Billie Williams visits The Big Shoulders International Student Film Festival in Chicago

After making my Graduation film last year (17/18) I used Film Freeway to enter it into a number of film festivals. My film is a personal experimental art film and therefore isn't obviously suited to any particular festival. After doing research I entered a number and it paid off as I was fortunate enough to be selected for The Big Shoulders International Student Festival in Chicago which is run by DePaul University. I was selected as a screened film and a finalist in the Experimental Film category. This festival promoted a diverse range of films wanting to showcase both student films and film makers all pushing forward and showing skills in their relevant fields. All film makers were invited to attend.  I took a gamble and decided to go as they were offering accommodation for my visit and access to many other exciting events along with the festival. I booked a budget flight, got myself ready to go - and I am so glad I did as it was an amazing experience! If you ever get invited to attend a festival (and you have the time and funds) I would highly recommend this. I had the best week meeting other young film makers and students who were all trying to reach a goal similar to mine. Here is a summary of the week:

- I arrived on Wednesday 30th January and was met by my host/buddy Katie, who was a film student at DePaul University. The festival had provided a host for anyone wanting one and I was fortunate enough that mine met me at the airport. This took the stress out of travelling and allowed me to talk to her about her film work and student experience. We spoke for many hours about films and life as a student. She took me sight seeing for the first two days so I could take photographs of the city and experience Chicago. This was difficult however with the polar vortex happening and it being -26 degrees. We still made the most of it though. I saw the bean, went to china town, went up Willis Tower and more. It was such a fun time.

- On Friday 1st February the official festival activities began. We started off by going on a tour round Cinespace studios. This is a large set of studios where TV shows such as Empire, Chicago PD and Shameless have/are filmed. We got to see some of the studios that DePaul students get to use and learn it. It was amazing to see and also such a good opportunity that these students get to work in this large professional studio space. 

- Later that day we were then invited along with DePaul students to an advanced screening of the film 'Fighting With My Family' directed by Stephen Merchant. The film was great to see, especially being a British film coming from a British Director. I found this however meant that a few jokes were only laughed at by myself and a few other British filmmakers that attended due to a very British dialect and specific jokes. The best part was that Stephen Merchant himself attended and did a Q&A session afterwards. It was inspirational to hear him speak about the ways he works and find out about how stressful film sets can be even on a much larger budget for a feature length. 

- We then had another screening afterwards we were again invited to with the DePaul students. It was to see three short films by Qui Yang and Constanze Schmitt, including the 2017 Winner of the Cannes Palme d'Or for Short Film, “A Gentle Night". These films were very artistic in style and therefore really interested me. Director Qui Yang has such a unique style using very minimal but long choreographed shots which really pull your attention into the detailed but implied stories. We had a Q&A session with them both afterward which allowed us to learn a lot more about their working processes and really inspired me to keep pushing my own style, the way he has pushed his.

- In the evening we were then invited to a private welcoming party for all the film makers and festival organisers and helpers etc. It was a great chance to meet and bond with all the other film makers and other students from DePaul. We all came from different places and all had very different films with unique ways of working and we spent many hours all talking about this. I have made some really talented contacts around the globe and I even handed out my business card to some of them. This was a great networking event, plus free food and open bar!

- Saturday 2nd Feb was the actual day of the film festival. Everyone was really excited but also nervous as we finally all got to screen our films to an audience and to each other (having met each other but not seen anyones films yet). The festival was split in two halves of the day, programme 1 followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers, then a short break and onto programme 2 and a Q&A. In total I watched 21 films including mine and it was amazing! I truly enjoyed each and everyone film and all for different reasons. There was such a great variety of films ranging from documentary to experimental, from animation to drama and so on. Many were strong in style and/or in the message that they were sharing. Watching my own film on such a large screen in front of a brand new audience was more exciting but also scary than I had even thought it would be. My heart was thumping the entire way through but thankfully the applause at the end let me relax as I knew that it had been well received along with all the other films. Besides bumbling my way through the Q&A (would always recommend having answers slightly prepared) everything ran really smoothly. If you are like me and don't enjoy public speaking then prepare yourself and think about what you may be asked. I only wish I had done this a little better as I was able to give answers but I know I can do better, but there's always next time anyway!

Here is the awards list:

Best Documentary: The Canadian by Fabian Lopez

Best Narrative: Yasamin by Julia Elihu

Best Experimental: Mommy's Lullaby by Anna Spacio

Best Animation: The Hoopoe and the Owls by Narges Haghighat

Best Screenplay: Innae (Perseverance) by Akram Shibly

Vincentian Prize: Dreamer by Jordan Berns

Best of Fest: Salty Blood by Sixmarling Then and Isabella Brenton

Even though I did not win my category or an award (cash prizes for each included!), I was just privileged to be able to be in the festival and be given this amazing opportunity to meet so many talented people and get to take part in so many activities while here. Every film that won a prize really deserved it and every film involved was there for a reason. 

