Discounted Sheffield Doc/Fest tickets for Docheads members

• By Katharine
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Doc Heads members have access to a limited number of special passes at a discounted rate of £219+VAT on a first-come, first-served basis. Please login to see more about how to claim your pass.

New events at Union Chapel in July – including Q&A screening of Five Broken Cameras

• By Katharine
• 19 Comments

New dates added for our second season of Docheads – we’ll be screening on 14th June at Ritzy Brixton, 21st at Hackney Picturehouse, 29th at Crouch End Picturehouse with a final date on 18th July at the Union Chapel in Islington.

We’re also thrilled to be hosting a special Q&A screening of Oscar-nominated Five Broken Cameras with co-director Emad Burnat in attendance.

An extraordinary work of both cinematic and political activism, the film is a deeply personal, first-hand account of non-violent resistance in Bil’in, a West Bank village threatened by encroaching Israeli settlements.

Shot almost entirely by Palestinian farmer Emad Burnat, who bought his first camera in 2005 to record the birth of his youngest son Gibreel, the footage spans five years in his village, Bil’in, as a separation barrier is built and the villagers start to resist the decision. Burnat watches and films the struggle, led by two of his best friends, alongside filming how Gibreel grows. Very soon it affects his family and his own life. Daily arrests and night raids scare his family; his friends, brothers and himself are either shot or arrested. One camera after another is shot at or smashed. Each of the 5 cameras tells part of his story.

This special screening is followed by a Q&A with Emad Burnat and Dr Shohini Chaudhuri, lecturer at Essex University and author of a number of books on world cinema and the ethics of film spectatorship

Presented by DocHeads in partnership with Union Chapel Church and the department of philosophy and art history at the university of Essex.

Would you like a cinema release for your short doc?

• By Katharine
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DocHeads has teamed up with Film London to launch an exciting new programme of short docs playing exclusively across some of London’s best cinemas – including Bertha DocHouse, the Lexi and many more.

The run will launch mid-March and we are taking submissions now – so check the conditions below and submit today. Deadline for submissions is 10^th February, so don’t delay!

Conditions and How to Submit:

Send a password-protected link of your film to info@docheads.org with “Docheads Cinema Submission” in the subject line. Please include a brief (100 word max.) description about your film and a brief bio of the filmmaker (again, 100 words).

1. Films must be premieres – that means they haven’t launched at a film festival and are not online.
2. We consider films from 3 – 15 minutes long. They must be a documentary. We are not programming short fiction films.
3. You must hold the rights for your film to be screened
4. We are programming already made films only. Please don’t contact us with your ideas.
5. Deadline for submissions is midnight, 10^th
6. Doc Heads will choose 5 films to launch the cinema programme and selected filmmakers will be contacted directly.
7. If selected, filmmakers must be available to attend screenings for Q&As
8. The first programme will be announced on 23^rd February

Win a pair of tickets to films at Meltdown & members discount

• By Katharine
• 29 Comments

As part of Meltdown, David Byrne is bringing the scores of three acclaimed films to life.  There Will Be Blood (19 Aug) is performed by London Contemporary Orchestra and its composer Jonny Greenwood, while the BBC Concert Orchestra accompany the original Planet of the Apes (28 Aug).  The festival also features Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Sam Green’s ‘live documentary’ The Measure of All Things (26 Aug).

Docheads has a pair of tickets to give away to Planet of the Apes and The Measure of All Things. To enter simply retweet the following by 17th August:

Free tickets from @Docheads for David Byrne’s films with live scores at Meltdown. RT for a chance to win by 17th Aug: http://bit.ly/1L31osA 

THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED.

Docheads members can still get £10 best available tickets to The Measure of All Things. If you’re a member, simply log in to the site to find out how to claim your discount.

20% off Open City accreditation for Docheads Members

• By Katharine
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DocHeads paid members can get 20% off the early bird rate for Open City Documentary Festival. Simply use your member login and go to our “events” page to find out how to claim your discount.

DocHeads at Doc/Fest

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With DocHeads membership you can get a whopping £100 off your delegate pass so don’t miss out on the UK’s biggest documentary event of the year! 

SATURDAY NIGHT – DOCHEADS AND MOLINARE DRINKS

We’re teaming up with the fantastic people at Molinare to bring a little bit of the Docheads party spirit to Saturday night at Sheffield! Come to our drinks at the Festival Lounge on Tudor Square, Saturday 6th June at 9pm.

SUNDAY EVE – ‘THE DIVIDE’ WORLD PREMIERE

Join co-founder Katharine Round for the premiere of her feature ‘The Divide’ (also posted at Molinare) at 5.15pm, Vimeo Showroom 2, and Wednesday at 10am PBS America Showroom 3. Described by Doc/Fest as “engrossing and cinematic”, the film tells the story of what happens when the rich get richer. As inequality reaches heights not seen since 1928, seven characters across the US and UK battle to cope with the consequences, painting a lyrical and often surprisingly humourous view of life in an unequal society. Tickets are free for delegates.

