A new lease of life?

A few years back, a Scottish filmmaker by the name of May Miles Thomas made a landmark film called ONE LIFE STAND. The film tells the story of a single mother and her 18-year-old son who have grown apart and find themselves in dead end jobs to make ends meet. She's a telephone clairvoyant; he's been lured into work as an escort (yes, that sort of escorting).

I won't pretend that the film is a masterpiece - it's not. But for whatever flaws I see in it, it's competently made, it's emotionally charged and it's a very watchable movie. What makes it special is that it was essentially the UK's first foray into digital filmmaking, at least on a feature film scale. Written, filmed and edited by the director, ONE LIFE STAND broke new ground in low-budget filmmaking as the cast and crew took to the streets with their digital video camera and got to work.

While I've said the result isn't exactly a classic, that's just my opinion; many others feel more strongly and the film played several festivals, scooped many awards and reaped some wonderful words from critics (apparently The Scotsman branded it a "lyrical masterpiece"). You're probably thinking that you must have somehow missed it at your local independent cinema. That's true, you did... because despite massive acclaim, it never received a theatrical run.

This is unfortunately all too common in independent cinema, especially in a country like the UK where the film industry is a relatively minor one. The first hurdle facing any potential filmmakers is getting the film made to start with. Thomas and friends managed that through sheer determination and guerilla tactics, only to run slap bang into the second major hurdle, which is actually getting anyone to distribute it.

Even now many people are only seeing the film for the first time as a limited DVD production of the movie is being sold exclusively online via the Elemental Film website (http://www.elementalfilms.co.uk/ if you want to check it out). This is an interesting tactic and one that may well set a benchmark for future low-budget indie productions, especially in the UK. But for whatever benefits this method may have, it's too late to get ONE LIFE STAND into the cinemas where it should have been long ago, and it won't help any others receive theatrical releases either.

That's where a current development of Arts Alliance, funded by the UK Film Council, comes in. The programme, to be completed in 2007, is to build the world's first largescale digital cinema network, right here in the UK. Once the equipment has been installed, the costs of such a venture are greatly reduced compared to our traditional 35mm projection that most cinemas currently use.

The film won't be subject to gradual decay (scratches, etc.) like traditional film; it's cheaper to produce a digital copy than a new print; and the quality will be much better.

Actually, that last bit is what scares most people. Traditionalists don't like the idea of good old celluloid being replaced, in much the same way that some people still prefer vinyl over CDs (or if you want to be really up to date, people who still prefer CDs over downloads). I know, because I felt the same way. I mean, after all, one of the biggest fans of the digital revolution is George Lucas, and just look at the guff he's showered us with over the last few years. Is a digital revolution really that promising if it's going to produce films like ATTACK OF THE CLONES?

Then a little while back I attended a screening of Michael Powell's 1937 tale of the Scottish islands, THE EDGE OF THE WORLD. I was ready to enjoy the film when suddenly I was landed with the news that this was to be a showcase for the future of cinema... it was a digital projection!

I was curious, but not ecstatic. Digital projection? I paid good money to watch a film, not some pixellated piece of crap designed to show off some pointless new technology. Then the film started...

I hate to tell you this, but it looked amazing. Now I'm converted and can't wait for the UK's digital cinema revolution to arrive. Some cinemas have already converted (usually one screen only), and are ready to use it in order to give more exposure to special interest films (i.e. documentaries, foreign films, British movies, etc.), which is part of the scheme's aim. Plenty more are to follow over the next year or so.

There's a list online somewhere (sorry, I can't be arsed looking it up) of all the cinemas looking to convert and I'm not particularly surprised to see that my local multiplex isn't among them. Why dedicate a screen to interesting films when you need half a dozen of them to fill up your day with Harry Potter screenings? But thankfully a couple of the other cinemas I frequent are in line for this new development and I can't wait.

It's too late for ONE LIFE STAND, but it bodes well for future efforts of Britain's filmmakers. Tell your friends - the digital revolution is upon us!*

*Providing you are within a reasonable distance of a half-decent cinema.

The horror! The horror!

[excerpt from a post originally appearing on the blog "Tales from the Freakpit"]

WILD COUNTRY opens in UK cinemas this week after a lengthy tour of festivals across the world. A Scottish movie about teenage backpackers being attacked in the hills, this offers nothing in the way of originality and the monsters are a little cheap looking but the film is funny, unashamedly Scottish and at less than an hour and a half never outstays its welcome. It helps that it has a likable cast too, including SWEET SIXTEEN's Martin Compston and the Oscar-winner Peter Capaldi.

The cast and crew were all in attendance for what was the first screening in Scotland - it made for an interesting sight since half the crowd were here for the event and the other half were folks like me who were there for the horror marathon. The upshot was a crowd that was split between people in tuxedos and posh dresses and guys in hoodies and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD t-shirts. One day all premieres will be like this.

Like REEKER, it's got some great gore effects and often amuses. You also have to applaud it just for being a Scottish horror film. We seem to be against the idea of doing genre cinema in Scotland (Richard Jobson's futuristic martial arts movie THE PURIFIERS is the only other one that springs to mind) so it's nice to see something like this. It should be noted though that the film does begin with an unmarried teenage mother giving up her unwanted baby for adoption - the number one rule of Scottish cinema is, after all, that nobody is allowed to have a happy and contented life.

The night finished with a showing of BOY EATS GIRL, a horror film from the Emerald Isle. When her young lad is accidentally killed, a mother uses the power of voodoo to resurrect him but makes a slight cock-up which results in him coming back to life with an unfortunate thirst for human flesh. Irish singing starlet Samantha Mumba is the closest thing to a big name in this latest Irish zombie film (yes, there is actually more than one) but like its Celtic cousin WILD COUNTRY, the cast are all likable enough, nobody takes it too seriously and once again there is a healthy balance between laughs and dismemberment.

All in all a day well spent. But it didn't quite end there, because I still had to get back to the 24-hour car park to retrieve my car for the journey home. So forget about the spooky films I've just watched - have you ever walked the streets of Glasgow at 1am? Now that's what I call scary.

Moira Shearer 1926-2006

January 17th 1926 - January 31st 2006

It seems strange that someone who appeared in just a handful of films can seem like such a loss to the movie world, but that's the kind of indelible impression Moira Shearer left through her brief forays into film.

She was not as fond of her movie work as her work in ballet, but it was the Scots-born performer's graceful dance skills that resulted in her transfer from stage to celluloid, most notably in the critically acclaimed romance THE RED SHOES (she was known to speak unkindly of the film but went on to perform in two further films for director Michael Powell).

When looking at the films she made with Powell - THE RED SHOES, THE TALES OF HOFFMAN and the criminally misunderstood PEEPING TOM - one can't help thinking that to have been involved in any one of these films would be enough to secure an eternal spot in the heart of movie lovers everywhere. To have appeared in all three speaks volumes for the huge contribution made in such a small body of work.

I can't deny there's a special significance in watching Shearer in action due to the parochial pride I take in sharing a city of birth with her, but any claims of favouritism will evaporate from even the most hardened of cynics when viewing her debut in the classic romance. There are many reasons for the acclaim heaped upon THE RED SHOES but Shearer's poise, presence and radiant performance stand out. I could call it one of Powell's best films; I could call it one of the best romances ever; but neither does it justice - it's simply one of the greatest films ever conceived... and Moira Shearer was right at the heart of it.