Being in Zurich is something of a surprise and taking part in this years 2011 International Radio Festival, which is only in it’s 2nd year, is even more of a surprise. The festival has been live since the 9th June and has seen a host of countries broadcasting from Zurich. The UK is the guest country this year and tomorrow sees a whole host of shows from some of the UK’s biggest radio stations.

Right now am sat with Danielle Perry, host of Kerrang Radio and will be live tomorrow at 14:00 (13:00 UK) spinning some new and classic rock sounds. Kerrang has been around for the past 40 years and have become the authority in all things rock, this is a show not to be missed.

Today has seen the incredible Shalala Company / J-Wave show Modaista hit the air at 16:00 (15:00 UK) with their massively popular show, it is undeniable how great these guys are.

Friday Screening: Bombay Beach, dir. Alma Har’el.

The word “masterpiece” is one of the options audiences at Sheffield Doc Fest can use to vote for films in the audience award category and I will admit the word gets thrown about quite a bit, sometimes deservedly and other times less so. In Bombay Beach’s case the film stands alone in being a truly beautifully shot and made film that is respectful, creative, and breathtakingly heartbreaking to watch.

Very early on there was signs that “Bombay Beach” was going to be one of the most popular films of the weekend as the screening was sold out and we found many people clambering around trying to find seats. After a interesting and wonderful short ‘The Day We Danced on the Moon” dir. Tristan Daws about a band from London made up of long term mental illness suffers we where ready for “Bombay Beach”.

Bombay Beach is a place in rural California that was one of those early 50′s “places of the future” which so perfectly introduces the film but like so many places of it’s type it lost it’s mojo and became a forgotten oasis. Music director Alma Har’el’s feature doc debut is an offering that gives you hope, that inspires, and brings together improvised dialogue and dance that touches you in the way it is intended.

There are a variety of characters the film focus on, Cee-Jay – a LA refugee who moves to Bombay Beach after the shooting of his cousin in LA; Red – an oldtimer who has seen more of life than any one man really ought of; and the Parrish family who become the glue of the whole film.

The use of choreographed dances throughout the film give a level of understanding of each of the central characters you realise retrospectively you really needed. The marriage of dance with the music of Zach Condon (Beirut) and Bob Dylan is perfect and keeps a dreamlike innocence within the film. It takes sometime for the story to unfold and when it does you feel it is headed in a certain direction but it’s almost a double bluff by Har’el. The Parrish family, already been in trouble with the police over weapons and bombs as well as having the children taken away from them, are surprisingly down to earth, good people, and great parents.

The film has three main characters who live to this ‘inspirational’ and ‘honest’ message the film produces, Cee-Jay, Red and Benny Parrish. Your connected to each of their stories and you feel for them and they express their passion and drive that is in every word, movement, and look they give. All captured by Har’el who seems to have managed to produce such a stunning film which she filmed over 5 months alone in Bombay Beach, this feat alone seems impossible.

There is a heart in this film that beats so powerfully there is no doubt in your own heart that your watching something truly poetic. At no stage through the film do you feel as though your a voyeur in these peoples lives or that the director is in someway mocking them. They live a simple and forgotten existence but have passion, love, understanding, and truth which Har’el captures so significantly in her film.

The tact and respect that Har’el show’s allows the audience to flow with the story, the music, and the emotionally charged reality of these people. The citizens of “Bombay Beach” my be classically called ‘subjects’ within documentary language but they are so much more here. Your not left feeling sorry for them and at no stage do you feel that they themselves pity themselves or their way of life. The township has it’s own community and being that allows the positive side of being almost a forgotten people shine as well as inspire.

Bombay Beach is a unique insight into a stunning community which will remain with you long after you’ve seen the film. During a post screening Q&A the director tells us that Cee-Jay got into the University of Nebraska and leaves Bombay Beach this week.

Thursday Screenings: Wiebo’s War - dir. David York. This film continues one of the trend at this year Sheffield Doc Fest of environmental issues but it also includes another aspect of the festival which is the increasing disenfranchisement of the public. Wiebo’s War at it’s heart has a very honest and meaningful message but is a subject that is, at times, hard to understand and read making it difficult to trust his word. Yet York manages to hold his audiences attention allowing you to understand the families plight without pandering to them.

Wiebo Ludwig is a devout Christian who decided to uproot his family and movie them away from the evils and temptation of the secular world. Deep in the wilderness of North Canada they stayed and became a self sufficient Christian community. The oil and gas was discovered and what resulted has been a long battle and struggle between Wiebo and the energy companies. His struggle with the power companies has been well documented in his native Canada making him a house-hold name but his dance with the media has had it’s price.

There is a lot that the film tries to go into but doesn’t fully give itself the opportunity to question certain happenings. The thing that struck me the most when the women where talking was that somehow they where managing to hide ‘something’ they knew about the bombings that had been taking place. During the discussion about the animals aborting I became convinced that the bombings could have been done by one or two of the older female members of the family.

I say this because throughout the film the focus is always on Wiebo or one of his sons and it never, for a moment at least in the film, does any of the light shine on the women. Though upset and angry at the miscarriages that the women had been facing it is not to hard a stretch to think that the women could have been involved in the bombings. Too much focus was put on Wiebo and his courting of the media, which the films director said in the post film Q&A was something the son’s disapproved of, could all have been part of a bigger plan to deflect the attention from other member of his family.

The Shooting

One of the main focus’s of the film was on a shooting that took place on the farm late one night where a teenage girl was killed. The farm is at the end of a very long dead-end road the high school kids had come onto the farm, reved their trucks, and had planned to steal a “flag”. The shooting took place but neither the film nor any of the explanations from the family or the state seemed to solve the issue of the shooting. The fact that the kids had been on the farm to scare and cause trouble seemed to be lost on the rest of the citizens, also the film doesn’t tell us how she was shot and what happened to the fellow passenger in the car who was also injured.

