There are new films in the LRC by Walter Hill and Terence Davies. Both directors could be considered to be Auteur’s. The films of Walter Hill include the cult film The Warriors which is about New York street gangs and Southern Comfort a Deliverance style thriller. In contrast to this Terence Davies is a British filmmaker and his films include Distant Voices, Still Lives which is set in 1940’s -1950’s Liverpool and draws upon Davies own experiences growing up. The film was described as ‘Britain’s forgotten cinematic masterpiece” by The Guardian. Please take out the films and let your teacher know what you thought.

This evening at 18.20 there will be a screening of Terence Davies’s new film followed by a Q & A. This is a fantastic opportunity to hear one of Britain’s best directors speak about their work.

Well done to those who went to London to use the BFI library

If you are still looking for sources for your auteur study try the BFI’s 16+ study guides.

Following on from last years successful trip to New York we are pleased to be running the trip again. The trip includes numerous visits to the cinema to watch a variety of films, a trip to the Museum of the Moving Image, a visit to the Empire State Building and much more. The trip is open to all AS Film students and we will be going with Photography. For more information please see your class teacher.

Cambridge is lucky to have one of the best Film Festivals in the country and as film students you should take advantage of this. It runs from the 18th-28th of September and has a range of special events taking place including a screening of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001:A Space Odyssey on the 13th and 14th of September at the Institute of Astronomy. A set of riverside screenings along the Cam, a wide range of documentaries as well as a number of UK premieres. You can find out more on the film festival website.

Thursday 5th June @ the Picturehouse cinema @ 6pm a screening of In Search Of A Midnight Kiss followed by a live Q&A with the director and two lead actors. This is a fantastic opportunity to watch an American ‘indie’ film and quiz the director.

Should you want any extra help for Film Studies in the run up to your exams there will be an opportunity on Monday 12th May. Barney will be available in the LRC from 1pm. This is primarily for students sitting the AS exams FS2 and FS3.

A2 students  should speak to their class teacher to discuss when they are available. There will be a member of staff available from 3pm-4pm on Monday 2nd June, Tuesday 3rd June and Wednesday 4th June. From the 9th June more times will be posted.

Good Luck!

If you fancy yourself as a budding film reviewer then this is the competition for you! You need to write a 250 word review of a film you have watched at the cinema. The film must have been on general release in 2008 and watched at the cinema. Should you wish to enter you can find out more information at www.youngfilmcritic.org and they also offer some top tips which are useful. The closing date is Thursday 31st July 2008. Good Luck!

The Third Man is the focus film for Year 12 students. A useful website is the screenonline one which has information about cast and crew alongside clips from the film. Remember that you are looking at the following areas in relation to the film:

• Context
• Intertextuality
• Ideology
• FIlm Language
• Audience/Critical response

To help you with the censorship topic it would be useful to look at both the BBFC website and also the SBBFC (Student BBFC) website. Both of these sites contain very useful information about censorship and how it works in the UK. The SBBFC website also has a number of useful case studies that examine specific films and issues surrounding them.