BUFF 2012 ANNOUNCES 7TH BRITISH URBAN FILM FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

31 August 2012



BUFF 2012 ANNOUNCES 7TH BRITISH URBAN FILM FESTIVAL SCHEDULE


The UK premiere of Lawrence Coke’s Melvin: Chronicles of a Player Actor will kick off the 2012 British Urban Film Festival which for the first time will allow audiences to watch this year’s programme online, on-air and in person.


In conjunction with the SERTUC Film Club and Oxford House in Bethnal Green, The British Urban Film Festival today announced the 16 festival screenings to be shown free in the capital plus 4 online screenings to be streamed in the 2nd weekend of October. In conjunction with Community Channel, The British Urban Film Festival will also screen a week of bonus films and special programmes in the build-up to BUFF 2012 starting October 8 (TV schedule TBA).


Actor Wil Johnson will host the opening night of BUFF 2012 on Friday October 12 featuring Melvin: Chronicles of a Player and the climax to the inaugural Knice Short Film Ceremony with actor and musician Arnold Oceng. Other festival highlights include the BUFF Shorts UK showcase with cameo performances from Lonyo Engele, Sadie Frost and Dudley O’Shaughnessy, the latest film directed by (and starring) Aml Ameen (TV premiere), the all-star tribute and the Nollywood gangster movie Woolwich Boys.


*The schedule of 20 screenings announced today, all to be shown on the weekend of October 12, 13, and 14 include:


Friday October 12, Doors 7pm - 11pm, TUC Congress House


7.30pm: BUFF 2012 – Pre-Show (Hosted by Wil Johnson)


8.15pm: Knice Short Film Ceremony (presented by Arnold Oceng and Ady Le Roux)


8.25pm: Melvin: Chronicles of a Player UK Premiere (dir Lawrence Coke, UK, 95 mins)


10pm: Live Q&A with Wil Johnson, Lawrence Coke, Duane & Damian Carter




Saturday October 13, Doors 10.30am - 11pm, Oxford House (Bethnal Green)


11.00am: Eastside Story (dir Polly Steele, UK, 63mins) 
Followed by live Q&A with Polly Steele (dir), Ray Lewis and Henry Bonsu (broadcaster, Colourful Radio/Vox Africa)




Saturday October 13, 2.00pm, Oxford House (Bethnal Green): Casuals (prod. Cass Pennant, UK, 75mins) introduced by Jessie Grace Mellor (journalist and filmmaker)



Followed by live Q&A with Cass Pennant (dir) and Jessie Grace Mellor



Saturday October 13, 4.30pm - 7.30pm, Oxford House (Bethnal Green):


BUFF SHORTS UK Showcase - 11 back-to-back screenings


Grow Up (dir Ivan Madeira, UK, 15mins)


Virgo (dir Sheridan De Myers, UK, 10mins)


Unspoken (dir Sunny King, UK, 10mins)


Multi-Story (dir Jeremy Clancy, UK, 15mins)


Dear Mr Cameron (dir Martin Denham, UK, 10mins)


The Prayer (dir Shola Amoo, UK, 17mins)


Dead Pretty (dir Sarah Peace, UK, 5mins)


Fortune's Smile (dir Marcus Liversedge, UK, 16mins)


Where's My Supermalt (dir Daniel Oniya, UK, 4mins)


Loved One (dir Geraldine Spicer, UK, 22mins)


Sunny Boy (dir Jane Sanchez-Gull, UK, 11mins)


Followed by live Q&A with the directors and Festival Director Emmanuel Anyiam-Osigwe



Saturday October 13, 8.30pm, Oxford House (Bethnal Green):  Woolwich Boys (dir Anthony Abuah, UK, 83mins)


Followed by live Q&A with Emmanuel Anyiam-Osigwe, Anthony Abuah (dir), Marlene Nwoye and Lateef Lovejoy




BUFF 2012 ONLINE SELECTIONS (Starts Sunday October 14)


Birthday Wish (dir Eugene Osei, UK, 8mins)


Closure (dir Geoff Searle, UK, 3mins)


Arthur Can’t (dir Fabio Dominguez, UK, 3mins)


Les Amants De Verone “The Lovers of Verona” (dir Casserley Cielo, UK/France, 8mins)



*programme subject to change.