- Lastly the weekend was seen out with an After Party involving everyone who attended the festival. Again free food and open bar but also this allowed us a chance to receive feedback first hand from members of the jury, DePaul students, festival organisers and members of the public. I was overwhelmed by the amount of nice and positive feedback I received. Someone even said my film was her favourite and other people said that the emotions in my film were strong. 

I am so happy to have attended and I really would encourage others to enter and attend this festival because they really do make an effort to look after you and offer you amazing opportunities. I have made lifelong friends and amazing connections across the globe and I also came back feeling more motivated then ever to continue working on my films in my style.

Written by Billie Williams

2019 Alumni Event & Private View of Milieu? in the Hockey Gallery

Another fantastic event attended by Will McGregor (who showed a sneak preview of his new feature - shh!), Ben Burdock (producer at Pulse Films), Iain Whitewright (editor at Whitehouse Post), Sam Heasman (freelance cinematographer), Laura Thomas (Freelance TV Co-ordinator - BBC, Channel 5, RDF and more), Shahid Abu (Audiovisual Tech/Engineer at Media Powerhouse), Charlie Akehurst (FX Technical Director at MPC) and Thomas Doukinitsas (Motion Graphics Designer at RT UK)

Accomplished careers in the creative industries were discussed along with tips for our current students to find work during and after their studies. Everyone agreed that you should get paid but perhaps occasionally take an opportunity to help someone for free and learn new skills. Also use your network - make work with your friends. Some of the most simple and best advice is in the presentation above - WORK HARD & BE NICE TO PEOPLE!

After a Q&A we went to the Hockey Gallery for the Private View of Milieu? our Y2 exhibition:

Students explore maps and networks as metaphors, through inventive and imaginative interpretations of space, memory, identity, surveillance, cultural anthropology, ecology and sustainability. Spanning video, animation, multi-screen film, spoken word, video games and installation, the work in the exhibition illustrates the breadth and interdisciplinary nature of the course which enables students to consider social, personal and political concerns through film and digital art. Harnessing creativity to technical know-how, intellectual curiosity to social responsibility, Film & Digital Art affords students invaluable opportunities for individual and collaborative expression and experimentation.

 Digital Dystopia by Pip Brett

Our student curators Brodie McBride and Ance Priedneice have done an amazing job of planning and co-ordinating the exhibition with all the Year 2 students helping out and our TA Billie Williams providing valuable advice too. Big thanks also to Laura Rowe, the UCA Gallery Technician, for her help and patience. The exhibition is open until March 16th so please come and visit.

Grace Patey

Junaid Zaheer

Avery Stimson

Greirson Award - Preston Hartley nominated for Best Student Documentary

Following Preston's success as one of 12 young people to be mentored for DocLab, his graduation documentary film was nominated for Best Student Documentary against three others all from the National Film School. Our Y1 Leader Anne Parisio accompanied him to the Award Ceremony at the South Bank on Monday 5th November and here is her review:

"Recent DFSA graduate Preston Hartley was invited to the prestigious Grierson awards at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on the South Bank on Monday 5^th November for two completely separate reasons; having already won a place on the Grierson DocLab scheme and then again because his graduation film had reached the final 4 nominations for the best student documentary.

Considered the Oscars of the documentary world and now in their 46th year, the Grierson Awards celebrate the best in documentary film-making. Winning a Grierson carries prestige and allure for factual filmmakers across the globe. (see Preston’s special mention) [https://griersontrust.org/about-us/news/2018/2018-the-final-nominations-are-announced.html] This is an incredible achievement and Preston’s nomination provides him with the perfect introduction to the professional film and TV world. It was quite a glitzy affair with all the key industry movers and shakers in attendance, including Sir Trevor McDonald who would be receiving a special award, channel commissioners, production companies, and the very best of factual programme makers and documentary directors.

By co-incidence I had worked with Preston’s Doclab mentor (Emma Hindley from Brook Lapping) during my broadcast career and so I was invited to join him for the award ceremony. Whilst we had dinner together I put in a word for the DFSA course, explaining that our multi-disciplinary and bespoke creative approach provided our graduates (like Preston) with a portfolio of skills well suited to the industry. Then it was off to the Queen Elizabeth Hall - Emma knew almost everyone there and from the minute we stepped through the door worked tirelessly to introduce Preston to contacts who might give him that important first step to establish his career as a filmmaker.

