Feature by Northings
Celtic Film & Television Festival
Celebrating the Celtic film industry
CATRIONA PAUL looks ahead to the 25th Celtic Film and Television Festival in Dundee.
Four days of Scotland’s own Oscars? Complete with Versace, Dior and Armani delights, weepy acceptance speeches and dazzle galore? Well, no promises about the dresses but, with or without the glamour, the 25th Celtic Film & Television Festival is likely to be a darn sight more important in the promotion of Celtic languages and culture than Hollywood.
Blinded
Set up in 1980, the CFTF originated with a desire to celebrate Celtic identity through film, TV and radio achievements. This has been done by searching for the best work from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Brittany and Cornwall and putting them up for a series of awards. The event brings the industry together to celebrate the winners and, just as importantly, plan future projects. About a quarter of entries are in a Celtic language, most are in English and a few are in French.
The event is moved to a new location each year. In the past, South Uist and Benbecula, Skye, Inverness, Glasgow and Fort William have all played host to the festival. Now, it is the turn of Dundee. Despite its East Coast location, which might seem to remove it from Scotland’s Gaelic heartland, Dundee deserves a fair chance given a cracking selection of venues including Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee Rep Theatre and Bonar Hall.
This year’s festival is shaping up nicely with strong competition for each of the sixteen Bronze Torc Awards. Categories include best drama, documentary, current affairs, animation, education, music, journalism and new media. A special award will be made for the best film or television programme wholly or substantially in a Celtic language. The winners are decided by an international panel representing each of the participating countries chaired by journalist and TV presenter, Sheena McDonald.
So what films has the CFTF got which you might have heard of, or might hear of in the future? Well, they’ve secured the Scottish premiere of Blind Flight to kick off proceedings. A film about the kidnapping of Irishman Brian Keenan and Englishman John McCarthy in Lebanon in 1986 starring Ian Hart and Linus Roache, it’s sure to be a powerful start to the festival. Keenan, Hart and director, John Furse, are set to attend and stay for questions afterwards.
In an odd parallel, the CFTF’s gala premiere on Friday night is Blinded, a film funded by Scottish TV, Grampian TV and Scottish Screen which, should with any luck, be quite racey. A Danish backpacker stumbles onto a Borders estate looking for work. His new boss is blind, but has a beautiful wife. The backpacker and the wife fancy each other but “desire becomes dangerous”. (Dark drama from Scotland, who’d have guessed?) If you’d like to see either film, contact the CFTF for the latest on ticket availability.
There are industry meetings on topics including the making of Gunpowder, Treason and Plot, (the two-part BBC drama starring Robert Carlyle), the success of River City, programming for kids, the Celtic comedy gene, the future of public broadcasting and the UK skills strategy for the film industry. On a lighter and more musical note, two events will focus on the Gaelic language – its future and its past.
Willie Ruff, jazz musician and Professor of Music at Yale University is visiting Dundee to share a theory. He believes there is a clear link between Gaelic psalm singing, carried across the Atlantic by Highland Scots, and Gospel music. Prof Ruff, contemporary of Duke Ellington, is a man whose musical instincts you’d trust. And bringing us up to date, the government’s agenda on Gaelic will be discussed – just how well is the new Gaelic Media Service doing?
Away from the competition, the CFTF has organised an impressive and eclectic selection of conferences, talks, debates and networking events. Whilst most of these are flagged up for industry professionals, media students and film-makers, anyone interested in attending can do so (subject to numbers and a fee) by registering with the CFTF through their website.
One free event which students shouldn’t miss is Student Encounters on the opening Wednesday (31 March). It’s a Q + A session with networking thrown in, chaired by Alasdair Smith of Skillset. With Channel 4’s IDEASfactory there, plus loads of other media/creative types around, get your name on the guest list a.s.a.p.
The 25th Celtic Film & Television Festival will take place in Dundee between the 31 March and 3 April. For further details, contact the Celtic Film and Television Festival, 249 West George Street, Glasgow, G2 4QE (0141 302 1737), or check their website).
