of the extraordinary poem Dart by poet Alice Oswald; workshopped films: the groundbreaking Golden Bird Project made in conjunction with older patients from The Royal United Hospital, Bath, and Art at the Heart, with resident artist Edwina Bridgeman and art from young patients and musician in residence Frankie Simpkins; three stunning films from years 7–10 at St Gregory’s Catholic College based on the arresting poem Mametz Wood by award-winning poet Owen Sheers; and two thought-provoking films from St Brendan’s Sixth Form College, Bristol.
In other news, the aforementioned VideoBardo festival is set for September 8 in Buenos Aires, and Berlin’s ZEBRA Poetry Film Festival will take place on October 16-19, overlapping with Visible Verse — Vancouver, October 18 — and Ó Bhéal/IndieCork on October 12-19. And incidentally, the film competition for Ó Bhéal is still open until the end of September — click the preceding link for details.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Dave Bonta is a poet, editor, and web publisher from the Appalachian mountains of central Pennsylvania.
