The first glimmer of spring heralds the return of the acclaimed Flatpack Film Festival to Birmingham, for its eighth annual edition. An eleven day event that has carved out a unique place in the UK’s film scene, Flatpack Film Festival will stir together an eye-popping line-up of new features, shorts and special guests, as well as providing an alternative route-map to Birmingham with walking tours, installations and pop-up screenings across the city. The programme is known for using an all-encompassing definition of ‘film’, and the 2014 festival will be no exception.
Headline events include: THE WORLD MADE ITSELF, an immersive piece of performance from LA-based artist and performer Miwa Matreyek, who will imagine the origins of the earth by interacting with her own animations and music from Flying Lotus; the UK Premiere of Bill Morrison’s latest film,THE GREAT FLOOD, a portrait of the devastation caused by the Mississippi floods of 1927 (presented by Morrison himself) that resonates profoundly with recent news reports; PHONO-CINEMA-THÉÂTRE,a recently-restored treasure trove of 1900s film featuring theatre and variety stars of the day with a live score from John Sweeney; BIRMINGHAM-ON-SEA, an investigation into one land-locked city’s love affair with water; and an immersive, horizontal screening of cult 1972 sci-fi, SILENT RUNNING.
Flatpack will also present a full programme of feature films including: a special screening of LITTLE FEET, Alexandre Rockwell’s lo-fi gem that follows three children as they set out to return their goldfish to the sea; NIGHT MOVES, an eco-terrorism thriller starring Jesse Eisenberg and Dakota Fanning and directed by Kelly Reichardt; Joanna Hogg’s latest feature, EXHIBITION, an uncomfortably intimate study of a couple’s relationship; and THE STRANGE COLOUR OF YOUR BODY’S TEARS, a surreal psychological drama from Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani (AMER). Click on the link above for full details.