Although Preston seemed somewhat dazed by the new world he had been catapulted into, I was impressed by his networking skills and am certain both his hard work and Emma’s introductions are going to bear results very soon. 

When it was time to join the awards ceremony we were on tenterhooks – Preston’s was the only undergraduate film against 3 NFTVS MA films all produced overseas. Preston joined his DocLab colleagues and I sat with Emma and the head of Brook Lapping development. The early awards seem to favour UK subjects which made us hope Preston’s raw emotional film journey might have some sway against the glossy overseas subjects. 

The presenter said it was a close call, but in the end the judges chose a film which explored the manufacturing of fake news in Macedonia, commended for its relevance to contemporary events. We were disappointed for Preston not to gain the ultimate prize but as Emma pointed out, the expectations and pressure on the winner is immense and in many ways to be seen as someone who has potential and can be nurtured is a more attractive proposition for most potential employers.

When I left at 10.30pm Preston was still busily networking…. Well done Preston."

This achievement not only demonstrates the wonderful possibilities for all our talented and hard working students, but also reflects the expertise of our lecturers who dedicate themselves to supporting students to achieve their very best outcomes alongside tutor techs, learning support and other colleagues across the whole of UCA. We are all very excited for Preston and eager to hear news as his career progresses.

Second Year Dance Project 'Avoidance' moving into Film Festivals

Having now graduated from DFSA there are many projects I look back on as being moments of inspiration for me as a practitioner and creative. There have been projects that have shown me where my skills lie and have let me develop these, projects that have let me realise the areas I maybe don't want to work in and projects that I have enjoyed so much that they have been pivotal in my own creative journey. For me the Second Year Dance Video project was a massive inspirational and pivotal project for me which had many ups and downs but overall I loved taking part in it and learnt many things from it. Whats made it even more important for me and the crew is that our Dance Film has now gone on to achieve in film festivals and we are still pushing it out their now. Here is how we got there:

We began in second year with a choice for this unit between creating an experimental film for Fields and Frames or making a Dance Video. I began by exploring both these options and working on both, this is something I strongly encourage; you pay for the course so you might as well get the most out of it as you can! However Dance Video did start to steal my attention, especially after the original dance workshops with visiting teacher and professional Choreographer Rachel Deadman. She taught us the basics of dance (which definitely came more naturally to some than others!) and we then moved on to look into choreography techniques and how to start building dances together based on themes. These workshops were really helpful at inspiring us with ways to really dive into this project. This along with a lot of personal research into the medium and genre helped us to begin forming ideas. 

I quickly formed the idea of phobias as this was something which had interested me at the time because of the obscurity and unknown nature of why people sometimes have certain phobias. During the workshops I formed a group/crew with other people in the class who were interested in this idea and passionate about making a dance video. The original crew consisted of 3 including myself (Billie Williams) as Director & Choreographer alongside a Producer & Editor (Katherine Whetton) and a DOP/Cinematographer (Sugini Nageswaran). These were the main bases covered and the three of us set out to work; tediously researching and fleshing out the idea and compiling and creating the needed documents and paperwork for the production. We had to take our prior filmmaking knowledge on all of this and transfer and adapt that to work for a dance video.

Production Photo from Avoidance

It took a lot of time and work from all three of us to make sure we have a fully realised and refined concept which could be demonstrated through choreography and visuals, in particular through the camera as the film techniques and camera work to us was just as important as the dance itself. With dance video it is best to realise this earlier on because the camera techniques are so key to really making a piece of choreography stand out in a video format. Thankfully I had a really talented DOP working with me who was eager to learn more about dance video techniques. She also utilised her knowledge on other areas too employing horror film camera techniques and shots she knew about as this worked with out theme well particularly to create fear surrounding the chosen phobias. In essence our final realised idea was to take three phobias which were chosen based on first and second hand research; Arachnophobia (Fear of Spiders), Claustrophobia (Fear of small spaces) and Astraphobia (fear of thunder and lightning). Then create contemporary choreography with a dancer that would embody and represent each of these phobias but also then demonstrate the fear behind these phobias and the way suffers feel to and about them. Overall we wanted to create an intense and immersive contemporary dance video which experimentally represents certain phobias to the audience making them feel vulnerable and therefore more understanding to the sufferers of these.

