East is East

Vera Brozzoni reports on the East Film Festival, a hotbed of new talent in an increasingly hip area.

That the East End is one of the most depressed (and sometimes depressing) areas of London is no news; but that it is teeming with young filmmakers, is great news.
And the sixth East End Film Festival is here to showcase this new and exciting talent from the 19th to 26th April.
"It all started", recalls Rachael Castell, the producer of the festival, "when the association Funding Film in Hackney realized that they needed a platform to screen the works made in the area of Tower Hamlets. But there were too many, so, in 2001 they created a brand new film festival.
They partnered with Raindance Festival until 2005, and when the agreement came to an end it became the East End Film Festival".

Now the festival boasts patrons including Danny Boyle, Steven Berkoff and musician Nitin Sawhney and is financed by, among others, Film London East and 3 Mills Studios (where Boyle shot his last feature Sunshine).

"I think the East End is growing more and more interesting", says director David Alexander, born and raised in Hackney, whose short film Growing will be screened at the festival.

"Traditionally the West is considered the core of London and popular films like those by Working Title have put places like Notting Hill on the map. But in the last two years Liverpool Street, Old Street and Hackney Road have nurtured an art, film and music community, which makes the area cool and inspiring. Hopefully our films will prove that you don't necessarily have to go West to shoot a romantic comedy".

East Is The New West reads a fading graffiti on a wall in Hackney Road, and it seems to be prophetic – a high stake that directors like Alexander are only glad to play for.
And the title Growing sounds perfect for the festival itself!

"There is no doubt we have grown bigger in these six years," says Castell, "but I don't think we're going to be bigger than now: our capacity is just four main venues. Still, this year we're expecting six to seven thousand people", it's a remarkable figure for a bunch of wild, raw talents all from the East End.

David Alexander agrees: "I've always wanted to send one of my films to this festival, because it has a growing reputation and the program is always interesting. Other directors who had already been there encouraged me to send my film. Of course I didn't take it for granted that they would select it, and when it happened it was a big joy for me"

The program not only has short films, but also features such as documentary With Gilbert And George by Julian Cole, dedicated to the two artists now celebrated with the must-see exhibition at the Tate Modern. The film opened the festival with a Gala evening.

There's also The Pied Piper Of Hutzovina, a portrait of Gogol Bordello frontman Eugen Hutz made by Pavla Fleischer; The Blossoming Of Maximo Oliveros by Aureaus Solito, a delicate gem about gender identity and the closing film: a compelling documentary on Joe Strummer The Future is Unwritten (pictured).

For more info and the full program visit www.eastendfilmfestival.com

When : from the 19th to the 26th of April from 6 pm onwards.

Where : Genesis Mile End Cinema, Rio Dalston, Hoxton Hall, The Rich Mix Bethnal Green. Screenings also at Cineworld West India Quay, Spitalfields Market, Brady Arts Centre.

• add to del.icio.us
• digg this article!