Every year, the BBC National Short Story Award contains some real gems of short fiction — and you can download the audio versions to listen to at leisure. Previous awards have been given to both unknown authors and well-established ones. This year, all five authors on the shortlist are women. Their stories have protagonists ranging … Continue reading “National Short Story Award to Listen to and Keep”
From 28 September to 2 October, Dinard will celebrate the 27th edition of its British Film Festival. This year, the jury will be headed by French director Claude Lelouch who will personally award the Golden Hitchcock. There are six films in competition and a whole host of homages and premieres, to catch the best new … Continue reading “Dinard British Film Festival”
This movie is about an under-recognized piece of America’s past. Set during the Civil War, it tells the true story of Newton Knight, a poor farmer from Mississippi who led a revolt against the Confederacy and created a state where black and white people could live together: the Free State of Jones. Newton Knight, played … Continue reading “Free State of Jones: Fighting for Freedom”
Michael Moore’s new documentary film has a typically tongue-in-cheek title, Where to Invade Next. Moore decides that since the U.S.A. has a propensity for invading other countries it should do so for the right reasons. He sets off in search of countries that have things to teach the U.S.A. Michael Moore is that rare (or … Continue reading “Michael Moore: Where to Invade Next”
Quentin Blake’s illustrations are instantly recognisable to anyone who has ever read a Roald Dahl’s children’s book. And now he has illustrated a long-lost story by Beatrix Potter. Blake’s illustrations have helped form generations of readers’ image of Roald Dahl’s characters. When Blake was asked to illustrate Roald Dahl’s first book for younger children, The … Continue reading “Quentin Blake Brings Roald Dahl and Beatrix Potter to Life”
The Deauville American Film Festival’s 42nd edition ended Saturday night September 10th. A total of 14 films were in competition for this prizes. Little Men (Brooklyn Village), by Ira Sachs won the Grand Prize. Little Men is a drama which tells the story of a family that inherits a house in Brooklyn. The ground floor … Continue reading “Deauville American Film Festival’s awards 2016”
A film about life on a Native American reservation is part of an afternoon of events exploring life for Native Americans today at the America Festival in Vincennes on Saturday 10 September. Songs My Brothers Taught Me takes place on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation (South Dakota). For her first movie, Chloe Zhao, a young … Continue reading “Songs and Stories of an Indian Reservation”
Brooklyn is a beautiful coming-of-age story set in 1950s rural Ireland and Brooklyn, New York. A tale of immigration, family duty and love, it was a modern classic as a novel and now a film. Irish author Colm Tóibín* set half the novel in his home town of Enniscorthy, on Ireland’s south-eastern tip, sleepy, rural … Continue reading “Brooklyn”
The Dinard British Film Festival will take place from 28 September to 2 October. But put your requests in now for the schools festival from 19 to 27 September! The schools festival gives class groups a chance to see some recent British film productions suited to their age groups, and some great teaching themes. The … Continue reading “Dinard British Film Festival for Schools”
In 2016, Britain is commemorating the 400th anniversary of the death of Shakespeare. Kick off the celebrations with the most recent film adaptation of “the Scottish play”, Macbeth, starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard as the ambitious couple who will stop at nothing to gain and keep power. But how accurate is Shakespeare’s portrayal of … Continue reading “Macbeth: Fact and Fiction”
