- 14 August 2008
Students’ documentary show looks at the lives of others
Still from Elif Buyukcalik's film 'Kilim - Weaving the Past.'
Student film-makers at the University of Sussex will see their work premiered at the University's first postgraduate documentary degree show, to be held in Brighton on Thursday 4 September.
Entitled Back to Reality, the film premiere features seven documentaries capturing the real lives of communities in Brighton and in locations around the world.
No Place Like Home by Josh Bloom looks at the plight of the city's "hidden homeless" - people who often work, but have no place to call their own - through the eyes of three men.
Josh says: "I found out that 30 per cent of these people had jobs, working in low-paid sectors but still homeless. People can't afford the high rents of places like Brighton, even though they are in work. They sleep on friends' floors, in cars or even at their place of work. These are the hidden homeless.
"I hope to challenge the public perception that the only homeless people are the ones you see sleeping on park benches."
Another film, Take Over, by Jordie Montevecchi, charts the actions of a group of squatters who recently took over a church building in Brighton.
Two other local films feature the efforts of a mothers' group to pass on Korean culture and language to their children and No Prospect, a film about the music industry, film-making and friendship featuring the indie singer Carina Round and bands including The Cardigans and the Cocteau Twins.
Stories with an international flavour are told in films about the exploitation of indigenous porters of the Inca Trail; the lives of Hindu holy men and the kilim rug makers of Anatolia in Turkey.
The event, at the Sallis Benney Theatre in Grand Parade, Brighton, is open to the public. Entry is free of charge and the evening begins at 6pm.
Lizzie Thynne, a professional documentary maker who is also Convenor of the MA Digital Documentary course, says: "This is the first year the course has run and the topics the students are tackling are very impressive. The course has attracted new film-makers from several countries who draw on a wide range of international experience as well as looking at some pressing local issues."
Notes for editors
Back to Reality is at the Sallis Benney Theatre in Grand Parade, Brighton, on Thursday 4 September, from 6pm to 11pm. Entrance is free - no tickets required. For full screening details and information about all seven film-makers, see: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/showcase/digitaldocumentary08/
University of Sussex Press office contacts: Maggie Clune and Jacqui Bealing. Tel: 01273 678 888 or email press@sussex.ac.uk