Anime, cult classics and award-winning documentaries are all on offer when the Stratford Big Picture Festival at the Bear Pit Festival over this weekend from tonight
MOVE over Cannes, there’s a new film town putting on the glitz…
OK, so the The Stratford Big Picture Festival may not have the likes of Spielberg or Scorsese cruising down the Avon, but it does have bags of homegrown talent and some unusual screenings on offer.Following on from its successful outing last year, it takes place from 29th August to 1st September. The festival will be based at The Bear Pit Theatre every day with additional events taking place at Holy Trinity Parish Centre, Stratford Youth Hub as well as several fringe eventsRun by Live & Local, it features short films from local filmmakers as well as international and independent feature films. This year's theme is 'Beyond the Frame: Legacy on Screen' so expect an exciting mix of empowering documentaries, inspiring new writing and cult classics. With financial support from the Stratford Town Trust, the festival operates on a pay-what-you-can basis so there is no financial barrier to attend.Brian Harley, Live & Local’s audience engagement officer said: “From Metropolis to Mary Poppins we want to get a conversation going about what legacy in cinema means, what it is and what it can be. From legendary silent classics that defined cinematic techniques through to new environmental documentaries that carry important, enduring messages, legacy can be anything and a film’s legacy can reach beyond the confines of the screen.”
Silent film with live music
One of the highlights is undoubtedly a special presentation of silent film classic Metropolis (1927) with live music accompaniment performed by leading silent film pianist Jonny Best.
His music for Metropolis evokes the nostalgic traditions of silent cinema music whilst also capturing the awesome spectacle and bracing drama of this seminal masterwork.Jonny says: “I’m looking forward to visiting Stratford and performing a score for a remarkable film. I’m an improvising silent film pianist, which means that I create a more-or-less spontaneous score for each film I play, watching it along with the audience and inventing music in real time. “I’ve played Metropolis many times now and it’s a rollercoaster for the pianist – there’s so much in the film, so much drama, so many emotions and moods. Every score I perform is unique and unrepeatable.”A specialist in improvised silent film accompaniment, Jonny has performed at BFI Southbank, around the UK, and at international festivals. He adds: “The fusion of live music and silent cinema is a potent experience. Like opera, the drama is lifted onto a new level, and the experience can be quite intensely immersive. “Ultimately, that’s what Metropolis offers modern audiences – the opportunity to lose yourself within a brilliantly created fantasy world and an epic story. It’s an overwhelming film – you just give in to it and go for the ride.”
Homegrown talent and more
Double BAFTA winner Michael B Clifford, BAFTA nominated director Carol Morley and record-breaking filmmaker Ben Cook will all appear at the festival for Q&A screenings.
Michael, who lives in Stratford resident, will participate in a Q&A following a special hometown screening of his new film Chasing the Sun (2024), an inspiring documentary about endurance cycling based on the popular Chase the Sun cycling challenge.He says: “The team and I are delighted that Chasing the Sun has been chosen to close the Big Picture Film Festival. The film has been all over the UK but it has yet to play in my home town. The programme looks great. “I'm very much looking forward to attending and I hope this will be the start of a great relationship with Live & Local, who truly connect with audiences and filmmakers across the region.”The festival also welcomes Coventry-based director Ben Cook, whose record-breaking environmental documentary Atuel (2022) will open the festival in what will be the film’s UK festival premiere. Atuel tells the fascinating story of the Atuel River, the longest river in Mendoza, Argentina. The film sets out to explore the Atuel’s relationship with the communities it flows through and raises awareness of the environmental and political threats to the river, the farming oases that it supports and the wider issue of water scarcity and habitat worldwide. Earlier this year, the documentary was projected on to the Valle Grande dam in San Rafael, Mendoza, to more than 2,000 people creating a new world record for the largest projection of a feature film at a whopping 196ft x 108ft.Live & Local’s Audience engagement officer Brian adds: “Since it began, the festival has been committed to platforming local talent in its main programme and its very popular short film competition as well showcasing work that puts the Midlands on screen.”This year, the festival also welcomes BAFTA nominated filmmaker Carol Morley who will appear in a Q&A for a special screening of her acclaimed film Typist Artist Pirate King (2022), a fictionalised portrait of artist, Audrey Amiss, starring BAFTA winner Monica Dolan and Emmy winner Kelly McDonald. This tragicomic film is a dark and funny exploration of the blossoming friendship between Amiss and her psychiatric nurse and is filled with adventure, humour and compassion.Carol says: “During my Wellcome Screenwriting Fellowship award year I became obsessed by Audrey Amiss’s uncatalogued archive of paintings, sketches, scrapbooks and diaries. “I vowed to make a film about her that would pay homage to her unique art and to her life. I finally arrived at the idea of a road movie, of putting Audrey’s life in motion: a fictional journey, but an authentic one, woven from Audrey’s own preoccupations and life experiences. “Audrey often likened herself to Don Quixote and so in lieu of his companion Sancho Panza, I created Sandra Panza, a composite of all the community psychiatric nurses Audrey wrote about.”The film’s unusual title comes from a quirk in how Amiss identified her occupation.Morley adds: “Audrey Amiss described her occupation in her passport as ‘Typist Artist Pirate King’. It seemed the absolutely appropriate title for the film.”
