World Music at Birds Eye View Film Festival

London, England – Birds Eye View film festival presents six days of inspiration and celebration, showcasing the very best work from women filmmakers. The event will be held 8-14th March 2007 at NFT, ICA, Barbican. The festival features live music to silent film, including world music e.g. Shri Sriram, Rita Ray and Seaming To.

The 2007 program of innovative and original events including international feature films, shorts, documentaries, master classes, ‘bring a baby’ screenings and director Q&As.

Sounds and Silents: Live Music & Silent Film – 2 Events

Barbican & Optronica, NFT

2 programs of short silent films made by women directors, from early pioneers to contemporary artists, with specially composed & original soundtracks performed live by cutting-edge women musicians. Expect a variety of styles and genres for both ears and eyes: innovative and inspirational.

1 – BARBICAN – SUNDAY 11TH MARCH, 3PM

Early surrealist cinema from pioneer women filmmakers Dulac and Deren, with groundbreaking new music composed by Seaming To (“…the voice of the 21st century…” Radio One) and Errolyn Wallen

Booking details: Tickets £11.50/£9 concessions
Buy tickets online at www.barbican.org.uk or call 020 7638 8891 during opening hours.

THE FILMS:

THE SMILING MADAME BEUDET (La Souriante Madame Beudet)
[Germaine Dulac, France, 1922, 35’]

Made by one of the first female directors, Germaine Dulac, in the 1920’s, "The Smiling Madame Beudet" is lauded as the first feminist film ever made.

It is the story of an intelligent woman trapped in a loveless marriage. Her husband is used to playing a stupid practical joke in which he puts an empty revolver to his head and threatens to shoot himself. One day, while the husband is away, she puts bullets in the revolver. However, she is stricken with remorse and tries to retrieve the bullets the next morning. Her husband gets to the revolver first only this time he points the revolver at her.

MESHES OF THE AFTERNOON
[Maya Deren, US, 1943, 18’]

One of the most influential works in American experimental cinema. A non-narrative work, it has been identified as a key example of the "trance film," in which a protagonist appears in a dreamlike state, and where the camera conveys his or her subjective focus.

 The central figure in Meshes of the Afternoon, played by Deren, is attuned to her unconscious mind and caught in a web of dream events that spill over into reality. Symbolic objects recur throughout the film; events are open-ended and interrupted. Deren explained that she wanted "to put on film the feeling which a human being experiences about an incident, rather than to record the incident accurately."

AT LAND
[Maya Deren, US, 1944, 15”]
In her second experimental film, Deren stars as a woman journeying through different and confusing landscapes, trying to reach a deeper knowledge of her own desires.

THE MUSICIANS:

Errollyn Wallen

Wallen’s award-winning music is featured on numerous recordings including the Brodsky Quartet’s ‘Moodswings’. Her own CDs include Meet Me at Harold Moores, The Girl in My Alphabet and Errollyn and her multi-media show Jordan Town, was a sell-out hit at the Edinburgh Festival.

The motto of Errollyn Wallen’s Ensemble X, “we don’t break down barriers in music … we don’t see any”, reflects her genuine, free-spirited approach and eclectic musicianship. Wallen’s compositions range from avant-garde classical to popular song writing; she moves freely among influences from Bach to gospel, and Bill Evans to Charles Ives. www.errollynwallen.com.

Seaming To

Vocalist, multi-intrumentalist and composer, Seaming To has contributed her unique operatic vocals to Homelife’s last few albums for Ninja Tune and recorded with Mr. Scruff on his album Trouser Jazz. She has finally managed to piece together her first solo record – already attracting a mass of attention from a huddle of artists queuing up to work with her. www.myspace.com/seaming.

Camberwell Composers Collective:
Anna Meredith & Emily Hall are composers who studied together at the Royal College of Music. As the Camberwell Composers Collective they have received many commissions, prizes and awards, including The Genesis Opera Prize, and The Royal Philharmonic Award.

www.annameredith.com, www.emilyhall.co.uk

2 – NFT, OPTRONICA FESTIVAL – SUNDAY 18TH MARCH, 5.30PM

An exceptional opportunity to hear specially-written music by Joanna MacGregor (“the most energising force in contemporary music”, The Independent), performed live in collaboration with DJ Rita Ray, to a varied selection of short silent films, from hilarious comedy by the very first woman director (Alice Guy Blaché), to stunning contemporary animation.

This event is part of Optronica, a music and film festival hybrid exploring the fusion of music and visuals, and features live audiovisual performances, screenings, talks, workshops and related special presentations.

Tickets: £11.50/ £8.25 concessions
Booking details: The NFT box office is open daily 11.30am – 8.30pm on 020 7928 3232. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the NFT, Upper Ground, South Bank SE1, Mon – Thu: 5pm to 8.30pm, Fri – Sun: 11.30am to 8.30pm. www.bfi.org.uk/nft.

THE FILMS:

Daisy Doodad’s Dial (UK 1914, 6’) – Florence Turner
Brilliantly entertaining British comedy, featuring Turner herself as rubber-faced Daisy.
Jetsam (UK 2002, 2’ 30”) – Sonia Bridge
A fascinating high-speed experimental short celebrating the everyday.
Sap (UK 2002, 8’) – Hyun-Joo Kim
Animation in the style of a Korean folk tale that makes use of delicate oil-on-glass animation techniques.
Suspense (USA 1913, 8’) – Lois Weber and Philip Smalley
Innovative early thriller using groundbreaking split-screen techniques.
Missing People (UK 2003, 6’ 30”) – Kathy Hinde
A hypnotic film from one of Joanna Macgregor’s most frequent collaborators.
The Grasshopper and the Ant (UK 1954, 11’) – Lotte Reiniger
Remarkable shadow-puppet animation from the first filmmaker, male or female, to direct a full-length animated feature film.

THE MUSICIANS:

Joanna MacGregor
is thought of as one of todays most wide-ranging and innovative musicians ands divides her time playing classical, jazz and contemporary music. She has performed in over fifty countries, often appearing as solo artist with many of the world’s leading orchestras. www.soundcircus.com

Rita Ray
club DJ (The Shrine) and regular presenter and contributor to radio, co-hosted the BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards in 2002 and 2003, presented Festival in the Desert from Mali and Womad UK 2004 for BBC4 (TV) and compiles the annual World Music Awards CD.

Shri Sriram
Born and brought up in down town Bombay and raised as a classical tabla player, Shri turned tradition on its head by developing a more groove orientated playing style in his early teens. As time progressed, he adapted his innovative feel for percussion to other instruments, notably the bamboo flute and his self-made fretless bass. His diverse experiences are absorbed in his compositions, rolling drum’n’bass, sublime filmic trances and funky grooves which travel the length and breadth of deepest India to deepest South London. Truly new Asian music. www.shri.co.uk

For full program information, visit www.birds-eye-view.co.uk