Mahdi Jafari
Nov 17 2008
Mahdi Jafari was born in Ardakan in Yazd, Iran in 1982. He went to art school when he was 16 and began making short films four years ago. He has made seven short films since, and his film Father Gave Water was the winner of the best film prize of Tehran 100 Second Film Festival. This is the first international appearance of his latest short film The Sting Of The String.
Watch The Sting of the String and the rest of the DepicT! '08 Shortlist here.
Anna Blandford and Anna Valdez Hanks
Nov 14 2008
Anna Blandford (above, right) and Anna Valdez Hanks (above, left) have been collaborating on short films for the past two years. Graduating from Birmingham University in English, Anna Blandford comes from a background of literature and creative writing. Anna has directed four shorts, a music video and several corporate documentaries to date. Anna Valdez Hanks works as a focus puller and more recently camera operator on film and television, whilst following her passion of cinematography on short films when she is not working. Their collaborative shorts to date have been shown on Channel 4, Cannes Festival and Soho Rushes Festival. Supersonic won the Telegraph Ford Mondeo Critics Choice Award and was shown nationwide at Playhouse Cinemas.
Together they wrote and directed Looking for Marilyn which was produced by the inimitable Michael Berliner, and stars Marilyn Monroe lookalike Pauline Bailey.
Watch Looking for Marilyn and the rest of the DepicT! '08 Shortlist here.
Merlin Crossingham
Nov 13 2008
Merlin Crossingham (below, left) animated and directed Crained, while Will Becher (below, right) wrote it.
Merlin is a rock climbing dad of two with an eye for performance. Will is a filmmaking dad of one with an eye for comedy. They met with one thing in mind – to make a film with whatever materials were available, with no re-shoots and all in the space of one week. Crained was the result… This is as close to guerrilla film-making as animation gets.
Watch Crained and the rest of the DepicT! '08 Shortlist here.
George Sander-Jackson
Nov 06 2008
Bristol-born George Sander-Jackson recently graduated from the University of the West of England with a degree in Illustration and is currently working on placement with award-winning Bedminster-based animation company Arthur Cox. He has also recently taken on a job as court artist for BBC Points West working in Bristol Crown Court and is regularly commissioned to provide illustrative work for national publications including Management Today.
George’s work draws on his keen interest in current affairs, reportage journalism and a passion for literature. Working through drawing, monoprint and digital collage, he creates imagery with a strong sense of mood and atmosphere.
An animated documentary created whilst he was studying for his degree, No-one is Illegal is based on a play about personal experiences of the asylum system. This was screened as part of the Asylum Monologues at the Wickham Theater in February, at Survival International’s Cinema Space on Queens Square as part of Refugee Week 2008 and was also included on the Fourdocs 3MinuteWonder website. The animation secured a Special Commendation at Animated Exeter’s Best of the West Student Film Awards 2008 and was selected for Freshest Shorts on the Web, Guardian Unlimited Cyber Cinema.
Actors for Human Rights scripted and produced the live performance from which the narrative of No-one is Illegal is based.
Watch No-one is Illegal and the rest of the DepicT! '08 Shortlist here.
DepicT! '08 Showcase
Nov 05 2008
DepicT! fans are invited to join us for the big screen premiere of the 2008 shortlist during Encounters Short Film Festival at Watershed Media Centre on Sat 22 Nov at 1515hrs. The DepicT! Showcase is your chance to see the films in a cinema setting, to meet the talent behind them and to find out more about the competition.
The event will be hosted by long-time friend of DepicT!, BAFTA-winning filmmaker Damien O’Donnell and, in addition to this year’s shortlist and Q&As with the filmmakers, will feature a focus on Joseph Pierce (shortlisted for DepicT! ’06 and ’07) whose excellent film Stand Up is screening in multiple Encounters programmes. Joseph has recently graduated from the NFTS and was named one of Screen International’s 2008 UK Stars of Tomorrow.
After the screening, join us for an informal reception in the Delegate Lounge for a free drink courtesy of Lindeboom and an opportunity to chat with the shortlisted filmmakers and the DepicT! team. The winners of the three DepicT! '08 prizes – the main award of £2000, the NFTS Special Mention award of a short course at the National Film and Television School, both chosen by our industry judging panel which this year includes Nic Powel and Simon Relph,and the Shooting People Audience Award – will be announced later that evening at the Encounters Awards Ceremony
Tickets are £6.00 full/£4.50 concessions and can be booked online here or by calling Watershed’s Box Office on +44 (0)117 927 5100
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