"To celebrate the talents and achievements of diverse international women filmmakers. To inspire and entertain audiences. To kick up some fuss about the fact that only 7% film directors are women, and to show that it doesn’t have to be that way," is the purpose of Britain's Birds Eye View Film Festival, according to its charismatic director, Rachel Millward. In an exclusive interview with Pervaiz Alam, Millward talks about the forthcoming edition of the festival, starting from March 5th 2009, and invites entries from all women film-makers, including India, latest by Monday November 10th 2008 for international submissions.
Rachel Millward's prime aim of organising Birds Eye View Film Festival is to put women film-makers on world-agenda. Just to tease her I ask, would she not accept a thought-provoking film that centres on women and nothing else but directed by a man. Her categorical answer is: "Sadly, no. that’s not saying the film wouldn’t be amazing. It’s just that we’re all about women behind the camera – we want to see the world through women’s eyes for a change (a Bird’s Eye View!). we don’t mind what women want to make films about, we just want to encourage them to tell stories of all kinds…"
5th Birds Eye View Film Festival is looking for documentaries, features and short films directed by women. All events will be held at leading London film venues, including the BFI Southbank and the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in central London.
Rachel Millward, interestingly, does not come from a film-making background. Instead, she graduated in Theology from Oxford University in 1999, and then took postgraduate studies at the African Gender Institute at the University of Cape Town. And then she went on to co-found Birds Eye View as a touring short film event in 2002. The only experience of mass communication that she had at that time was of being a researcher for independent television & radio production companies. Now, she heads a successful film festival that attracts film talent from all over the world. So, is there any defined criterion for selecting films?
"That’s really hard to define. We select films on quality alone – then, if it comes to it, on how they work in the balance of the overall programme. We are looking for films directed and usually also written by women, but they can be about anything. So it’s what makes a good film – engaging narrative, convincing characters," says Rachel Millward.
The absence of Indian filmmakers in the competitive sections of international film festivals is a cause for worry and debate among film critics in India who believe majority of films made in India fall into commercial but trash-kind of category. Rachel Millward doesn't share this concern.
"We’ve shown some wonderful films from India. SIX YARDS TO DEMOCRACY – Nishta Jain and Smriti Nevatia – an amazing, politically engaged documentary, LAKSHMI AND ME – again a documentary by Nishta Jain, PRINTED RAINBOW – a stunning animation from Gitanjali Rao and MIGRATION – the drama dealing with HIV by Mira Nair. So that’s some great variety, and no trash!" says the director of Birds Eye View Film Festival.
Another interesting feature of her festival is to nurture talent, says Ms Millward. "We are developing “film labs”- this year the focus is comedy, bringing together women in the UK who are actively working as comedy writers, but haven’t made a feature film, and taking them through a residential lab to find new collaborations and experiment with new ideas. We’re partnering with production company Warp X so that they will take on ideas generated through the process onto their development slate and hopefully we’ll see the next female-led British comedy features developing!"
Rachel Millward is in the middle of inviting big names for the coming festival. "Too early to know too much… but there will undoubtedly be a fabulous line up of women from around the world, filmmakers, musicians etc.," she says.
All selected features, documentaries and short films will be automatically entered into competition for awards. Previous jury members include Juliet Stevenson, Fiona Shaw, Wendy Mitchell (Screen International), Wendy Ide (The Times), Dave Calhoun (Film Editor, Time Out). Awards are presented at the festival's Closing Night Party.
Rachel Millward, director, Birds Eye View Film Festival, adds: "We are having a retrospective at the BFI about Femme Fatale and The Vamp in early silent cinema. Apart from that we’ll have the usual selection of the best and newest international features, documentaries and short films from women around the globe. And there’ll be an innovation strand again, demonstrating that women are at the cusp of technological change in moving image."
Deadlines
Deadline for Early Bird submissions – Friday, September 19th, 2008
Deadline for UK submissions - Saturday, November 1st, 2008
Deadline for International submissions - Monday, November 10th, 2008
Contact: http://www.birds-eye-view.co.uk/
Birds Eye View Film Festival
Unit 306 Aberdeen Centre
22-24 Highbury Grove
London N5 2EA
UK
Email the Festival Manager, Emilie Arnold: emilie@birds-eye-view.co.uk
Phone: +44 20 7704 9435