2017 was a memorable year in the GSFF’s history. We celebrated our tenth anniversary with a programme commemorating all that is good about the festival. With open arms and wide smiles we welcomed back Penelope, Rosie and The Magic Lantern – the low-budget screening series which blossomed into the festival as it is today. There was a retrospective featuring a hand-picked short from each of the festival’s ten years and our friends from Hamburg came back to us for another edition of A Wall Is A Screen.
Amongst all that old, there was plenty new – in collaboration with Production Attic we launched the first GSFF Short Film Pitch. Filmmakers were invited to pitch their projects to a panel of professionals, and one project would be picked to receive a cash prize as well as a week’s free equipment hire courtesy of Production Attic.
And of course we put on an enlightening programme outwith our birthday celebrations. For the first time we dived into the growing VR short film scene with an installation courtesy of Dennis and Debbie Club, and collaboration with University of the West of Scotland Creative Media Academy. Award-winning director Gunhild Enger joined us as we took a look at her extensive and entertaining body of work. We gave a UK premiere to An Evening With Bukowski, and we grooved all night with a screening of the seldom-seen but still-sensational Jazz Is Our Religion.
Saturday night was jazz night at GSFF17. We had gotten our hands on a rare print of John Jeremy’s incredible documentary Jazz is Our Religion (1972) and built a full evening of film, poetry and music around it, including a live set from London 5-piece Ezra Collective. It’s the best decision we ever made (imo) – they blew the roof off our dingy, packed Joytown venue and audiences must’ve lost half their bodyweight in sweat. Bopping continued into the night with a set from the excellent DJ Donna Leake from Brilliant Corners. It’s my fav GSFF night to date, especially since it was my 31st birthday and the best party I’ve ever thrown. Ezra Collective have since been making massive waves in the UK jazz scene and beyond, winning Best Jazz Album at Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Awards 2018, and recently teaming up with Jorja Smith for a new track.
Sanne Jehoul, GSFF Volunteer 2012-2013, GSFF Assistant 2014-2015, GSFF Coordinator/ Programmer 2015-2018, GSFF Producer 2018-2019, GSFF Co-Director 2019 – present.
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Award Winners
Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film
Green Screen Gringo – Douwe Dijkstra | Netherlands/Brazil | 2016
GSFF Scottish Short Film Award (Sponsored by Blazing Griffin)
Flow Country – Jasper Coppes | Scotland/Netherlands | 2017
International Audience Award
Ten Metre Tower (Hopptornet) – Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck | Sweden | 2016
Scottish Audience Award
Hula – Robin Haig | Scotland | 2016
Production Attic Short Film Pitch
Tony and The Bull – John McFarlane
Jury
Anwar Boulifa – Filmmaker (Bill Douglas Award and International Audience Award Winner 2016, A Short Guide to Re-Entry)
Nita Deda – Director, DokuFest International Documentary and Short Film Festival
Tara Judah – Co-ordinator, Bristol Scalarama