Shetland Arts will take a UK-wide part in the London 2012 Festival that celebrates the London 2012 Olympic Games. Shetland Arts was invited to submit a proposal relating to Screenplay, our annual film festival, and came up with ‘A Hansel of Film – Shetland to Southampton and Back’, a relay of screenings of short films made by the public in every part of the UK, kicked off in Shetland on 10^th June by the arrival of the Olympic Torch in the isles as it reaches its UK most northerly point. The various programmes of films will be relayed between participating venues by ‘runners’, that is, creative and energetic individuals who will employ whatever means of transport they can devise to get the right films to the right venue on time. This will culminate in a marathon screening of over 120 short films at Screenplay 2012 between 4^th and 9^th September.

The project will take films made by Shetlanders and others to over twenty venues across the UK and will form a celebration of ‘home made’ short films similar to that which takes place annually at the Screenplay film festival. Head of Development Kathy Hubbard said “When we sat down and thought about what made Screenplay special, we all agreed that it was the evening of films made by local people and those connected with the isles.  The atmosphere is always really supportive, it’s tremendous to see the creativity of people of all ages – but most of all it’s fun. And it was that spirit which we wanted to offer as a hansel to other regions and nations of the UK during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and to all those who will be taking part in the project.”

Acclaimed film critics Mark Kermode and Linda Ruth Williams, who are the curators of Screenplay, will be very active in promoting the project across the country. They will be greeting the ‘runner’ at The Harbour Lights Cinema in Southampton at the project’s half-way point, but will also be visiting other participating venues in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.  Said Mark and Linda, “We are delighted to be launching this exciting, nationally inclusive film relay, which will encompass all regions and nations of the UK and will spread the spirit of the London  2012 Festival from Shetland in the north to Southampton in the south and back again, taking in many points east and west along the way. We are looking forward to partnering up with cinemas and film-makers across the UK who are as enthusiastic as we are about people making their own films and taking movies on the road.”

Director of Shetland Arts, Gwilym Gibbons said: “Shetland Arts is thrilled to be taking an active part in the London 2012 Festival. It is a tribute to the creativity of our isles that Shetland has a role in delivering a UK-wide film project of this nature. It also comes at a very exciting time for us in the opening year of Mareel, Shetland’s new £12.2m music, cinema and creative industries centre. We will be inviting representatives from each of the participating regions and nations to come and join us back in Shetland for Screenplay 2012, making it a truly celebratory event.”

Ruth Mackenzie, Director of Culture at London 2012 said: “Thanks to Shetland Arts and all our cultural stars, in the summer of 2012 the London 2012 Festival will showcase our world leading cultural institutions, and demonstrate how dedicated we are at creating and celebrating world class talent.”

A ‘hansel’ is a Shetland dialect word meaning a gift that marks an event such as the launch of a new boat, the birth of a child or the creation of a new enterprise.  Mr Gibbons said: “‘A Hansel of Film’ will celebrate the special differences between our regions and nations, capturing stories through the diverse languages and dialects, landscapes and seascapes of the British Isles. The films that we will screen will be born out of the very different experiences we all have, and heavily influenced by the power of the places in which we all live.”

Hansel definition: ‘a gift to commemorate an inaugural occasion, the launching of a new boat, the birth of a child, a new home, new enterprise.’  John J Graham – The Shetland Dictionary.

About the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival: The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is the largest cultural celebration in the history of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Movements.  Spread over four years, it is designed to give everyone in the UK a chance to be part of London 2012 and inspire creativity across all forms of culture, especially among young people.

The culmination of the Cultural Olympiad will be the London 2012 Festival, bringing leading artists from all over the world together from 21 June 2012 in this UK-wide festival – a chance for everyone to celebrate London 2012 through dance, music, theatre, the visual arts, fashion, film and digital innovation.

Principal funders of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival are Arts Council England, Legacy Trust UK and the Olympic Lottery Distributor.  BP and BT are Premier Partners of the Cultural Olympiad and the London 2012 Festival.

Visit the project’s official website: http://hansel2012.org

For more details visit: www.london2012.com/festival

For press enquiries contact Lisa Ward, Marketing Officer: lisa.ward@shetlandarts.org or 01595 743 742

For project enquiries contact Kathy Hubbard, Head of Development: kathy.hubbard@shetlandarts.org or 01595 743 843

The Discovery International Film Festival for Young People will visit Shetland with two public screenings at the beginning of November, thanks to a partnership between Shetland Film Club and Shetland Arts. Hailed by Creative Scotland as Scotland’s leading youth film festival, Discovery Film Festival is thriving in its 8th year. Based at Dundee Contemporary Arts, and touring to 18 partner venues throughout Scotland, the festival screens films from all over the world which have been specially programmed for young audiences. The Shetland screenings are supported by grant aid from the Shetland Arts Fund.

