What can you tell us about the concept and history behind the Footprints Film Festival competition?
The first Film Festival was in 2012. It was initially supposed to be part of World Environment Day celebrations in June, but ended up being added to the Footprints Ecofestival. Ecofestival is an annual event and attracts a few thousand people, which we realised would be the perfect audience. So now the Footprints Film Festival competition opens for a few months to get submissions, with finalists’ films screened at the Footprints Ecofestival.
How important are issues around the environment and sustainability in the Inner West?
Caring for our local environment is crucial and everyone needs to take responsibility for their actions. It’s especially important in cities and built-up areas where our green spaces are limited and we consume such a large amount of resources. I know it sometimes feels like you can’t make a difference as an individual and it’s too hard to make big changes. But if each person were to make small changes at home and in their communities, we would have an incredibly positive impact. Whether it’s planting a tree for our native animals to use or choosing to walk instead of drive, it all makes a difference.
What tips can you offer filmmakers to help them create a successful entry?
It can be about anything – get creative! We’ve had some really quirky films, like one about MAMILs (middle-aged men in lycra) and another about a hipster bicycle race to win the last barrel of oil in a world without fuel. We’ve also had quietly haunting films that showed the local environment and how nature is losing out to man-made structures. Choose something you love and feel passionate about.
The finalists’ films will screen in a bicycle-powered cinema tent. How does it work?
We use a cycle-in cinema from local company Milkcrate Events. They bring bikes, converters and a portable cinema. Everyone is encouraged to have a go on the bikes, which power the projector and sound system. If you don’t pedal, components like the sound will shut off – it’s happened once or twice when someone has slowed down too much! But the audience cheers the cyclists on and it comes back. We screen about ten minutes of film at a time so no-one gets too tired. There will be a list of show times outside the cinema tent.
Where does the Footprints Film Festival fit in with the other events planned on the Footprints Ecofestival program?
Footprints Ecofestival has main stage entertainment, free workshops, and food and local retailers in a market-style area. The cinema tent will be on the netball court showing films on a continuous loop all day, with winners announced at 2:30pm. Stop by anytime and hop on a bike to power your favourite film!
Footprints Film Festival 2016 happensSunday August 21 at Whites Creek Valley Park, Annandale. Entries close Sunday July 31. See leichhardt.nsw.gov.au/footprints-film-festival for details.
