Doc/Fest Blog
Time-defying acts of Doc/Fest film-watching - Lily Phillips
By Hussain Currimbhoy 14 June, 2012
So Sheffield Doc/Fest kicked off yesterday, and it did so in style! I feel incredibly grateful to be a part of it all and to see visitors come from all over the world, allowing people the chance to see all the amazing documentaries, attend sessions and to see and even interview people with all different media backgrounds and interests.
The atmosphere throughout the day was amazing, resembling a buzzing musical festival as people mingled, swapped business cards and generally enjoyed all the films and sessions they attended. The first film for me was the fantastic feature length documentary called MARK LOMBARDI – DEATH-DEFYING ACTS OF ART AND CONSPIRACY, directed by Mareike Wegener, with both new and old footage creating an interesting insight into the work of Mark Lombardi and his life.
Following this was the UK premier of 'Call Me Kuchu' directed by Malika Zouhali-Worrall and Katherine Fairfax Wright, a film that takes you on a huge emotional ride as you experience its main characters lives and how they deal with being a part of the LGBT society in Uganda. Malika attended a Q&A session after the film and was happy to answer all the questions the audience fired at her. The highlight for me however was Penny Woolcock's FROM THE SEA TO THE LAND BEYOND, accompanied by British Sea Power's live music. This stunningly beautiful film, consisting of mainly archive footage, follows our British coastline over the decades with incredible scenes of old Blackpool town, the RNLA, heatwaves in the UK and species that have homed our coast for many years.
A jam packed day of films, talks and sessions have started the festival brilliantly and I can only look forward to the next few days of it all – there is a lot more to come!
[Lily Phillips is sitting on this year’s Youth Jury.]