Staff
The Meaford International Film Festival has announced that Clio Barnard, whose work has been compared to the leading pioneers of British realist cinema, will join Artistic Director Christopher Thomas via Skype on Thursday, August 28, to discuss her film, The Selfish Giant.
Suggested by an Oscar Wilde fairy tale, it concerns two boys, Arbor and Swifty, whose friendship is an oasis of warmth in a cold world of extreme poverty in northern England. Ms Barnard has won numerous awards, including Best Newcomer at the London Film Festival.
Local noted photographer and former MIFF producer Michael Anderson will be on stage Friday the 29th to analyze the film Finding Vivian Maier. An enigma who could only relate to society through the lens of her camera, Vivian Maier was a nanny who died in obscurity but was later lauded as one of America’s premier street photographers after her work was discovered by accident at an estate auction
Rounding out the guest list so far is last year’s MIFF favourite, CBC broadcaster Robert Harris. His highly entertaining discussion of the 2103 Pomme d’Or winner Searching for Sugarman demonstrated Robert’s extensive knowledge of music, and he will bring that into play this year when he takes a look at the sweetest bluegrass music this side of Appalachia featured in the Saturday night performance of The Broken Circle Breakdown (August 30th). The Belgian film explores the impact of tragedy on love and faith. The songs are sung in English by the actors and the sound track became the biggest seller in Belgium, beating out Titanic.
There is no guest scheduled yet for Sunday’s closing gala feature, The Lunchbox, however Thomas says, “We hope to have a big surprise announcement about that. No guarantees but our fingers are crossed.”
For more information and tickets call the box office at 1-877-538-0463 or check the web site meafordfilmfest.ca
