September 2010
AUTUMN FILM WORKSHOP   27 September – 8 October 2010

Organised by

Parallax Media

Supported by

Iran Heritage Foundation, British Council and Royal College of Art.

Introduction

The Autumn Film Workshop offers talented filmmakers the opportunity to make a short film in a set timeframe. It is a special bespoke programme, designed for emerging film directors who are able to demonstrate a strong personal or auteurist vision. A total of six participants will be selected for the scheme, which will run full-time for twelve consecutive days in London.

A central focus of the workshop will be British and Iranian filmmaking methods, with inquiries into the relationship between documentary and fictional forms and the blurring of the boundaries between the two. The workshop will be a meeting between traditions, a cross-pollination of Iranian sensibilities and British forms. Both countries' film traditions developed separately but were at various points influenced by neo-realism and verité approaches.

The Autumn Film Workshop is suited to filmmakers who can demonstrate the ability to work with very small budgets to realise an original concept. They must have experience using digital film cameras and editing software, and be adept at working in groups as well as individually.

Filmmakers will work from a short documentary treatment or fictional script (based on the one originally submitted in their applications). The projects will be required to have feasible production outcomes with an emphasis on storytelling, and the treatments will go through feedback sessions with experienced tutors.

The workshop will cover all stages of production, from first reading of the script to a breakdown of the director's preparation in detail, ending with a signing off on the final cut. Participants will be encouraged to use shooting time efficiently to secure the coverage needed in post-production, and they will learn how to anticipate and overcome unforeseen challenges that may arise.

At the end of the workshop, completed films in their initial edit stage will be screened to an invited audience of film professionals. A subsequent completion period of six weekends will allow each filmmaker the time to complete his/her project to a high standard.

The Autumn Film Workshop will be based at the Royal College of Art and will be led by James Neil, a film practitioner and curator, with Reza Haeri, an award-winning documentary filmmaker from Tehran. A number of additional tutors will lead sessions. What makes this workshop particularly unique and rewarding is the provision of film-making equipment, the benefits of group collaboration, and the high quality mentoring by a contemporary Iranian film-maker.

Application

For further information email: info@parallaxmedia.org.uk.
Application forms can be downloaded here; the deadline is 18 September 2010.

Workshop Leaders

Reza Haeri is an Iranian filmmaker and producer of documentary and short films. He lives in Tehran where he is involved in a local periodical. Reza has presented his work in numerous film festivals including IDFA in the Netherlands and Hotdocs in Canada. His films include: 127:An Iranian Band, Final Fitting, All Restrictions End (screened at the Berlinale Expanded Forum), and FYI London Underground. He is Director of International Affairs for the Iranian Documentary Filmmakers Association.

James Neil is a film practitioner and curator. He has worked as a cinematographer and script consultant on short films and documentaries and has led 16mm filmmaking workshops. He co-curated the Women’s Cinema from Tangiers to Tehran film festival, the African programme of All Power to the Imagination: 1968 and its Legacies, as well as other specialist film programmes. James has written for film publications and is editor of the forthcoming book Middle Eastern Cinema.

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