Production Photo from Avoidance

One of the main triumphs for our group was managing to get such a talented dancer involved in this project. Through our Producers eager advertising round dance schools, collages, social media and in the area we had a fair amount of dancers apply and send us audition videos. We were fortunate enough that we had an amazingly talented young female dancer who was local to the area apply, she had done many dance competitions in America and round the world and she was very excited to give working with video a go! This was amazing and of course we followed all procedures like having an official meeting in person, signing paperwork and seeing her dance skills first hand but we knew she was the right dancer for the piece. She danced in a contemporary style, had a good understanding of dance and building choreography and was also skilled in gymnastics and flexible which was particularly helpful for some of the dance ideas I had in mind, again relating back to the horror and fear aspect of the piece. Myself and Grace (Dancer Colebrook) worked together to build the choreography using techniques learnt in the workshop and building off of the ideas we had already come up with as a group. With limited rehearsals we managed to get the three sections of our piece choreographed and we then went and refined this further after tutorials with Rachel (dance tutor). It was so fun and exciting to work with dance as it is so different to other film making processes in the fact that its a lot more hands on and I had the privilege of working with different types of practitioners in a more energetic and fast paced environment.

Production Photo from Avoidance

We also found through out the process of all this going on that out crew began to grow as we got more people interested in the piece and we also found we needed specialists in certain areas for things such as lighting. We gained a Gaffer, multiple runners, a clapper and camera operators. This meant we could really make sure that things were being planned and produced to their full potential but it also meant that things then flowed a lot better on set especially since we only had two shoot days to film this 6 minute dance video in. We also got a original sound track made for us to specs we set by the band 'False Idols' and this fitted again exactly with the piece the way we had wanted it to. All these elements came together in the end and so did we all as a crew/team and we managed to produce a 6 minute dance video which in our eyes was successful and turned out how we had hoped and envisioned.

Production Photo from Avoidance

We were so proud of what we had managed to produce in a few months, especially working in an area of film which was new for each and every one of us. We pushed ourselves to do something different and something bold (also something long) and we pulled it off. I am proud of all our efforts but also proud of all the skills we each managed to learn and develop over the course of this project. We overcame many challenges as well and managed to keep true to what we wanted to make. It also opened up a whole medium and genre to me that I can now confidently and comfortably work in (and have since) which has added skills to me as a creative practitioner and allowed me to expand into an area of film I really enjoy.

On Set Crew for Avoidance

Since making it we decided to enter a film festival the summer of the year it was finished (2017), however we found ourselves unsuccessful, yet we still got a lovely response from the festival. However undeterred by this, this summer I applied with the film to more film festivals. This time though I applied in particular for U.Dance film festival as it had been suggested to us by Rosie (course leader) and  it seemed more fitting for our piece because it focused much more precisely on making choreography and dance for the camera/screen. This time our talents were recognised and we found ourselves winning alongside 7 other amazing dance films. The 8 films now proudly stand on the U.Dance Website and on their youtube. They were also displayed at live dance events in front of audiences this summer and we are featured in the events official brochure too. It's amazing publicity for us and has made me even happier than I was that I got to branch off into the exciting and extravagant world of dance video. And I haven't stopped their, I am now trying to spread the film out further now by entering some European film and dance film festivals! Fingers Crossed for those!

Dance Video 'Avoidance' :

Written By Billie Williams
Photos By Ethan Salley

DFSA Graduation Day

Graduation day is a ritual for anyone graduating and is a day you think about numerous times through out your years of studies, I know I did! That's what makes it such a surreal day by the time it finally arrives and you find yourself part of this ritual that you've been waiting eagerly for. The day is full of so many emotions ranging from nervous to excited and happy to sad that its all over. Either way it is a day that wont easily be forgotten. For DFSA ours took place on the 25th June in London, with swelteringly hot sunshine.

Preparing for graduation day is one thing in its self. You find yourself asking your class mates what they are going to wear, who they are inviting as their guests, what are their plans afterwards etc etc. As much as you can discuss all these things and try and plan it down to every detail, it will not be how you think it will.

You arrive at the Royal Festival Hall in Southbank; an amazing venue in London with a lovely views of the Thames. You are surrounded by the hustle and bustle of so many other nervous and excited students all trying to make final adjustments to their outfits, pick up their caps and gowns and get their photographs taken, all with friends and family fussing over them! Thankfully their were plenty of staff on hand to tell you where to go and what to do so it made getting through the pre-ceremonial preparations a lot easier. I soon got my tickets, got my cap and gown (which thankfully they will put you in, otherwise I wouldn't of had a clue!) and then got my professional photo taken. For those of you that don't know, the certificate you hold in your professional photo is a prop and your certificate doesn't actually look quite like this.

