Cinephiles unite: the short film festival is upon us again

Film lovers looking for a break from summer blockbusters could do worse than pay a visit to this year’s edition of the Kinemastik Short Film Festival. The event has become a staple of the Maltese summer, and showcase a variety of unique cinematic talent in a relaxed outdoor setting. This year, the festival – now in its sixth edition – will take place at various locations in both Valletta and Floriana from August 6 through 8, though the usual mix of unconventional short films – both local and foreign – will still be top priority.

Two free events will kickstart the festival: the European Academy Short Film winners will be screened at Europa House, St Paul Street, Valletta on August 6 at 6:30om, followed by a rare performance by Faust guitarist Uwe Bastiansen at the evocative venue of the City Lights Cinema rooftop, Republic Street at 9pm.

The main screenings will then take place at the Herbert Ganado Gardens, Floriana – the festival’s home for the past few years. Three screens will run concurrently; two peripheral screens will offer the audience a variety of Maltese and influential short films, while the main screen will present the official selection of international and local shorts.

A focus on film from Britain includes the winner of the UK Film Council Best Short Film award of the 7^th London Short Film Festival, You’re the Stranger Here from director Tom Geens. Very much a self-educated filmmaker, his award-winning films give a disturbing vision of society's outsiders, with a heavy dose of black humour.

Martin Clark’s The Southern General is an observational documentary with nods towards at the sitcom cliché of the nervous man during labour and childbirth. The pressure on men to act a certain way during this rite of passage is immense. How do they face the real or imagined horror and bloodshed? Must they be brave soldiers? This documentary was filmed at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, Scotland.

Also in this year’s programme is The Herd, from Irish director Ken Wardrop. This short documentary forms part of the prestigious European Film Academy Awards 2009 selection. The Herd recently picked up the Prix UIP award at the Sarajevo Film Festival and the Best Short Documentary award at the Expression En Corto International Film Festival in Mexico. It also won the Short Documentary Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Seattle International Film Festival and has screened at numerous international festivals including the LA Film Festival, the Hamburg International Short Film Festival and the Worldwide Short Film Festival in Toronto. 

The much-admired work Mothmilk by Igor and Ivan Buharov will also form part of this year’s programme. Kornel Szilagyi and Nandor Hevesi have been working for 15 years under the pseudonym of Igor and Ivan Buharov.  They have made a number of shorts, features, experimental films, documentaries, animation, as well as being involved in the creation of several musical projects and music for the film. Their work balances on the edge of fine art and cinematic art. In their latest short, Mothmilk, the Buharov brothers come back to us as directors but not as scriptwriters, which is a novelty for them. This experiment is successful: those who know their style, made up of existential questions, fear and super 8, will be surprised by the plot’s linearity. Those who have never seen one of their films should do their best to watch one –they are not something one sees every day.

Also included is Danish short The New Tenants from director Joachim Back, which won an Oscar for Best Short Film in the live action.

Works from Maltese filmmakers include Magdalene from young director Rebecca Cremona. Set in 1931, the film is a visually rich and melancholy 27 minutes: possibly the very last for, who can’t play the piano the way she once did.

This year’s programme also includes a first-ever filmmaking workshop for children (ages three to seven), followed by a screening of children’s films that will take place on Sunday, August 8. This pioneering activity is organised with the help of Animateka Slovenia and St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity,  Valletta.

Saturday night is also Mid Fest party night. Richard Fearless (Death in Vegas) will deejay at Cavett in Mtarfa. DJs Ali Tollervey and Danjeli will also be playing that night.

For more information about Kinemastik and the film festival go to: www.kinemastik.org

Tickets are available from St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity and Kinemastik.

Ticket hotlines: 99242815, 99208758.

Read an exclusive interview with Tom Geen's on this Sunday's MaltaToday.