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Louder Than A Bomb is a film about passion, competition, teamwork, and trust. It’s about the joy of being young, and the pain of growing up. It’s about speaking out, making noise, and finding your voice.  It also just happens to be about poetry. Every year, more than six hundred teenagers from over sixty Chicago area schools gather for the world’s largest youth poetry slam, a competition known as “Louder Than a Bomb”.

Founded in 2001, “Louder Than a Bomb” is the only event of its kind in the US: a youth poetry slam built from the beginning around teams. Rather than emphasize individual poets and performances, the structure of “Louder Than a Bomb” demands that young people work collaboratively with their peers, presenting, critiquing, and rewriting their pieces. To succeed, teams have to create an environment of mutual trust and support. For many kids, being a part of such an environment—in an academic context—is life-changing.

Louder Than A Bomb chronicles the stereotype-confounding stories of four teams as they prepare for and compete in the 2008 event. Hopeful and heartbreaking, the film captures the tempestuous lives of these young people, exploring the ways writing shapes their world, and vice versa. The film carries a 12A certificate and will be screened at the Shetland Museum and Archive on Friday 4th November at 7.30pm

For younger children there are Shorts for Wee Ones 2011, a brand new collection of vibrant international short animated films. Last year’s screening was very popular with young audience members and this one looks to be just as inspiring.  Shorts for Wee Ones is a 50 minute programme of short films, all of which are non-dialogue or in English, so even though these stories come from as far afield as India and Brazil, they are perfect for even the youngest visitors.

Fun and creative shorts include a dragon made from spinach; a mouse with big ears looking for his perfect owner; a little girl who’s sending her wishes to the stars; a storyteller who’s forgotten the story and Fluffy McCloud, the rain cloud who just wants to be liked.

This collection of colourful stories is a treat for children age 3+ and a fantastic introduction to the cinema experience. The screening will take place at the Shetland Museum and Archives on Saturday 5^th November at 2.00pm.

Tickets for both events are available from Shetland Box Office at Islesburgh, 01595 745555 or on-line at www.shetlandboxoffice.org or on the door, subject to availability.

One of Britain’s most versatile and popular actors, Jim Broadbent, is also making a very welcome appearance at Britain’s most northerly film festival. Jim has appeared in an impressive list of award-winning films and box office hits, including, “Bridget Jones’ Diary”, “Moulin Rouge”, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows”, “The Lion the Witch and The Wardrobe” and “The Damned United”. The festival will feature screenings of “Topsy-Turvy”, and “Longford” on Saturday 3^rd September, with Jim holding question and answer sessions after both screenings.

Amongst the screenings of films for young people is “Hans Christian Andersen” starring the incomparable Danny Kaye and preceded by a quick sing-along practise session with Mark Kermode of the “Ugly Duckling” song.

Other children’s events include the latest “Winnie The Pooh” and two special programmes of short films put together by the London International Animation Festival.

The work of local filmmakers will be showcased in “Home Made in Shetland” on Thursday 1 September. As well as the ten submissions shown at this event there will be continuous screenings of locally made film at the Shetland Museum and Archive auditorium during the weekend.

Independent film making is celebrated by screenings of “Chico and Rita” (one of Mark Kermode’s top ten films of last year), “Life, Above All” (winner of the Francois Chalais Prize at Cannes), and Gareth Edwards’ impressive debut feature, “Monsters”.

Making a return to the festival with “The Space Between”, the Edinburgh-based film he wrote and directed, is Tim Barrow who previously produced “The Inheritance”, an award winning Scottish road movie which was screened at Screenplay 2009.

Screenplay 2011 – Shetland’s Film Festival invites you to take part in the Shetland Film Critic of the Year Competition by writing a film review and sending it to us.  You must be a Shetlander by birth or residency, (including those currently in higher education).

 We ask that you choose any of the films that are due to be screened at The Garrison Theatre from now until 21st August (see local press and other media for details).

 There are two classes of entry:    a) 12 to 16 yrs        b) over 17 yrs  

For 12 – 16 years entrants, the minimum word limit is 250 words and the maximum word limit is 400 words (excluding the film title).

 For the over 17s, the minimum word limit is 500 and the maximum is 800 (excluding the film title).

 It would be best if you could type your review, but you will not be penalised for writing it by hand (please make sure we can read it!).  Please ensure that your name and contact details are submitted on a separate page and do not appear anywhere in the review. This is to ensure fairness in the judging process.