A collaborative festival
Stratford-based organisations have been invited to host screenings as part of the festival including Stratford Youth Collective, who will host a screening of Oscar-winning animated feature The Boy and the Heron (2023) in addition to a selection of short films specially curated by Film Hub Midlands from BFI NETWORK-supported short films, all proudly Midlands-made alongside some of their own animations made by local young people.
Meanwhile, Welcome Here, a Stratford based charity which helps refugees to rebuild their lives and achieve their full potential in safety and dignity, will present a screening of The Old Oak (2023), directed by another Warwickshire-born director, the legendary Ken Loach.
Animation
Other highlights are Son of the White Mare (1981), considered the ‘Holy Mountain’ of animated films, a Hungarian animated fantasy adventure directed by Oscar-nominated Marcell Jankovics. Using mesmerising hand drawn animation, it tells the Hungarian folk tale of Fehérlófia (Son of the White Mare), born to a horse goddess, who embarks on a rescue mission to the Underworld.
Live & Local’s Brian comments: “This film remains something of a rare, remastered gem and we’re delighted to showcase this mighty masterwork from a 4K restoration at this year’s festival. Not to be missed!”
Made in the Midlands
Fans of vintage cinema may also want to look out for the festival’s screening of Shropshire set, Technicolour classic, Gone to Earth (1950), a bracing neo-romantic tale about folklore and desire by cinema legends Powell and Pressburger.
A new behind-the-scenes documentary from Flatpack called Echoes of the Soil: The Unsung Stars of Gone to Earth (2023) about the time Hollywood came to the Midlands, accompanies this screening, which will be introduced by Flatpack festival director, Ian Francis, who is also originally from Much Wenlock where the film was partially shot.He says: “When Hollywood arrived in Wenlock in late July 1949, the impact was seismic. As well as appearing in the opening scenes, the town would also be basecamp for the film shoot with busloads of locals being shipped off to other locations across the county. “At the time the population was pretty much what it is now, just shy of 2000 people, and whether old or young the majority of them were involved in Gone to Earth one way or another. “The film has been woven into local folklore ever since!”The work of Powell and Pressburger has been back in the spotlight recently when last year, the British Film Institute launched the Cinema Unbound season, which celebrated the work of the legendary filmmaking duo, otherwise known as the Archers.
Rural Life
Rounding off a trio of environmental documentaries is Six Inches of Soil (2024) which tells the inspiring story of young British farmers standing up against the industrial food system and transforming the way they produce food – to heal the soil, our health and provide for local communities.
Chris Davis, engagement manager at Live & Local says: “We’ve been working with rural communities for over 30 years through our rural touring scheme and other projects and so we feel these environmental films will strike a chord with the communities in our network and everyone who cares about climate action.”
Bad Movie Night
It’s not all high art or worthy subjects though, sometimes a film is adored just for its badness – a case of so bad it’s good. Festival organisers said they have thought about the legacy theme but also wanted to have a little fun with it too.
Brian explains: “Even a film’s failure can be its legacy which is why we’ve partnered with Trash Film Club for a live commentary screening of cult cinematic calamity Miami Connection (1987).”Miami Connection is considered one of the worst movies ever made and yet has become an enjoyable cult classic amongst film fans. Its cheesy plot sees a multi-national martial arts rock band called Dragon Sound decide to take on Florida’s villainous motorcycle ninjas.David Baldwin from Trash Film Club says: “Miami Connection is a true wonder of bad cinema and we’re very excited to bring it to Stratford this summer! It’s what Shakespeare would have wanted!”
But tickets online here