Commenting on this year’s festival, Emmanuel Anyiam-Osigwe, BUFF 2012 Festival Director, said:


"This year, perhaps more than any other, BUFF and its partners will bang home the message that the UK as a nation is unashamedly proud in celebrating the best of British and embracing diversity. As a festival, we are uniquely placed to reflect that vision through some of the great work that is being made by some of the UK’s most talented filmmakers”


This year's event is sponsored by Vanessa Blake Cosmetics. SERTUC Film Club, which has agreed to extend its sponsorship of the event, will once again stage the opening night from Congress House (in London’s West End) on Friday October the 12th. The festival then moves to London’s East End with “Super Saturday” on October the 13th at Oxford House in Bethnal Green.


For further information about the full programme please visit: www.britishurbanfilmfestival.co.uk




Listings correct as of: 31/08/12


Tel: +44 8712 885 785


Email: info@buffenterprises.co.uk



Twitter: @buffenterprises #buff2012

The BUFF Blog (August 2012)

 

This month’s BUFF Blog starts with an old West African saying (as the character Matthew would have us believe in the Channel 4 comedy ‘Desmond’s’): “The patient dog sucks the juiciest bone”. To say that the movie ‘Melvin: Chronicles of a Player’ has been a long time in coming is putting it mildly. The same can’t be said for the movie’s director – Lawrence ‘Leroy’ Coke – for whom putting things mildly is about as likely as Roy Chubby Brown going through a whole stand-up routine without swearing (google him). Anyway back to the dog analogy and as far as BUFF is concerned, it is about to have its’ day – on Friday October 12 to be precise – as the culmination of 10 years of blood, sweat and tears comes to a grand climax in the rather buff surroundings of TUC Congress House in London for the UK premiere of ‘Melvin: Chronicles of a Player’ – and this year’s festival opener.

 

What you’re about to read is a frank, no holds barred blog from a frank, no holds barred filmmaker with a gift for making people laugh (he can do sad aswell). In fact, he can do whatever he chooses to put his mind to but for the next 2000 words or so, prepare to sample a snapshot of the last 10 years as seen through the eyes of this month’s guest writer of the BUFF Blog – the award-winning Lawrence Coke…

 

 

 

As the famous quote goes, “Everybody has a book in them”.  Although I think what would be more fitting in this age of all things digital is “Everybody has a film in them”.  I don’t know whether either quote is true, they feel true, but then so did the x-files and I ain’t never seen an alien.  However, true or not, I have to say that with almost every film-maker that I know, and many that I don’t, according to the various DVD commentary tracks that accompany the many Hollywood films that I’ve listened to, it’s not the films that we should be interested in, it’s the story behind the making of those films.  I mean if we look at ‘Apocalypse Now’ for example, Martin Sheen had a heart attack, the sets kept getting destroyed by typhoon Olga, payroll got stolen, helicopters were flown off by the military halfway through filming a scene, and so on and so on.  In fact, there’s a whole documentary about all the bad luck, treachery and gigantic egos that brought that film to its’ knees called ‘Hearts of Darkness’ which I enjoyed more than Apocalypse itself.  But the point is, good or bad, the story behind the making of most films is just as interesting as the film itself, and my film ‘Melvin: Chronicles of a Player’, which opens BUFF on the 12^th of October 2012, is no exception.

 

I honestly do not know where to start, and in all honesty some of the experiences that occurred during production are still too raw or emotional to go into in any depth. What I will try to do is flag up some of the high points, the low points and most points in-between which best reflect the journey so far…

 

 

Melvin started life as a black and white spoof mockumentary short called ‘Melvin: Portrait of a Player’, which I made solely for the people involved. I never intended it to see the light of day and that would have remained the case if a producer called Paul Robinson hadn’t liked it and started sending it out on my behalf to various film screenings/festivals etc.  It was entered into the BFM (Black Filmmaker Magazine) short film awards in 2003 where it went on to win two awards (Best film and best actress).  But the best thing to come out of the film’s involvement with the awards was the start of my friendships with both Julius Amedume and BUFF’s own Emmanuel.

 

Myself and both of those gentlemen have seen a lot over the last nearly ten years and I’m using this opportunity to publicly tip my hat off to them for their support both on and off the field. Anyways, when the film was entered into BFM, I ended up talking to Emmanuel who, at the time, was manning the BFM office - asking him about what standard they wanted it on etc. and suffice to say, that conversation has entered into Melvin folklore as Emmanuel made certain predictions regarding the future of that short which are - even as we speak - coming to fruition.  I only wish he were as useful at predicting the lottery numbers…

 

Once Melvin started to play at various screenings both at home and abroad, it became clear by audience reaction that there was mileage in the characters which merited further exploration.  This led to a sequel, ‘Melvin: Still a Player’, which was to be the 2^nd act in a trilogy of short films.  It was on a trip to the Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) in Los Angeles that the question was asked over and over again that instead of messing around with a third short why not just shoot a feature.  So I thought, f*** it, why not?

