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Future Shorts Festival- Spring Programme at The Hackney Picturehouse

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Time 21:15
Date 05/03/12
Price £10

Future Shorts returns with its new Spring Season programme of world-class short films.

Highlights include Nash Edgerton's Cannes and Sundance hit BEAR, the follow-up to his sensational SPIDER; Sam Taylor-Wood's BAFTA-nominated LOVE YOU MORE; the latest short from Spike Jonze; and Amy Grappell's four-way-affair documentary, QUADRANGLE.

The Future Shorts Festival is the biggest pop-up film festival of its kind, showcasing the most exciting short films from around the world. Since it launched at the Hackney Picturehouse in November 2011, screenings have taken place in over 144 cities and 55 countries with an audience of more than 25,000 people experiencing the best short films, often alongside live music, DJs and art. From London to Tokyo, Cairo to Kabul, screenings have taken place across a massive network of music halls, cinemas, theatres, galleries, clubs, bars and warehouses.

Total running time: 90 mins.

PROGRAMME:. MOURIR AUPRÈS DE TOI – Spike Jonze and Simon Cahn. Created from 3,000 hand-cut pieces of felt, Jonze's tragicomic stop-motion animation takes place in an old Parisian bookshop where, at night, the covers come to life. It's the story of a felt skeleton who falls in love with a beautiful and sassy vixen. Co-directed by filmmaker Simon Cahn with designs by Olympia Le-Tan, this Cannes- selected short is sweet, sad, spooky and a bit whimsical. Jonze said, "A short is like a sketch. You can have an idea or a feeling and just go and do it.".

BEAR - Nash Edgerton Australia 2011, 11 mins. Edgerton wrote, directed and starred in BEAR, the sequel to SPIDER (2007). The film unravels Jack's tangled relationship and examines whether he's learned his lesson or not. Described as a black comedy without social commentary, BEAR is a follow-up but also stands up on its own. "Because I tend to play things fairly straight and never set things up as if they are a drama or a comedy, the audience doesn't know what it's going to be, and something about that really works," said Edgerton.

THE MAN WITHOUT A HEAD – Juan Solanas France 2003, 18 mins. Created over four years, Solanas' short debut is the story of a man who lives alone, headless, in a room overlooking a vast industrial space. Visually astounding and technically accomplished, this animated short reveals love and happiness, and one man's pursuit for romance amidst life without a head. "We're living in a period when cinema is a product; movies are becoming more and more commercialized. Short films are one of the last real places for artistic freedom - they're important to celebrate just for that," said Solanas. QUADRANGLE – Amy Grappell USA 2010, 20 mins. An examination of a four-way affair, this documentary explores the story of two 'conventional' couples who swap partners and live in a group marriage in the early 1970s. Set in Long Island, New York, this domestic experiment challenges the boundaries of social convention, marriage, monogamy and desire. "Inspired by the discovery of my father’s photographs, taken at the height of the poly-amorous affair, and in an effort to come to terms with my own past, I decided to interview my parents. The film does not propose answers and strives to remain objective. It explores two people in a certain time. It tells a story," said Grappell.

LOVE YOU MORE – Sam Taylor-Wood UK 2007, 15 mins. Inspired by the hit song 'Love You More' by the Buzzcocks, this short is the tale of two punk lovers, Georgia and Peter, in London, 1978. Tender and exploratory, this short film directorial debut by Taylor-Wood was written by Oscar nominee Patrick Marber and produced by the late Anthony Minghella.

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