The 2017 UK Film Festival will take place from 22 – 26 November, once again offering London audiences a unique chance to catch the latest award-winning short films on the big screen. Besides short films, the programme includes an innovative selection of features by established and up and coming directors, as well as cutting edge documentaries, and animation films. Films are screened to the public every evening at four London venues: BFI Stephen Street, Warner Brothers Preview Theatre, the Soho Hotel, and the Close-Up Film Centre. Many screenings will be followed by film-maker Q+A sessions, after which there will also be an opportunity for informal discussion with the film-makers. The 2017 edition will present the BAFTA winning short Home, directed by the British director Daniel Mulloy and starring Jack O'Connell (’71, Skins, This is England). Also included in the short film line-up is
Stand Down, starring Billy Bob Thornton (Fargo, Armageddon, Monster’s Ball). One of the feature film highlights is the London premiere of Steven Berkoff’s tour de force Tell Tale Heart, based on the short story by Edgar Alan Poe. Once again, the Festival is delighted to offer candidates the Edgeware Grand Prix Award – the largest cash prize for a short film in the UK. The 2017 programme is curated by the twice Berlinale winning director Petros Silvestros.
This year the UK Film Festival, in association with the Leeds International Film Festival and Film Bath Festival, is also screening the Lux Film Prize finalists in both Bath and Leeds. The Lux selection includes: Glory by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov (Bulgaria, Greece), Sami Blood by Amanda Kernell (Sweden, Norway, Denmark), King of the Belgians by Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth (Belgium, Netherlands, Bulgaria), and Western by Valeska Grisebach (Germany, Bulgaria, Austria).
FOR THE FULL PROGRAMME, PLEASE GO TO: http://ukfilmfestival.com/festivalprogramme.html
The UK Film Festival was set up in 2011 by a group of film-makers, including writer and producer Murray Woodfield. Its programme has always reflected domestic and international cultural diversity. The Festival presents numerous awards, and this year for the second time it will offer the Edgeware Grand Prix Award, which is the biggest cash prize offered for a Best Short Film in the UK. Other awards include Best International Short, Best British Short, Best Feature Film, Best Documentary, Best Animation Film, Best Music Video and Best Student film. All awards and cash prizes are sponsored by Edgeware. In 2013 an annual short script competition was added to the Festival. In both 2014 and 2015 the winning scripts which resulted in the short films Mike and A Confession respectively, picked up the Crystal Bear Award for Best Short Film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The films were directed by the award-winning film-maker Petros Silvestros, and co-produced by Matt Nelson and Murray Woodfield. Seeing an award-winning team scoop the prize two years in a row was an unprecedented outcome for both the Berlinale, as well as the British film industry in general.
A cura di Katya Marletta