 You can submit more than one entry, but please make sure they are for different films.

 The competition will be judged by internationally acclaimed film critics Mark Kermode and Linda Ruth Williams, and the awards will be made at the Screenplay 2011 Film Festival at the Garrison Theatre on Sunday 4^th September at a time to be advertised.

 The prize for the 12 – 16 years entrants is £50, with £25 to the runner-up.

 The prize for the 17yrs and over is £100, with £50 to the runner up (well, we are asking them to do twice the amount of work……..).

 You can approach your subject in a variety of ways, but what we are looking for is more than a simple description of what happened in the film. We don’t want to dictate what you include in your review (or there would be no point in having a competition) but here are a few things you might want to think about:

 How did this film affect you?  What might others think about it – to which audiences would this film appeal?  Was it convincing – and does that matter?  What did you think about the acting or the dialogue?  Did the soundtrack help or hinder the experience of watching the film?  What message – if any – did you think the director was trying to get across? Was the film worth watching? Why? Why not?

 Note – these are not requirements in your reviews, they are simply here to get you starting to think about the film you have seen.  What we really want is to get a sense of your interest in and passion for films on the Big Screen, and we’ll be looking for a sense of that in your reviews.

 Please send your reviews to Kathy Hubbard at Shetland Arts, The Toll Clock Centre, 26 North Rd, Lerwick, ZE1 0DE or e-mail them to her at kathy.hubbard@shetlandarts.org

 The deadline for submissions is 22nd August 2011.

 We look forward to reading your reviews!

‘Secret Shetland’ can be seen at 9.00 am tomorrow (Wed) morning at www.fiveminutetheatre.com

Big Oil. Small Village

On 29th June, 2005, five men from the township of Rossport, Co. Mayo, were imprisoned for 94 days for defying a court injunction allowing Shell Oil workers to enter their land to lay a high pressure, raw gas pipeline close to their homes. It was their contention that the Irish state had subverted the constitutional rights of its citizens in order to facilitate Shell to ‘grab’ tracts of farmland against the wishes of the landowners. In a land where the memory of British landlords survives in the psyche, Shell’s attempt to force through the pipe evoked huge emotion. The community reacted against what they saw as an aggressive ‘invasion’ from outside by blockading Shell’s multi-billion euro refinery and pipeline, bringing the project to a complete halt. The saga proved to be a public relations disaster for Shell around the world.

Within a year the Irish government sent a force of over 200 police to this tiny community to break the blockade and facilitate the resumption of work on the project. In an area which previously had only one policeman, this forced removal of local people from the gates of the refinery set in train a cycle of conflict which goes on to this day.

The Pipe follows three members of this small community from a quiet rural life to the arrival of Shell into their community, and the fear and anxiety which the impending project brings. Not only are they flung into a tumultuous struggle with Shell and the state, but they are also forced to battle with elements within their own campaign who seek to divide and control, as their community is torn apart by the stresses of choosing to support or oppose the oil company. Yet, despite the seriousness of the events surrounding them, their resilience and humanity never wanes, and even in their darkest moments their wit and humour has an uncanny ability to counter the despair.

The film carries a ‘15’ certificate and tickets are available from Shetland Box Office, online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org , or by telephone on 01595 745555. Alternatively tickets can be bought in person at Shetland Box Office at Islesburgh Community Centre, online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org, by telephone on 01595 745555, or on the door on Saturday at the Museum.

Power of Place Final Flings

Throughout 2010 Power of Place hosted: lectures, workshops in youth clubs, themed architectural articles in Shetland Life, an international architectural conference, an architecture film festival, and held Architects’ Doors Open Days. There are now opportunities during the next three Saturdays in March to come along to the Power of Place Final Fling events to find out more about what happened during the Power of Place project last year, to celebrate some of those activities, and to air your views about Shetland’s buildings and public spaces with such questions as:

‘What should Shetland houses be like in the future?’ ‘How should we make use of our derelict stone buildings?’

And maybe more controversial questions, such as:

‘What do you think of architects?’ and ‘Should everything be centralised in Lerwick?’

As well as Family Workshops creating a 3D map of Shetland with people’s favourite buildings, Performances, Exhibitions, Films, and Teas and Coffees, the Final Fling events will be opportunities to meet with local Architects. Local Development Plan Officers will also be on hand to discuss people’s future development proposals.

