Is this plain amateurism or a direct disdain? - Cornwall Film Festival 2011

While Cornwall Film festival seems to excel in promoting itself in an extremely favourable light. It is failing to promote the participants who are the very reason for its existence.

Having finally got my hands on a copy of the 2011 programme, I was horrified to find that my carefully considered film synopsis and quality artworks, dutifully submitted with the official application, had been completely ignored and replaced with extracts from an out of date internet review, accompanied by a screen-cap image from last years web-site.

Despite getting the best screening slot ever, for the feature documentary; ‘The Many Romances with Rosemarie’ in my personal experience of eight years of Cornwall film festival entries. I have been completely let down by the festivals publicity, which as any struggling filmmaker will tell you, is the most important thing after the quality of the film itself.

The film synopsis which was actually printed in the 2011 programme has been entirely gleaned from an article released by Devon & Cornwall film early in 2010. If the person writing my synopsis had bothered to read the article properly, they would have realised that it didn’t refer to the finished film at all (which was completed in June 2011), but to the innovative web-platform HouseboatTV, which I was launching at this time, to accompany my filmmaking journey and to encourage community participation in the film, by screening monthly episodes of the Rosemarie Houseboat residents, as I shot and edited the interviews which would eventually go to make up the whole 1hr and 45min feature length film.

There was however, not a single mention of HouseboatTV in the festival programme, so rather than highlight my novel method of film production, the implication is that the film itself was completed in 2010. There wasn’t even a link to the HouseboatTV web-site; www.houseboat-tv.co.uk where I am currently selling DVDs on-line. There was however a link to the defunct Devon & Cornwall film article. In retrospect, I had thought it a bit strange that I hadn’t received a single order for a DVD, following the Newquay, Lighthouse screening. As usually even the smallest screening would bring with it a handful of sales. Now I know why!

Over the years I have felt repeatedly let down by the Cornwall Film Festival, with films being screened in the wrong aspect ratio, at ridiculous times of day, or clashing with main, highly publicised or popular events. In 2008 my documentary film ‘Let Sleeping Dogs Lie’ was unceremoniously pulled from the festival, by Denzil Monk without so much as a phone-call. Once even having my credits entirely removed, in the screening of my short film; ‘A fruity Affair’, which had been commissioned by an audience vote the previous year at the O’Region ‘Bigger Pitcher’ event. I’ve not wanted to participate in it since, and it’s also interesting to note that in the C.F.F 2011 my screening of The Many Romances with Rosemarie, was scheduled against this very popular event. Nor was I invited to do a Directors Q&A, as I have been at several other screenings, and there was no correspondence at all before, during or after the event.

Despite all this, I have always given Cornwall Film Festival the benefit of the doubt, as it remains the only local show-case for my work as a struggling filmmaker. It has not gone un-noticed by me, that works by other reputable Artists and Filmmakers, such as Andrew Lanyon, Tony Hill, Emlyn Harris, Nick Duffy and Amanda Walsh have also been shamelessly side-lined in my humble opinion.

To conclude, I just wanted to state that I shall continue to enter my films into the Cornwall film festival, but I will no longer remain quite about any misgivings. So if you see less of me in the future, I expect this will be why! I would also be very interested to hear from other filmmakers who have had similar experiences.

George Ellis Photograph collection

Still searching for memories of Rosemarie - I have found some fantastic images of the Truro wartime 'River Patrol', none in the collection of the Rosemarie unfortunately, but these fine images may help me to illustrate the nature of her service work.

The 'Ellis' collection is housed at the Cornwall Centre Redruth, and is a window into the life and work of George Ellis, photographer to the Cornish Guardian Newspaper. It comprises of thousands of negatives, which have been copied onto microfilm for ease of viewing. There are lots of Weddings, christenings, prize ceremonies, Horse shows, agricultural events, but there are also pictures of wartime damage to properties and US Troops in Cornwall.

I particularly like George Ellis's character studies, He really does seem to capture people in a natural and unguarded fashion. Each Image is meticulously recorded in Mr Ellis's hand written ledgers, which were a delight to handle, but I do recommend going there with a specific subject in mind, or the choice will be overwhelming. The Cornwall centre hold the copyright to the entire collection and so It is a direct clearance which is a relief.

I can't help thinking that all this talk of Newspapers 'having had their day' in favour of websites and other faster digital mediums, is just that; talk! In my search for the facts and photographs, during the making of this film; 'The Many Romances with Rosemarie', I have drawn upon the resources of Newspapers time and time again. Not only for the convenience of factual historical documentation, but also for the promotion of my film project; having put out a call the public on a couple of occasions now through the West Briton Newspaper, which has brought back several useful contacts for me whom I otherwise would never have known. I think the local newspaper will always have a place, even if its domain is erroded or encroached upon.