As the time of the ceremony looms closer the nerves begin to build. What did not help was being stood in a cap and gown in temperatures of 30 degrees trying not to overheat. It was genuinely like wearing a coat in summer. Having some drinks and conversation soon eased my nerves though and getting to see all my class mates all dressed up and excited was amazing! Soon it was time to enter the hall and to everyones delight it was beautifully cool and air conditioned. It was also stunning inside with the stage and screen up front being centre of attention. The most lovely surprise once we were seated was that the screen was playing a video of highlights from the university which some lucky DFSA students work appeared on. This was amazing to see our work shown off in such a big way. All courses would clap and cheer for their work when it appeared and it was a great way to fill us all with energy.

The ceremony was really thought out and flowed well with heart felt speeches of congratulations from the Chancellor and Vice Chancellor. We were even lucky enough to experience not one but two chancellors. Not only was our old chancellor, fashion designer Zandra Rhodes there, but we were also joined by the new chancellor who was appointed in front of us: the artist Magdalene Odundo. This was a privilege to be a part of.

Despite all the lovely celebrations I couldn't help but begin to panic as they got closer and closer to calling DFSA up to receive their certificates. It was the thought of having to walk across the stage with such mass attention on you as you shake hands with the chancellor and receive your certificate. I was the last DFSA'er to do this as I am last in the register (W for Williams!). It soon came round quickly enough and I was sent out on stage. Thankfully I was wearing trainers which made it easier for me to get it over and done with quickly. As I walked (speedily) I did start to feel an amazing sense of pride to be up on stage receiving my hard earned degree along side all these other amazing creatives. Some people really took pride in this moment making their walks across the stage seem more like performances; having a little dance, making us all laugh or even filming the whole thing on their phone as they did it!

Before I knew it the ceremony was all over and done with and we were fully fledged graduates. This was the best reason to celebrate so DFSA soon headed up to the bar for free bubbly to celebrate alongside our teachers and tutors who had all been their watching us. The celebrations were well underway with many pictures being taken, many drinks being had and laughter and conversation filling the bar. The pride the teachers had for us was genuinely amazing and also the pride we had for each other and for the way we had all gone through this experience together. It actually began to get quiet emotional with heart felt goodbyes as people started to leave with their families. We will be sad to no longer spend time with each other and I am hopeful that some of us will be seeing each other in the future and working together at the heights of our careers! Thats the dream!

1st Year Class Photo of us as baby DFSA'ers

3 Years later - Us as Graduated DFSA'ers

Written by Billie Williams
Photos by DFSA'ers

DFSA 'The Collective' Private Screening in London

On the 19th June a group called 'The Collective' formed of DFSA students, presented and screened there work at a self organised event in London in the heart of Hackney Wick at The Yard Theatre. It was an event many of us were keen to hold and be a part of, including myself, along side many other talented members of the class. Our determination and pride in our films along with the leadership of a particularly determined student, Katherine Whetton, led us to fundraise, arrange and have this celebratory evening where everyone involved was able to show case their achievements and work in London. 

As a small yet eager class many of us were determined that we wanted to show off our work to audiences outside of Farnham and the University. We were keen to push our work out there and also celebrate how much our final tough year of university had paid off with all the work we had produced and were proud of. A group of us banded together to make this happen and under the leadership of Katherine Whetton, who took matters into her own hands, we formed a group know as The Collective. The members consisted of: Adeleke Adewale, Arturs Reinholds, Billie Williams (Me!), Colin Chan, Daniel Carter, Ethan Salley, Jay Hayes, Logan Gourlay, Maisie Mok, Natalie Hodgins, Nicole Harman-Smith, Preston Hartley, Sugini Nageswaran, Tarald Tvedt, Umor Hussain, Ivan Uzunov and Katherine Whetton.

As a group we then had meetings to decide and organise many thing, one of the most important being location. We chose London because what better place to showcase our films than in this busy city where film is thriving. In particular we eventually narrowed it down and picked The Yard Theatre in Hackney Wick. The Yard theatre was a really cool quirky space tucked in amongst bars and many other business in a industrial estate. We were able to showcase our films in this contemporary and urban setting (very underground cinema ish!) After some fundraising and input ourselves we had enough money to book it and a date was then set. We then invited along our guests to join in the fun of this celebration and also advertised on Social Media to try and tease in new faces. Then with some final preparations such as programmes made by Katherine, everything was set.

With 10 of us on hand to help we rallied together to make the night run as smoothly as possible and make sure fun was had. Before guests arrived a sound and screen test was done and Programmes were placed out ready. Myself and Sugini began checking off the guests lists, welcoming in our finely dressed guests and class mates ready to celebrate this showcase with us. With drinks and conversation flowing we proceeded into the theatre space to seat our guests and begin the show!