HOW TO JOIN & GET YOUR PASS

You can sign up to membership here. Once you have your member login, simply visit the “events” page of this website where you’ll see details and the link to sign up for your discounted pass. What are you waiting for?!

Virunga Masterclass 22nd April

• By Katharine
• One Comment

Doc Heads is pleased to announce the second in our special series of masterclasses in conjunction with Molinare. 

Join Oscar and BAFTA-nominated director Orlando Von Einsiedel  for a masterclass focussing on the critically acclaimed documentary “VIRUNGA” – as he reveals the production process behind this gripping, beautifully-shot and important film. ]

Virunga:

A powerful combination of investigative journalism and nature documentary, VIRUNGA is the incredible true story of a group of courageous people risking their lives to build a better future in a part of Africa the world’s forgotten, and a gripping exposé of the realities of life in the Congo

In the forested depths of eastern Congo lies Virunga National Park, one of the most bio-diverse places on Earth and home to the planet’s last remaining mountaingorillas. In this wild, but enchanted environment, a small and embattled team of park rangers – including an ex-child soldier turned ranger, a caretaker of orphan gorillas and a dedicated conservationist – protect this UNESCO world heritage site from armed militia, poachers and the dark forces struggling to control Congo’s rich natural resources. When the newly formed M23 rebel group declares war, a new conflict threatens the lives and stability of everyone and everything they’ve worked so hard to protect, with the filmmakers and the film’s participants caught in the crossfire.

Orlando Von Einsiedel: 

With his documentaries spanning Africa, Asia, America and the Arctic, winning numerous awards, screening at the world’s top film festivals and encompassing everything from a skateboard school in Kabul to the tracking and arrest of pirates in West Africa, you could genuinely say that Orlando’s filmography thus far is down right impressive. Praised by critics for his fearless filmmaking and strong sense of the people and places he covers, Orlando’s eye for striking shots, combined with his compelling global investigations into social issues, have ensured that he is unequivocally an original and talented filmmaker on the rise. VIRUNGA is Orlando’s first feature.

The running order for the evening will be as follows:

6.30pm – doors open and drinks in the bar

7.00pm – Orlando von Einsiedel and DocHeads’ Katharine Round discuss Virunga, with clips

8.00pm – Q&A

8.45pm – Extended sequence from film, and drinks in the bar

There are just a few tickets left, get yours here before they sell out!  https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/edit?eid=16162969878

Hunger Competition Winner: Porters

• By Katharine
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Today we conclude our fortnight of documentary shorts by presenting the winner of our competition ran in conjunction with Rankin Film Productions and Hunger TV. The filmmakers behind today’s short, Porters, were announced as the winners of the £5K fund at last night’s packed Doc Heads 30 event on Brick Lane.

Porters was directed by the trio of documentary filmmakers James Dougan, Dan Ridgeon and Max Cutting and looks at the unnoticed and unappreciated members of Britain’s National Health Service. This short documentary offers a unique insight into the joint notions of life and death through the men whose job it is to deal with them on a daily basis.

You can find out more information on Porters here.

Watch the film and read an exclusive interview conducted by Hunger TV with the filmmakers here: http://www.hungertv.com/feature/weeks-short-porters/

Hunger Competition Finalists: Day 5

• By Katharine
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Our fifth finalist is JORDANNE from filmmaker Zak Razvi. It follows the life of Jordanne Whiley, a 22 year old British wheelchair tennis player, hoping to become the first British athlete to win all four tennis grand slams in one year.

It was directed by Londoner Zak Razvi who now heads up the music video department at Pulse Films. His impressive credit list includes working with renowned artists such as London Grammar (Sights), Kasabian (Stevie), Damon Albarn (Mr Tembo) Fatboy Slim (Samba du Mundo), J Cole (She Knows) and many more.

JORDANNE is Zak’s directorial debut. You can find out more about Zak Razvi and his work here.

Watch the film here: http://www.hungertv.com/feature/todays-short-jordanne/

Hunger Competition Finalists: Day 1

• By Katharine
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Today we begin a two week journey showcasing the shortlist of ten films in the running to win £5,000 to make a documentary short. Doc Heads teamed up with Rankin Film Productions and Hunger TV to provide a unique opportunity for UK-based documentary filmmakers. We asked for short documentaries that have already been made which we then whittled down to a shortlist of ten. The winner of the grand prize will be formally announced on Friday 27th February, the night after the next Doc Heads event on February 26th details of which you can find here.

Our first short comes from London-based filmmaker Jacob Harmer who has also shot commissions for Topshop, Banana Republic and Wonderland. His entry into the competition, his short NETS, showcases his photographic style of filmmaking.

See the film on Hunger TV