Deaffest | The UK's leading Deaf Film & TV Festival | www.deaffest.co.uk

Attention filmmakers! Opportunity with Mica Runway 2010.

deaffest — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 16:43:10 +0000

A sunny weekend for Deaffest 2010

deaffest — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 14:17:46 +0000

This year’s Deaffest enjoyed heatwave weather thanks to its new date in May and we hope you enjoyed the jam-packed weekend, from the films to the face paints! Stephen Collins was announced as the winner of the Ben Steiner Bursary and we look forward to seeing his film at Deaffest 2011. And Louise Neethling won Best in Festival for his moving drama Departure Lounge. Read more about the weekend here.

If you took photos over the weekend email them to info@light-house.co.uk and we will add them to our flickr set. You can see some photos taken by Rebecca Vaughan during the weekend here.

Deaffest 2011 will be held on Fri 20 – Sun 22 May next year so save the date and keep an eye on the website for more info about film submissions for the next festival.

Festival programme now confirmed!

deaffest — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 15:04:42 +0000

Check out the full weekend programme for Deaffest 2010 with highlights including…

A selection of short films from Encounters International Film Festival specially subtitled for Deaffest 2010.
An insight into the BSLBT and a screening of some of the short films they have screened.
International Deaf films from Hong Kong, Norway, Singapore, Bulgaria, Australia, Finland and France.
Pitching sessions from the hopefuls for this year’s Ben Steiner Bursary and a chance to see the winning film from last year’s Bursary, Dead Money by Bim Ajadi.
Award for the Best in Festival presented on the Saturday night of the festival.
Face painting and balloon fun for families and an information fair from local and national organisations.
A free subtitled screening of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland.

And best of all admission to Deaffest this year is completely free!!

We look forward to seeing you in May! Check out the Plan Your Visit page for info on booking accomodation and travel for the weekend of the festival.

Deaffest 2010 goes Stateside!!!

deaffest — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:53:29 +0000

Filmmakers submitting films to this year’s Deaffest could now have the opportunity to have their short film screened via the Sorenson Communications Video Center which is used by Deaf communities all over the U.S. Sorenson Communications is the leading provider of world-class communication offerings for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community in the U.S.

In order for your film to be eligible for this opportunity it must be no more than 10 minutes in length, family friendly and submitted in American Sign Language or subtitled in English. If your film fits this criteria then fill in the Sorenson Opportunity – Submission Form 2010 and return it with your film to the address provided. If you have already sent your film to Deaffest, you can still fill in this form separately and email it to: marcella@zebra-uno.com.

Find out more.

The Ben Steiner Bursary 2010

deaffest — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:33:00 +0000

Deaffest is pleased to announce that the Ben Steiner Bursary is available once again. This Bursary was first launched in 2009 and successfully premiered its first Bursary winner’s film at Deaffest 2009. This year we are giving Deaf media practitioners another opportunity t0 produce a film to be premiered exclusively in 2011.

We are now welcoming applications for 2010. Please visit the Ben Steiner Bursary page for more details.

European Deaf Cinema Seminar

Deaffest — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 09:26:30 +0000

Photos were taken by Rene van Rjin

From Friday 15 to Sunday 17 January, Deaffest Co-ordinator Marcella and her assistant Louise flew to Amsterdam to attend a seminar at the Cinema Het Ketelhuis.

Hosted by Deaf in the Picture festival organiser Tony Bloem, Managing Director Alex de Ronde and Visual Communication Maker Bart Koolen, the seminar took place over the weekend period. International filmmakers and festival organisers from the Netherlands, Italy and France have participated in this proactive discussion regarding the EDC (European Deaf Cinema) where experiences and expertise were exchanged.

The participants were welcomed on Friday night with a summary of what was to happen the next day. With an early start on the Saturday morning, the discussion ran from 10am till 7pm including establishing the goals of the EDC. Future prospects were shared and discussed amongst the participants. The introduction of the EU (European Union) and EUD (European Union of Deaf) was presented by Executive Director of the EUD Mark Wheatley.

Saturday evening was packed with films produced by the participants including Fire Signs by David Bowie, Doof Opgelucht by Bosch school & Tony Bloem, Coming Home and Departure Lounge by Louis Neethling, Deaf in the Picture 2007 by Tim de Graaf, Amsterdam Visual News by Bart Koolen and Dead Money by Bim Ajadi, winner of the 2009 Ben Steiner Bursary.

With many thanks to the hosts and participants, the weekend was very valuable.

Deaffest 2010 submissions now open!

deaffest — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 16:06:33 +0000

You can now download the Deaffest 2010 Submissions Form and submit your film to Deaffest 2010.

This application process is for films to be screened during the festival programme and entered into the Best in Festival award, which will credit the most outstanding film in Deaffest 2010 and offer the winner recognition and publicity in association with the festival. Films entered for submission must be returned with this form by Wed 31 Mar 2010. Check the form for entry criteria.

Good luck!

Deaffest 2010 coming soon!

deaffest — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:39:04 +0000

From 2010 onwards Deaffest will be held in the summer. This year the festival will be from 21 to 23 May at Light House Media Centre. The festival team are currently starting to programme this year’s festival and we will announce more details soon. One thing we can guarantee is that the courtyard in the historic Chubb Buildings will be sunnier and warmer this year (fingers crossed!).

Put the date in your diaries and we will see you in the summer!

Wanted…

deaffest — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:58:14 +0000

Success at Deaffest 2009

deaffest — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:27:38 +0000

After a very busy weekend Deaffest 2009 went with a bang and was a massive success! The weekend saw attendances of 1300 people with a diverse mix of Deaf and hearing filmmakers, media practitioners, industry organisations, students and the general public from across the UK and overseas. The festival showcased films directed and produced by Deaf filmmakers from the UK and all around the world including Spain, Ireland, New Zealand, South Korea and Israel.

Deaffest Film & TV Gala Awards

We were pleased to have such special guests as Sabina Iqbal, founder of Deaf Parenting UK and nominated as one of the most powerful Muslim Women in Britain by The Times, Australian comedian Rob Roy on his world tour and Matt Littler and Darren Jeffries, previously known as Max and OB from Hollyoaks, who talked about their varied television and presenting career at Young Deaffest. Read more about the weekend.

Matt Littler and Darren Jeffries at Deaffest

Deaffest will be moving to May from 2010 with the dates of the next festival set for 21 – 23 May 2010. See you next year!