Sometime in the 1980s, Caspar Salmon’s grandmother was invited to a gathering on the Welsh island of Anglesey, attended exclusively by people with fish surnames. Or so he says. Thirty years later, film-maker Charlie Lyne attempts to sort myth from reality as he searches for the truth behind this fishy tale.
Fish Story is this year’s winner of the audience award for best short at AFI Docs Film Festival. It screened at Sundance Film Festival, Sheffield Doc/Fest, the International Film Festival Rotterdam and True/False in the US.
Film-maker’s portrait: Charlie Lyne
Charlie Lyne is a filmmaker based in London, recently nominated for the 2017 Arts Foundation fellowship, and occasional film critic for the Guardian and Sight & Sound. His work as a filmmaker includes the features Beyond Clueless (2014), a journey into the mind, body and soul of teen movies using clips from more than 200 classic films; Fear Itself (2015), constructed from cinema’s most heart-stopping moments; the shorts Copycat (2015), Blackout (2016), and the ten-hour crowdfunded protest film Paint Drying (2016). His work has been screened at Sundance, SXSW and Rotterdam film festivals.
Coming up: Pitching Up
Discover how Ireland’s ancient sports are helping to integrate kids in the country’s most ethnically diverse town. Ballyhaunis in the west of Ireland is at first glance a traditional farming town, a place that in the past has been deeply affected by the emigration of its young. But today Ballyhaunis is unique in an Irish context. The majority of children in the local community school speak neither English nor Gaelic at home due to waves of inward migration from Pakistani, eastern European and African communities. Local policeman Darran Conlon has a mission. He is trying to teach the younger generation of these immigrants how to play traditional Gaelic games, not only to help welcome these families to the community but also to simply ensure that the local club – the lifeblood of the town – can actually field a team. Out Friday 14 July.
Screening
Kedi – Saturday 1 July, Bertha Dochouse, London
For thousands of years, cats have lived alongside humans in Istanbul, wandering in and out of people’s lives, becoming an essential part of the communities that make the city so rich. Kedi explores the daily lives of seven street cats, each with their own distinct personality, and their connection to the city and people of Istanbul. Following the feline population, this remarkable film captures their unique experience through cat’s-eye-view cinematography with joyous and captivating results. Watch the trailer here.
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