Projects in genres: Woman Director

Synopsis

Based on the award-winning book ‘Scala Cinema 1978-1993’ by Jane Giles (FAB Press, 2018) this feature-length big screen documentary tells the riotous inside story of the infamous sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll rep house which inspired a generation during Britain's turbulent Thatcher years. The film combines 50 new interviews with diverse audience members who went on to become filmmakers, musicians, writers, actors and artists, combined with previously unseen archive material and iconic movie clips. With its universal themes of youthful discovery and the underdog vs. the establishment, this is no nostalgia trip but rather a film of universal relevance with clear parallels between then and now. Above all, it's a hilarious and joyous celebration of cinema-going. Official Selection Il Cinema Ritrovato Bologna 2023 - World premiere Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2023

Synopsis

Annie is surprised to find that her new carer happens to be a man, a manly man, a very manly man. This beautiful and funny piece takes a dark turn with devastating consequences when Annie is let down by the system that is meant to take care of her. Official Selection Reelabilities New York Film Festival 2024

Synopsis

The extraordinary untold story of how a pioneering group of American women, from very different walks of life, fought to break into the most macho sport of all: boxing. In their day, Marian 'Lady Tyger' Trimiar, Cathy 'Cat' Davis and 'Pretty' Pat Pineda were famous, earning headlines as they battled against sexist 1970s society for the right to fight. But today, they live anonymously, and in many cases, in poverty - their groundbreaking contributions to sport ignored by the men who've written boxing history. RIGHT TO FIGHT uncovers the hidden origins of women's boxing, and the remarkable story of the pioneering women who put their lives of the line to earn the right to fight each other in the ring. This is an inspirational story, but it is not a hagiography - the narrative takes dark and surprising twists and turns as the women's stories unfold in unexpected ways. Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2023 - World premiere

Synopsis

Ste Giddings grew up with addictions in himself and those around him. At 26 he was giving up on life. STEPHEN is a film-within-a-film that combines narrative fiction with real-life observation and archive material. It takes us on intimate journeys into two characters as Ste auditions for and takes on a role in a fiction film. Produced with a mixed cast of people in addiction/recovery alongside four professional actors, the film presents alternative perspectives on urgent social questions including alcohol/drug misuse, gambling and mental health. As fiction merges with reality the separation between person, actor and character at times dissolves. Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2023 - World premiere

Synopsis

Aubrey Gordon, writes anonymously as "Your Fat Friend" about what it means to be a very fat woman in the world. Her searingly honest writing describes in intimate, humorous and unflinching detail what it’s like to be that fat person on the plane... and how the fantasies, peddled by a diet and wellness industry worth $26 billion a year, are on a par with the lies that Big Tobacco told the public in the 1950s. (95-98% of diets fail for lasting weight loss) …and about her own fractured relationship to her body. This isn’t about “body positivity” co-opted by brands to sell fat-kinis to size 16 women; it’s about fat justice and liberation with no limits. It has brought her an insatiable worldwide audience, a book deal and threats to her life. Filmed over 6 years, we follow Aubrey’s rise from anonymous blogger to best selling author and co-host of one of the biggest podcasts in the world and public figure. Chartsing how it feels to live in a very fat body, and the pain and triumph of trying to change your family... and a world where you just don’t fit. Official Selection Tribeca Film Festival 2023 - Spotlight Documentary - World premiere Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2023 - International premiere - Winner - Sheffield DocFest Audience Award 2023

Synopsis

A young novelist eager to make a name for himself begins tutoring the son of one of the most influential writers in the world. Good intentions soon give way to suspicion as darker motivations surface and the lines of master and protégé are blurred. Official Selection Tribeca Film Festival 2023 - Spotlight Narrative - World premiere

Synopsis

A meditation on growth and symbiosis, inspired by the entangled lives of fungi. Journey into a hidden world where edges blur, connection is vital and life thrives through togetherness. Official Selection Annecy International Animated Film Festival 2023

Synopsis

The film features a group of women who reside in a care home in a small market town of Sefrou, Morocco. HER PLOT OF BLUE SKY is a record of one of the days in which the Amazigh women inhabitants of the care home were seen using the cameras. The images they create - of themselves and others - are playful yet harrowing, they point to the invisibility of women, non-hetero normative, neurodiverse, functionally diverse and elderly people in media more general. Woven into the women's narratives is Rachida Madani’s poem, Tales of a Severed Head.

Synopsis

For eight years, 68-year-old Louise has been looking after her mum Rita, who is 92 and living with dementia. As both women grapple with Rita’s rapidly deteriorating condition, Louise must decide the best path forward for both herself and her mother.

Synopsis

English Occultist Aleister Crowley reminiscences his love affair with Herbert Charles Pollitt.

Synopsis

A UK sweatshop, 1987. Management is desperate to dispel the mysterious phenomenon spreading amongst the seamstresses: full-body possessions. Instead, the oppressive environment puts three women on a collision course with the draconian factory foreman and causes one sceptical worker to realise what she's witnessing isn't mass hysteria—it's a strike.

Synopsis

A charismatic teacher joins an elite boarding school and introduces a new subject to students she calls “conscious eating”. She forms a strong bond with five students. Under her lead, the teenage students begin to challenge social norms by reducing their food consumption, until things begin to take a dangerous turn. Official Selection Cannes Film Festival 2023 - Competition - World premiere Official Selection Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2023