From September 17 -27, Cambridge will once again host the annual Cambridge Film Festival and this year the convergence of industry professionals, cinephiles and general lovers of the seventh art will be treated to an eclectic wealth of movies from all over the world.
Partially funded by Screen East and The National Lottery, this year’s event promises to be something more than just the hosting of approximately 200 international features, shorts and documentaries at the Cambridge Picturehouse and various other cinemas in and around the city. The festival is also planning a unique outdoor screening experience that involves a riverside viewing by punt of a series of shorts and documentaries. It is hoped that this evening experience will quintessentially typify Cambridge as a city of natural beauty and academia.
Other special events showcasing the best in independent cinema from the silents to the present day include sections attributing to German Cinema Today (premiering films that demonstrate the extraordinary diversity of contemporary German cinema), Border Crossings (celebrating the power of the moving image to take the viewer on a journey across boundaries), The Spying Game (exploring the fascination of British cinema and TV with the world of espionage), a section devoted to Mike and George Kuchar, (featuring a cornucopia of rarely seen shorts made by the underground filmmaking brothers), a tribute to the late cinematographer Jack Cardiff, a focus on the recent history of Palestinian film and finally the UK premiere of the unique five-screen cinematic installation, Identity of the Soul.
The festival is also playing host to many filmmakers, cast and crew members who will be giving workshops, interviews and Q&As during the 10 day festivities. This year’s line-up will include: Michael Palin, Mark Kermode, Dominic Murphy, Robert Webb, David Mitchell, Mat Whitecross (The Shock Doctrine), Rémi Bezançon and silent pianist Neil Brand who will be performing as part of the Magdalene Street outdoor screenings.
As proud festival programmer Tony Jones summed it up: “This year we are continuing the great Cambridge Film Festival tradition of screening films both in and out of the cinema and literally taking film out onto the streets of the city. We have events planned in venues as diverse as Ely Cathedral and Grantchester Meadows, more riverside screenings with audiences invited to watch films from the comfort of a punt on the River Cam, and a free outdoor silent cinema event in the historic city centre, where we’ll be blocking off the road to traffic.
“Technically it’s a big challenge for our dedicated team, but we all agree that the enthusiastic feedback we receive from our loyal and adventurous audiences make it all worthwhile, so we’re looking forward to another diverse and energetic festival.”