Katherine was our presenter, on hand to introduce the films for those unable to attend and guiding everyone through this emotional rollercoaster ride of films. We had everything from documentary moving through to some experimental artistic films, the more serious dramas, dance and music videos and some skilful animations. See below an image of a well used programme from the evening:

It was a wonderful evening and the highlight for me was seeing everyone get to introduce their own films and express so much pride and passion in what they do. The thank you's people gave were so thoughtful and well deserved and the explanations behind some of the pieces were so in depth and intriguing. The development of everyone is amazing, compared to where we began as a class of nervous and slightly unsure students to now being a group of artist hosting an event and proud to speak up about our work and express ourselves.

I did however find the idea of presenting my own piece very daunting as I knew I was going to be speaking to completely fresh faces about my work without them having any knowledge on who I am and what I do. I did try and keep my cool though and with some helpful words of wisdom from our photographer and former student president Tomm Morton I was able to get through it. The rest of the evening was a breeze and everyone was able to enjoy themselves and watch some inspirational films with their friends, families and even teachers right along side supporting and celebrating with them.

This was such a good experience to be a part of and I am so proud to have showcased my work along side so many other creative individuals. It was a pleasure to work alongside them for this event and for the past three years and I can truly say that we have come such a long way together! To any other creatives who want to gain experience, push themselves out there and get involved with other like minded creatives I would encourage you to put creating an event like this on your to do list. Also it may be worth mulling over the fact that Digital Film and Screen Arts could be the course for you!

Written by Billie Williams

Photography by Tomm Morton

The 2018 Graduate Show

In June we were proud to fill three gallery spaces on the Farnham Campus with work from our graduates. Digital Film & Screen Arts (DFSA) places an emphasis on exploring the creative and conceptual possibilities of moving image and hybrid digital practices.

The diversity of projects by our graduates testify to the richness of the moving image and its dynamic role within contemporary art and the creative digital industries. These highly distinctive productions included single-screen and multiscreen works as well as physical installations, animation and sound-design.

Students worked both individually and collaboratively to synthesise critical, conceptual, creative and technical skills across the breadth of these productions.

Here are some photos and screen shots from the show:

Billie Williams

Umor Hussain

Tarald Tvedt

Sugini Nageswaran

Arturs Reinholds

Colin Cha

Ivan Uzunov

Ivan Uzunov & Arturs Reinholds

Katherine Whetton

Logan Gourley

Preston Hartley

Nicole Harman-Smith

Natalie Hodgins

Mary Novoselova

Jay Hayes

Rufaro Maumbe

Here is graduate, TJ's (Tarald Tvedt) review:

May and June marks the calendar every year as the University for the Creative Arts Graduation Show, and this year was no different but what a year for artwork it was! So when the middle of May rolled around it was time to start building the walls and hallways that would eventually turn into the show, and even though the University has countless art installations on display throughout the year, there was still a lot to do. Any build transformation starts with countless piles of timber, nails, screws, and a whole lot of paint – well that, and technicians and students working hand in hand. And work we did! For three straight weeks we were sawing, hammering, and painting like frantic art students, even though we almost do all our work on computers, for now we had to exchange Adobe Illustrator for a real life paintbrush.

Slowly, but surely, both G12 and R19 were starting to look more and more like galleries. All the monitors, projectors, art pieces, and film reels had to be finished, and time was starting to run out. The grand opening of the private view was approaching, and there was still tape on the floor in certain places! Not to mention that there were still no artist statements on any of the walls! But with multiple students and technicians working overtime during the last couple of days, we were as ready as we could be when the first guests started arriving. It was time to blow everyone away.  

So the doors opened and families started pouring in, everyone eager to see what their son, daughter, or sibling had created. And they were not disappointed! The moment you enter you see the most incredible work by the glass and metal work (not sure what this course is called?), and you right away know that this is going to be a good exhibition! After that most people had a quick pit stop at one of the booths for refreshments to cool down on this hot summer day, before venturing into the rest of the Graduation work. You would not have to walk far to get to the DFSA rooms, with the first, R19 only being a little bit down the spinal corridor and to the left. Upon entering you were met with a great projecting on the far wall of an experimental dance narrative called Gunpowder Mill. Upon looking around the room the guests could either watch two experimental pieces, one about the experience of growing up black in a white culture, and the other about the mythological Greek muses, or they could sit down comfortably in one of two sofas to watch two of the longest pieces the Grad Show had to offer, two documentaries - As a Man and A Journey with Vairavar. There were also six screens in the back showing some experimental work about how to beautifully restore cracks in your metaphorical skin using a traditional Japanese technique.

