Newsflash

International Documentary Festival, Sheffield 23-30 Mars 1994

At the first international documentary festival to be held in the UK, some of the world’s leading documentary films and film-makers will be showcased, along with daily Masterclasses with directors such as Michael Grigsby, Valerie Lalonde and Sundance award-winning cinematographer Ellen Kuras.

To mark the 50th anniversary of D-Day, the ‘Under Fire’ strand of the Festival features classic American documentaries by John Huston and William Wyler, together with a special tribute to the great documentarist of World War II, Humphrey Jennings. The Imperial War Museum will present a series of rare archival screenings, and a further retrospective of ‘Cinema Verité USA’ will feature a personal appearance by Richard Leacock.

Of special interest to Vertigo readers is the ‘Briefing Day for Independents’ on Monday 28 Mar from 10.00 to 17.00, with presentations by Channel 4, BBC, DGX Documentary, ITV Network, Yorkshire Television and the UK Media Desk. There is a £10 registration fee, which covers light refreshments. Vertigo will also be there to discuss this issue and to listen to readers’ feedback.

A ‘Festival Delegate Screening Series’ specifically designed for working professionals will be presented on Friday evening 25 March to Sunday 27 March. On the Friday evening, to celebrate the British documentary tradition, Wilf Stevenson, the director of the BFI, will introduce Humphrey Jennings’ Diary For Timothy and Michael Grigsby will screen his film The Time of Our Lives. During the weekend Marcel Ophuls will fly in from Paris to present a work-in-progress on war reporting – The Troubles We've Seen.

‘European Showcase’ will feature Victor Kossakovsky, the 1993 winner of the Joris Ivens award for The Belovs. Ellen Kuras will screen her film Only the Brave, a documentary feature on bullfighting, which marks the directorial debut of Sonia Herman Dolz.

There are numerous other events. For further details contact: Festival Office, The Workstation, 15 Paternoster Row, Sheffield S1 2BX; Tel 0742-796511, Fax 0742-796522.