A film festival founded by a quantum biologist will screen short films from across the globe in Wimbledon this Saturday.
The Wimbledon International Short Film Festival, staged at the Polka Theatre, is the creation of author and festival director Professor Johnjoe McFadden and his wife Penny, who grew tired of watching blockbusters at their local chain cinema.
In a big week for the British film industry, which saw it deflect renewed threats by President Trump to impose tariffs on international productions, and the opening of the BFI London Film Festival at Southbank, McFadden hopes to provide a unique experience for cinemagoers.
He said: “This is not going to be a normal cinematic experience. You’re going to see a more diverse array of films, and you’ll meet the filmmakers.”
The festival received 300 submissions from countries across the world including China, Afghanistan and Iran.
Shortlisting just 13 films to be shown on Saturday required a prolonged process of each film being scored by three judges independently.
Films this year include Softy, starring Emmy-nominated Adolescence star Ashley Walters, and The Pie Den, a documentary about a pie and mash shop in Bermondsey.
McFadden said: “We’re looking for a spark of originality. A lot of films look like soap operas, or a short version of other successful films.
“You can’t squeeze a feature film into 15 minutes. The films that work best have a very simple message.”
The festival has been held at the Polka Theatre in Wimbledon since its debut in 2008.
McFadden said: “We founded it because we wanted to see more experimental films and encourage the filmmakers of the future, and give them a venue to screen their films.
“We had been to a few short film festivals. They tended to be small, in the top room of a pub with a not very good projector and sound system, and a few family members and friends would turn up.
“We wanted young filmmakers to see their films on a big screen with an audience consisting of more than family and friends, so they get the reaction of the public, who are ultimately the people a filmmaker needs to impress.
“There is a lot of diversity in Wimbledon, around Wimbledon, and we’d like to get people from all backgrounds making and enjoying films.”
A previous initiative allowed children who had been excluded from school to use film cameras to create shorts shown on the big screen at Polka.
McFadden added: “I want people to come in and be inspired, and say ‘I can make a film like that.’”
He referred to his diverging careers as a biologist and film festival director as ‘parallel lives’.
McFadden said: “Biology is constant problem solving. You hope to make a difference in the treatment or diagnosis of an infectious disease or discover one of the secrets of the universe and what life is all about.
“Those are endlessly fascinating to me, just like films are endlessly entertaining and interesting to me as well.”
Tickets are still available for the Wimbledon International Short Film Festival on 11 October. More information can be found here.
Featured image credit: Wimbledon Shorts
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