Placement Spotlight: London Short Film Festival

I recently completed a placement with the London Short Film Festival where I was able to curate, introduce and run two special event screenings at the Institute of Contemporary Arts. The first explored the relationship between art spaces and (de)colonialism across a series of shorts from different historical and national contexts. The second surveyed the history of housing struggles in British political and artists filmmaking, with a post-screening panel of contemporary housing organisers. I also commissioned a series of critical essays, interviews and programme notes for ten of the festival’s screenings. These were handed out to attendees prior to the screening to serve as a critical frame for the films and offer impetus for discussion and thought post-screening.

The placement has allowed me to keep up my curatorial practice which I believe is crucial to my film research, enabling me to revive under screened works and re-engage them with a contemporary context. Equally, the opportunity to commission a series of texts offered an excellent opportunity for collaboration and connection with several peers and colleagues working and writing on similar areas of film practice.

I would strongly recommend undertaking a placement if you can locate an organisation sympathetic and interested in the areas of research and practice you wish to undertake. The London Short Film Festival has a long history of supporting radical and artists’ filmmaking in the UK making them a perfect fit for my own interests and commitments.