Projects matching: Finlay Pretsell

Synopsis

Under the skin of Douglas Gordon, probing what it means to be an artist. Capturing the chaotic energy of a working studio and blurring the lines between art, performance, and reality. The filmmaker's presence challenges the authenticity of the process, exposing the tensions, collaboration, and unpredictability of documenting a boundary-pushing artist.

Synopsis

Will, a frustrated animator, records a message to his mother. He explains “confessionally” that the film he was trying to make with his collaborator, Ainslie Henderson, failed. It was a film that they were making about her, after she contracted mouth cancer 5 years ago. He explains the purpose of him talking to her now, in a candid way about it, might just be the final closure his Mum and family need. Why did he invent an imaginary cat called DOM who exists only on his computer and begins to get in the way? Needing to move on, the film they shot and animated will now explain what they were trying to do. The film plays out from Will’s perspective today, a composition of thoughts, images and scenes - reflecting and editing together a letter to his mother. A self-reflective and self-referential film that blurs the lines between fiction and nonfiction. This video message or ‘letter’ to her is a device that guides the film’s narrative. As if being ‘live edited’ the film has a playful urgency, enabling the viewer to authentically experience the journey with Will and the other characters.

Synopsis

Following artist Bill Drummond over two years of his 12-year World Tour: At work in Kolkata, India, and in Lexington, North Carolina, doing his self-imposed 'work' – building beds, baking cakes, making soup, shining shoes – to the variously amused, perplexed or annoyed reactions of those around him.

Synopsis

Focusing on the final races of cyclist David Millar’s career, leading up to his last encounter with the Tour de France. The camera goes inside the peloton, is pushed up impossible climbs and forced down rapid descents, lies alongside David in his hotel room in post-race agony. The camera also rides in the support car, the source of comfort, supplies and fleeting relief from the cold. And all in the knowledge that every mile travelled is a mile closer to the end. This film reveals how the human spirit is driven by a force deeper than success and glory. Official Selection IDFA 2017 - World premiere

Synopsis

A father and son live a reclusive lifestyle in the middle of nowhere. The man, a disillusioned mercenary, has his final target in sight - a gang of foreign revolutionaries who lay low in a nearby derelict compound. As the man closes in on his target the boy falls for the revolutionaries' serving girl. Having spent his whole life in isolation the boy now discovers the warmth of friendship and the pleasures of something more. As father and son collide the boy is sent running, running in pain and full of betrayal, straight into the twisted embittered arms of the boy's maternal grandparents, who have come to snatch and save the boy. Figuring out what is right and wrong, what is good and bad is a task for both the man and the audience. International Film Festival Rotterdam 2015 - World premiere

Synopsis

“I’m trusted with a pair of scissors and I’m in here for murder”. Prison life in the build up to the annual Scottish Prison Service hairdressing competition. Winning the coveted prize is the ultimate goal, but Francis, the current champion has other objectives on his mind. We hear dreams and aspirations of some of Scotland’s most dangerous prisoners turning their lives around through cutting the hair of fellow inmates on a daily basis. “10 minutes in here is like 10 minutes outside jail” We discover how hairdressing is helping many of Scotland’s prisoners come to terms with their crimes and preparing them for life outside.

Synopsis

“Ballet dancers get dodgy feet from dancing and I get dodgy hands from making their shoes!” Ballet shoes may be worn by delicate girls, but they’re crafted by burly men whose hands tell another story... We delve into the world of professional ballet dancing seen through the eyes of a shoemaker who desperately strives to save the dancer as much pain as possible by making the shoes as well as he can. Meanwhile, a seasoned dancer talks of the pain she went through dancing at the highest level. An undiscovered world behind the pomp and perfection.

Synopsis

Bench Pressing isn’t a hobby for 73 year old Bill McFadyen – it’s a way of life. Stranraer’s very own bench press champion is on a quest to be the best in the world.