After finishing in R19, you could head straight to G12 for your next DFSA experience! In term time this space is a film studio, but our hard work turned it into a fabulous dark gallery to show our work to best advantage. Great projections about childhood memories, music videos about love, loss, loneliness, and independence, but also experimental work like Dog Favour, or Fine Art work such as Chloe Debonnaire’s critique of traditional fairy tales as projections on painted canvases. You could honestly spend an hour in this room, and you would still not be done! Everyone has worked incredibly hard to make thie curation of this work come together in such a wonderful fashion, but we’re not quite done yet! There is still the cinema room to discover! After walking for a little bit, or by following the map, if you didn’t want to risk getting lost considering how massive the university is, eventually you will find W612 – the cinema room. This is where you could enjoy a large amount of the work already on display in other rooms, plus some exclusive work, in a dark cinema setting, to set the mood properly, particularly for our two cinematic dramas. Here you could experience the almost the entire body of DFSA screen work, and watch it in peace and silence.

It was truly a magnificent graduation show with all kinds of work on display wherever you looked. It is sadly over for now, but do not worry, the grad show will be back in June 2019 with a whole new batch of work for everyone to enjoy! And if you want to watch some of work again, or for the first time if you missed the show, most of the films, animations, music videos, and experimental projects are available of the DFSA YouTube page. See you there! 

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Alumni Event 25th Jan 2018

Our Alumni Event will be on Thursday 25th January 2018 to coincide with the PV of our Y2 exhibition. The team and current students invite you back in Farnham to inspire us all and bring us up to date with your careers since graduating. A great opportunity for you to network with each other and discover the new talent coming through the course. Lunch and expenses will be provided as usual. Full details to follow - probably starting around lunchtime - so please rsvp to confirm interest rgunn@uca.ac.uk

Some Waking Woman LP

This month saw sometime DFSA tutor and alumni Owen Davey (O.D. Davey) release his 2nd album on Berlin's Tomlab Records.

Some Waking Woman LP is a follow-up to 2015's Catgut Tape LP, which included tracks recorded as part of Owen's DFSA graduate show whilst a student at Farnham.

Some Waking Woman is also a collaborative film-series between Owen and the artists Graw Bockler (Ursula Bockler and Georg Graw), which uses unedited Super8 celluloid reels, all of which are 2min 22sec long, to give a visual form to the album that reverses the traditional dynamic of the music video, whereby the video format and content submit to that of the music. In the case of this project, the songs are edited to fit the form of the Super8 reels. The reels' contents, although carefully curated by Owen and Graw Bockler to fit intuitively with each song, have a life and story of their own which is intended to trigger curiosity when contrasted with Owen's writing.



The use of celluloid also fits with the use of vinyl and the record's analogue recording techniques, creating a contemporary collection of ballads that nod in form and content to the post-modern 'crooner' records of the late 1960s that in part inspire it. Stills from the Super8 reels are used for the LP sleeve, combining with a traditional magazine design by Joe Shakespeare and forward by poet and critic Joey Connolly.

Some Waking Woman is now available in the shops and you can watch and listen to the album/film-series in full YOUTUBE.

The film series premiered at Kino Teatr this month and will screen in full for the first time at the MK Gallery on January 27th 2018. You can follow Owen's work on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK for updates on the album's touring programme and future releases.

Graduate Success

Congratulations to Dagmar Scheibenreif (one of our first graduates - around 2003 if my memory serves me correctly!) for winning Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best pretty much everything for her amazing film shot for the 48 hours film challenge. She directed and DOP - showcasing her underwater cinematography expertise. A marvellous film with a real message regarding women in film, portrayal of women in media et al. Marvelous work.

We won Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Line and got 5 further nominations #48hourfilm #DavidandBathseba shot at #Pinewood - very proud! pic.twitter.com/FUFmahnZoY

— Dagmar Scheibenreif (@DagS_Creative) October 28, 2017

Some biographies from Alumni Event

Cecilia Reed:

https://www.youtube.com/user/LadyRockUK

http://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/work-in-broadcast/article/art20150505110852965

After graduating from UCA in 2012, I spent a year working in tv and media production. I then decided to branch away using new skills learned to set up my own vision "LadyRock Productions" whose aim is to promote the Earth Sciences amongst women and the younger generations. I have been working on this full time since, whilst working part-time in various other positions (Zumba Instructing, Childminding and running After School Science Clubs with Primary kids).