Everyone of all ages is welcome to drop in between 11am and 2pm on Saturdays 5th March at the Shetland Museum, 12th March at Sandwick Carnegie Hall and 19th March at Mid Yell Hall. Elements of Power of Place have been funded by Shetland Arts, Shetland Islands Council, Architecture + Design Scotland, and the Robertson Trust.

Take One Action Film Festival

Take One Action’s screenings are followed by audience discussion with local enthusiasts on subjects ranging from climate change to the Middle East conflict, crucially touching on what ordinary Shetlanders can do to make a difference.

In support of Take One Action, Shetland Film Club and Shetland Arts will host a screening Budrus at the Shetland Museum and Archives on Friday 4th March at 7.30pm, and No Impact Man on Saturday 5th March at 7.30pm.

Described by the New York Times as “the must-see documentary of the year”, Budrus describes the work of Ayed Morrar, an unlikely community organiser, who unites Palestinians and Israelis in an unarmed struggle to save the olive groves of his village from an Israeli security, or separation, fence. Victory seems improbable until his 15-year-old daughter, Iltezam, launches a women’s contingent that quickly moves to the front lines. In the process, they unleash an inspiring yet little-known movement in the West Bank that is still gaining ground today. The film carries a PG certificate.

No Impact Man (cert 15), described by the Los Angeles Times as “terrifically entertaining, compelling and extremely funny”, invites you to imagine going a year without toilet paper, TV, coffee, a refrigerator and many other creature comforts we take for granted. In 2008, guilty Manhattanite Colin Beavan, wife Michele, their 2-year-old daughter and their dog embark on a year-long crusade to drastically reduce their carbon foot and paw prints. Hilarity, compromise and hard lessons ensue…But which way do the real solutions lie?

Festival patrons Ken Loach and Glasgow-based screenwriter Paul Laverty said “”These are fantastic films, and Take One Action’s focus on empowering local audiences to engage with global and environmental issues through them is unique in the UK.”

Festival director, Simon Bateson, who will be in attendance, said “Films really can change the world, but only when audiences share ideas for action together and decide to become part of the story. That’s what Take One Action is all about.”

So if you want a different kind of cinema this March, Shetland is the place to be.

Shetland Film Club gratefully acknowledges the support of Shetland Arts, the Shetland Arts Fund and UNISON (Local Government) for this project. Tickets, which cost £6 and £4 (concessions), are available on the door and from Shetland Box Office, Islesburgh Community Centre, 01595 745555 or online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org.

Notes to editors

1. Tickets will be available at www.shetlandboxoffice.org or on the door. For more information on the programme, visit www.takeoneaction.org.uk or www.facebook.com/takeoneaction

2. The tour is supported by Regional Screen Scotland, The Co-operative, and ethical film distributor Dogwoof. Locally the tour is supported by Shetland Film Club and Shetland Arts.
3. There are a number of free tickets available to Co-operative Members who email their preferred film, venue and membership number to info@takeoneaction.org.uk

Stu Brown's Raymond Scott Project

A unique jazz and cartoon film project will take place in Shetalnd at the beginning of March. The Stu Brown Sextet from Glasgow have exclusive rights to play the music of Ray Simpson. Now, Cole Porter you may have heard of, Rogers and Hart you may have heard of, but Ray Simpson! Well, you may not have heard his name, but for sure you have heard his music, for his eyeball-popping, hyper-animated jazz has been used in cartoon films from Bugs Bunny to The Simpsons for decades.

Now young people in Shetland get the chance to make a cartoon film and have the frantic Looney Tunes music played as live accompaniment at a special concert by the Stu Brown Sextet.

Ray Simpson is the 1930s composer whose music became the Looney Tunes soundtrack to Daffy Duck, Road Runner and the “That’s All Folks” style of cartoon. To modern ears, the early Raymond Scott recordings sound like classic cartoon music. The producers of Ren & Stimpy felt so, and added Scott’s zany music to their anarchic creations, thereby introducing Scott to a new generation of cartoon lovers. The Simpsons, Animaniacs, The Oblongs, and Duckman and have also featured Scott melodies.

Ironically, Scott never wrote a note for cartoons. He had moved on to other projects by the time his early compositions acquired a new life through the craftsmanship of the music director for Warner Brothers, Carl Stalling, who adapted many familiar strains in his cartoon soundtracks, concocting a slice’n'dice approach of jazz, pop, classical, folk and country-western. He used operatic motifs, marches, anthems and an awful lot of Scott.

