During the ‘UK Geniuses’ session, the short films Aventure Malgache by Alfred Hitchcock; Boy and Bicycle by Ridley Scott; and The London Story by Sally Potter will be screened.
The session, which has been made possible thanks to the collaboration of the British Council, will take place on Sunday, 20 October at 5:00 pm at the Zorrilla Theatre.
The British presence at FILMETS will be completed with the screening of the two award-winning shorts and other six nominees at this year’s BAFTA Awards, as well as a monographic session dedicated to Flare Films, nine LGBT-themed short films.
Aventure Malgache by Alfred Hitchcock
Under the name ‘UK Geniuses,’ the FILMETS Badalona Film Festival has prepared a special session for this year’s edition. During the session, which has been made possible thanks to the collaboration of the British Council, the audience will be able to see three short films by Alfred Hitchcock, Ridley Scott and Sally Potter. The screening will take place on Sunday, 20 October at 5:00 pm at the Zorrilla Theatre.
During the ‘UK Geniuses’ session, the following short films will be screened:
- Aventure Malgache by Alfred Hitchcock.
- Boy and Bicycle by Ridley Scott.
- The London Story by Sally Potter.
‘UK Geniuses’ will be the prelude to another session called ‘Focus United Kingdom,’ in which eight short films – two winners and six nominees of the 2019 BAFTA Awards, the prestigious awards of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts – can be seen.
The official competition ‘Focus United Kingdom’ will take place on Sunday, 20 October at 7:00 pm at the Zorrilla Theatre. The event will conclude with a Q&A session attended by some of the directors of the shorts, such as Paul Taylor and Angela Clarke, the producer Abigail Addison and Greg McLeod.
The British section of FILMETS will also feature the screening on 19 October at 9 pm of Flare Films, the nine short films included in the poster of 2019 BFI Flare, the London LGBT film festival.
Films included in the ‘UK Geniuses’ session
- Aventure Malgache by Alfred Hitchcock
Directed in 1944, this short film is a 31-minute thriller shot in French.
Synopsis: a French resistance fighter reveals to his lover secrets that she later passes on to the Vichy authorities. The plot focuses on the discord between the French when they dealt with matters related to the German army and the complex situation of Vichy collaborators in Madagascar.
- Boy and Bicycle by Ridley Scott
Filmed in 1965, this short is a 25-minute drama with music by John Barry.
Synopsis: the protagonist of the film is Tony Scott, the younger brother of Ridley, who later became a director and committed suicide in 2012 at the age of 68.
Shot in West Hartlepool and Seaton Carew, Boy and Bicycle shows a student spending a day away from school, cycling around the factory sites and deserted beach of his town, as if he were the only living being in the world.
Boy and Bicycle by Ridley Scott
- The London Story by Sally Potter
Filmed in 1986, this 15-minute short film is a spy parody humorously choreographed and shot in London’s most famous and popular places.
Synopsis: the plot revolves around the unlikely alliance between three eccentric characters with the mission of overthrowing the British government. It is an anti-Margaret Thatcher satire and also parodies Hollywood productions. The film is choreographed to the strains of Sergei Prokofiev’s famous ballet, Romeo and Juliet.
The director, who would go on to make films of the likes of Orlando (1992) and the more recent The Party (2017), first made an impact with the film Thriller (1979), a feminist deconstruction of the Puccini opera La Bohème, where she questioned the role of romantic heroines.
The London Story by Sally Potter
About the British Council
The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. Through British culture, it contributes to the well-being of citizens and the transformation of their lives by creating opportunities, establishing links and building mutual trust.
It collaborates with more than one hundred countries in the field of art and culture, the English language, education and civil society. Last year, it came into face-to-face contact with more than 80 million people through its projects and into virtual contact with 791 million thanks to his broadcasts, publications and digital products.
It has been present in Spain since 1940, currently carrying out its work at these centres. Each year, it reaches thousands of students, educators, policy makers, academics, researchers, creators and Spanish entrepreneurs. Expand details about the its work in Spain.