Lady Rock has taken me on many adventures. After a solo research trip to Central America in 2014, the BBC's Natural History Unit invited me to join their database for Geological Communication, and hence am currently involved with a new project called Terrific Scientific within their Learning Department. During 2015/ 2016 - I worked on the "Secrets of London", A Pilot Web series about Geology in the city, which was officially selected for the 24th Annual Raindance Film Festival. I am currently in discussion with a few Heads of Development about taking it further.

After a lot of self studying, volunteering and attending free lectures at the Geological Society - I was offered the chance to continue my pursuit in Geological Learning and Communication at UCL. I am currently doing a MSc part time in Volcanology and Sociology and will be going on my first volcanic assignment in February to Ethiopia, to research the effect of the cold war upon current earth science studies in the Danakil Depression. "

Lawrence Simpson:

www.teamfourstar.com

Lawrence is currently a senior editor at Team Four Star Entertainment LLC based in Dallas, Texas. He works remotely from his home in Hampshire and uses enterprise solutions such as Skype, Slack and Google Drive in which to communicate and share files and tasks with those at the studio and those who also work remotely.

Having graduated in 2008 from UCA Farnham (when DFSA was plain old DSA!), Lawrence has been working freelance for various companies such as Comic Relief, Flixmedia and Bourne Leisure's Haven Holidays division. In his spare time, Lawrence has helped established the popular Team Four Star channel on YouTube which has upwards of 2.4 million subscribers and over half a billion views. 

All this experience has allowed Lawrence to gain an understanding of working for oneself both in new media and a standard self-employed operation. 

Anna Hawes:

http://annahawes.co.uk/ 

After graduating with a First from DSA (as it was then) in 2009, I completed my PGCE in Post-Compulsory Art and Design and began my teaching career teaching A-Levels in Filmmaking, Photography and Fine Art at Portsmouth College, Hampshire. I have recently returned to UCA as an Outreach Officer, travelling the country promoting and recruiting students to UCA. Through studying at UCA and my teaching practice I have realised my passion for arts education and my desire to work with young people to help them discover their own enthusiasm for creativity.

Craig Bilham

http://www.digitalnativescontent.com/

 Since graduating at UCA I have been working professionally in Digital Online Content for the past 6 years. I started my career at an Online video magazine called Crane.tv, in which I filmed and edited 100's of short form docs from all around the globe: Moscow to Milan, Miami to LA working with Brands along the way. After my two years there I joined a friend in Chile for 5 months to work on a start-up company, where we aimed to be the first interactive action adventure travel web series (quite a mouthful). It, unfortunately, wasn't a success. I came back to London and worked as a freelance Videographer for around 2 1/2 years. Some of my clients included Getty images (filming with Bear Grylls), V&A (Filming with Philip Treacy), Topshop (Runway show for LFW), De Beers (Filming a one off crown for the Queen's jubilee), Peugeot (filming with Ben Ingrim), H&M (filming with David Beckham). Last January I joined Digital Natives, a digital creative agency, specialising in social and online content. I'm currently working as a content creator which at my company means I'm a Director, Camera Operator, Set dresser, Photographer, Motion graphics designer, Video Editor and Cup of tea maker. 

  

Matt Fleming:

www.kodemedia.com 

Matt Fleming partnered up with Elliott Williams, Nathan Killham, Alex Harman and Jack Goodwin back in the summer of 2012 to launch Kode Media on the day of graduating DFSA. In Kode's early days, Matt's role was to manage the quick-fire turnaround content jobs. From this, Kode Red was born. Kode Red offers a solution to challenging label and agency budgets, using a pool of content directors, editors and animators. Matt is now the Managing Director of Kode Red.

Elliott Williams:

www.kodemedia.com

Elliott Williams partnered up with Matt Fleming, Nathan Killham, Alex Harman and Jack Goodwin back in the summer of 2012 to launch Kode Media on the day of graduating DFSA. Elliott is Kode Media's Head of Operations, which covers the offices in London and New York City.

Tamara Lenz:

www.kodemedia.com

Tamara Lenz is a German/Filipino and aspiring producer. After graduating from DFSA in 2015 she freelanced for half a year. After interning with Kode Media, she joined as a production assistant in January 2016. Tamara is currently training as a production manager and producer, working on both Kode Red and Music productions. 

Nathan Scrimshaw 

Since graduating from UCA Nathan built a career working for University Libraries at several institutions which has seen him co-author screen-casts, raise funding, co-manage a construction project, start a digital repository, organize conferences, coach students, study for a Masters degree at City University London, fit in some web-design and programing, and try his hand at a little visual communication and branding. Since then, and currently, he has worked for a US tech firm providing training and consultation services to libraries from all over the world both at their premises and via live webcasts. Now Nathan has returned to UCA as a Graduate Teaching Assistant with DFSA.