The actual Raymond Scott Quintet only recorded from 1937 to 1939. In 1943, Warner Bros. bought Scott’s publishing; thereafter, Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes rolled off the assembly line with liberal splashes of Scott. These cartoons, in effect, immortalized his early work, preserving it for future generations. The Stu Brown Sextet lovingly recreate it and produce a zany brand of classic Twisted Toons jazz, complete with woodblocks, car horns and whistles. Stu claims that his six-piece outfit ‘is currently the only band in the world playing a programme consisting exclusively of Raymond Scott’s music.’ The band made their debut in the Britannia Panopticon Theatre at the Glasgow Jazz Festival and has been a feature of many festivals since.

They come to Shetland with a project, where young people aged 8+ get the unique chance to make an animated cartoon film in the morning which will be shown on the day with a live Looney Toons soundtrack. The animation sessions will be led by experienced animators who have been associated with the Stu Brown Raymond Scott Project since its inception. There will probably be two films made, one with the younger participants the second with the older ones.

Participation in the morning workshop costs just £10.00 and that gives access to the evening gig also. A real bargain. There are only thirty places available – so book early.

An evening concert will feature a short documentary film, made by his son, about Raymond Scott and his unique music. The films made by Shetland Young People will also feature, as well as a whole evening of the zaniest music you ever heard. It all takes place on Saturday 5 March with the workshop at 10.30 in the morning and the Concert at 7.30pm – all in Lerwick Town Hall. Tickets for both events are available from Shetland Box Office, Islesburgh Centre, 01595 745555 or at online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org

And That’s All Folks!

Guest Blog by Jeff Merryfield of Shetland Jazz Club

These events are part funded by the Scottish Arts Council/Creative Scotland Jazz Development Fund.

Shetland Arts and Shetland Islands Council accessed Scottish government funds to implement a ticket system that would help reduce the barriers that rural communities face in accessing tickets for events.  An advisory group looked at many systems that could cope with ticket sales and memberships systems and chose Tessitura, one of the largest international companies specialising in this field, as it was flexible enough to fit all their needs.  The Albert Hall, the Grand Metropolitan and many other famous venues have been successfully using the system for many years, including a similar partnership in Victoria, Canada, which sells ticket for a partnership across a wide geographic area, using Tessitura in a similar way to Shetland Box Office Partnership.

Phase 1 (face to face ticket sales in Islesburgh Centre and the Garrison Theatre, and phone sales operated by Islesburgh Centre staff) has been highly successful with over 95000 tickets sold in Shetland to date.  59 promoters have used the facilities selling tickets for 176 productions and 827 individual performances at venues from Fair isle to Unst.

The website enables users to view all up-coming events currently on sale via the What’s On page.  The events are listed in date order and include details such as the venue, description of the event and ticket prices.  Once you register as a user, you can buy tickets by credit or debit card and choose to have them posted to you for a small fee or collected from the venue or box office, unless the event is within the next 7 days, when the tickets will only be available for collection.  You can select your seat for events in the Garrison Theatre, with other venues having unreserved seating.

Other users of online box office facilities have found that within 6 month of their websites going live over 40% of all sales have been through the web. Offering three ways of purchasing tickets – face to face, over the phone or online – will open up events to everyone across the isles.  It will reduce the need for queuing for popular events, help those in the outer isles plan ahead to go to the cinema and other shows in town, and provide an opportunity for all promoters to sell their tickets outside Shetland, attracting tourists in advance to events across Shetland.

Gwilym Gibbons, Director of Shetland Arts, said: “This latest phase of the Shetland Box Office marks a significant development in this partnership project. The option for Shetland customers to buy tickets online and browse what’s on information across many different promoters, venues and organisations is a great step forward.  For visitors to Shetland it provides for the first time, information in one place that shows the vast offering of arts activity in Shetland; and best of all allows them to buy their tickets 24 hours a day from anywhere in the world”.

Gwilym added: “The Shetland Box Office’s success to date is born out of a special partnership between Shetland Islands Council, namely their Islesburgh team, and Shetland Arts. Partnerships around this complex mixed operational and strategic nature are always challenging across organisations and the Shetland Box Office has been no exception.  The launch today of online sales is a real tribute to the determination and commitment of staff in both organisations.  Shetland is at its best when organisations share resources and come together for the benefit of all, it’s not always the path of least resistance but more often than not, given time it does lead to the greatest return on investment”.

Florence Grains, the Council’s Spokesperson for Culture and Recreation said: “I’m delighted to see that the Shetland Box Office is now fully operational, including online sales. This development assists the Council with its aspiration to make services more accessible to everyone in Shetland, regardless of where they live.  I am also pleased to see that the Council and Shetland Arts are working so well together on this shared project and I look forward to seeing this service further develop over time.

• http://www.shetlandboxoffice.org/