But the real power the film manages to chronicle is the way in which the family as a whole are treated. Once it was reported that their water was being contaminated and once dangerous gases where found to be leaking, some time, they as people, citizens, are seen as a non-important issue for the government or for the companies. Though the media follow the story they as a community are left with no recourse and for a moment you feel their frustration.

This has been one of the main, and most powerful, that has been part of the festival this year. Not the actions, the criminality, or the destruction, but the voices of many being ignored by the state. There seems to be a lack of fear by the politicians, police and other law makers in the public, and very quickly they have decided they simply will not listen anymore this can only increase the feelings of isolation by groups like the Ludwig’s and increase the decent if society who will see actions like pipe-bombing being their only recourse.

Wiebo’s War is yet further proof of the place society is heading. If we ignore the environmental concerns, if we ignore the crimes against the power company, if we just look at the treatment of these people who want to live their lives without fear of being poisoned, ignored, and persecuted we will see a very dark place on the horizon.

The 2011 Sheffield Doc Fest is in full swing with films, workshops, and parties happening all over the pace. TNC always like it when a festival has a student category as it shows they are more than aware that the next generation of filmmakers are going to come from the hundreds of students who make up a very nice part of the UK film scene.

We are very lucky to share our interview with Brazilian Film School student Roberta Tortuna who’s movie “Anello” is going to be shown at Sheffield Doc Fest Saturday 11th 10:15am. The films is also in the running for The Sheffield Student Doc Award.

How did you get into filmmaking has this always been a passion?

I’ve done my BA in Journalism and worked for nine years as a reporter, researcher and producer in newspapers and broadcasting companies in Brazil. But it was just not enough. I was tired of writing and reporting about events and practical things characters were doing – I wanted to know more, I wanted to know how they actually felt about their lives and their choices. After six months back at university studying psychology, I realised that what I needed was to combine my passion for narratives and my interest to get really deep into people’s emotions. As I was crazy for films from a very young age, I chose documentary making and in 2009 started my MA at Goldsmiths, University of London.

What was the first film/director that inspired you?

It is very difficult to pick up a particular one, but I would say that Pedro Almodovar and Woody Allen really brought me close to the screen. Almodovar for his intense, mad, rich characters and Allen for his ability to expose himself and often talk about issues that he himself needed to deal with. Later on, during the Masters, I was absorbed by the work of the American director Alan Berliner and I’m sure he will influence me for my whole life.

What is is about documentary films that have appealed to you?

It is exactly the opportunity of telling stories in a deep, frank and ‘multi-personal way’. It is the idea that every documentary is a piece of reality, it is the real world seen by the eyes of the characters, the eyes of the crew and the eyes of the audience. Here, of course, I have to say – with responsibility and ethics.

Tell us about your film, what is your approach, how do you come up with your projects?

Anello is an autobiographical film in which I confront identity, legitimacy and family issues during an emotional trip to Sicily with my father, who is a descendant of Italian immigrants. In the quest for our roots, I try to find my own place in his life. It is ultimately an attempt to portray my father, who has been filming me since I was a baby.

I always try to pay attention to which subjects really move me and I can’t get out of my head. Then, I try to understand why I’m so passionate about them and how I could communicate this to the viewers. I’ve done two short films before – Ride with Me and Who are you? – and it’s interesting to notice now how they ‘talk to each other’. In a way, the three of them are about families, identities, immigration, love and choices.

Your film nominated in the Student category at this years Sheffield Doc Festival , a truly magnificent achievement, have you had time to let this settle in?

No, to be honest. I’ve cried every time I watched the film since I finished it last year. It doesn’t matter if it is at home, with friends or in a festival. However, at the first screening in Sheffield I was just watching every single bit in a distant, objective way. I was in shock – a good one, of course.

What was did it feel like when you got the news?

I felt that all the effort was worth it and that I should keep working hard. It was great to realize people I admire understood and liked my movie.

What have been the challengers you have faced, what help/advice have you sought?

The biggest challenge was to cope with the fact that I was on my own. From my previous experience, I was used to work with incredible cinematographers and editors so filming and editing by myself was very scary. I had a lot of help from my tutor, Tony Dowmunt, who is an amazing teacher and has experience in making personal films. He would tell me to just do the best I could in each step of the process and believe in the story I wanted to tell. I also took a lot of advice from Noel Hines, our technical supporter at Goldsmiths in terms of cameras, light and Avid.

What do you want people to take away from your film?

I will be very happy if people can connect to Anello even if they are not a woman, a foreigner or a filmmakers. Although it is a personal movie, I believe all of us have family issues, have questioned our backgrounds at some point in life and have asked ourselves whether or not we made the right decisions. What I wanted to say was that no matter which roles you have in society, you are ultimately a daughter or a son, a father, a mother, a grandfather, a cousin, etc.

What has been your biggest sacrifice or difficulties that you have encountered?

The biggest sacrifice was in the editing room. Its is very difficult to cut your own film, specially when it is personal. I didn’t want to upset my family but also I didn’t want to hide anything.

What advice would you give other filmmakers?

I would tell to them to be open and honest about subjects that really move them and – if possible – to look for a good course. It is very special when you have teachers that you admire and trust around. If not, to ask for help to filmmakers that you look up to. I would also say to watch as many documentaries as possible and to go to as many festivals as they can. These things really inspire and motivate you.

Finally, what are you working on now?

I am very interested in making films about Brazil because I think there are many important stories over there to be told. I hope the next events we will host – World Cup and Olympic Games – raise awareness around it. I am writing two proposals with colleagues and hopefully we’ll get some funding to develop them soon.