 

This is where I’m gonna have to skip forward like a bunny on a hotplate and break it down to bullet-points or we’d be here till Justin Beiber gets facial hair:

 

• Tried to raise money – Despite comprehensive breakdowns, supporting materials etc, interest from three of the five terrestrial broadcasters and filling out endless funding applications, we gets no love.  Eventually we get cash for the project from a group of private investors.

 

• Production begins – In the middle of an office move and after numerous changes to the lineup, we start shooting and everything is going better than can be expected.  However, due to the tragic and untimely passing of a lead cast member, we’re forced to shut down production temporarily.

 

• Production continues – Despite having to shoot a whole new story arc on half our original budget, we press ahead. Halfway through production and despite the slow start, steady progress is being made and slowly but surely the rushes start to look like a film, a funny film even. The investors are happy, the cast is happy, I’m happy, everyone’s happy.  Then the sh*t really hit the fan…

 

• The dark times – All I can say about this period is that between the three more deaths that occured, the two car crashes, me hurting one leg then the other and ending up on crutches TWICE (not connected to the car crashes mind), the broken heart (cow), the near bankruptcy, the food poisoning (seafood sucks), being snowed in with no food and little heat at my office with the man dem and last but not least the flood which wiped out our principal set (biblical I know), I was all but ready to give up all together and I don’t just mean on the film. At that point I would’ve gladly jumped on the first thing smoking, going in the opposite direction from wherever this film was.

 

• The light after the storm – There was a chorus of voices ringing in my ears during this time, some were voices of dissent, others of mockery, some genuine concern that I stop production before a piano or a safe fell on my head walking down Brixton high street.  But there was a louder more vocal group that even now continue to make themselves heard – ‘don’t quit, you’ve got to keep going, this has to be finished.’  And I know it’s corny but some didn’t stop at just words. Some gave time, others money, some love and support but most, all of the above. There are too many names to mention but I’ll give it a try: Miles, My mum, some of the rest of my family, Ayo, Adoara, Destiny, Pikki, Julius, Ishmael, Daniella, the Bens (both sets), Sam the Man, Nike, Tanya x3, Babatunde, Dre, The twins (both sets), Jords, Dempster, Ari, Sat, Odette, Ashwin, Emmanuel, Natalie, Nicola, Pat, Farhan, girl Sam (both sets), Rich (both sets), Reg (both sets), Andy MC, Steph, Lou, Kasumi, Fabian, Gems, Miyanda, the cuzzys, Manchester, Bolegi, Manager, Nicola, Kunle, Charles, Ewan, Lestyn, Bernard, Kolton, Alexis, Evil Faran, Kevin, Suhail, Tanisha, Visa the Geezer, Ruben, Caff, Antonio, Q, Jinnal, Lloydy, Geoff, Aneeka, Tennille, the Aunties, Marlon, yankee Nik, Neil, Troy, Courts, Alison, Justin, Leya, Bridgette, Carvell, Gina, Rufaro, Jills, AJ, Black Andrew, Charlie, Lisa, Steve, Brother Kwams, Marissa, Adrian, Jermaine, Rudolph, Jackal, Shants, Clifford, Stella, Liz, Ella, Cheryl, Ladrick, Paulette x2, Evey, Demus and last but no means least D.  If I forgot ya, don’t mean I ain’t got ya…

 

There’s a story behind every one of those names and I’ll gladly share, so if you buck me on or off road, pick a few and I’ll happily elaborate as I’m immensely proud to know them all. If you’re still interested in where we are now, after picking myself up (with some of the afore-mentioned help), dusting myself off and getting on with the task at hand, we finished off 99% of the film.  I entered a rough cut to the Screen Nation Awards - it won the Independent Spirit Award. I’m sure you’ll understand why, after everything that had gone on before, that I felt like I f***ing deserved it!  It was nice to be recognized… 

 

And so, 2 stone heavier, grey hairs where before there were none, talk of a web series crossover and five years later, here we are.  Opening the British Urban Film Festival just like Emmanuel predicted almost ten years ago.

 

Was it worth it? 

 

You bet you’re ass it was; I learnt more about myself, my friends, my peers, this business, this country and you reading (yeah I said you), than I could’ve ever imagined.  I learnt you shouldn’t start something if you don’t intend to finish it; I learnt when to ignore and when to listen to the voice inside; I learnt to ignore the haters (f*** ya’ll by the way) and most importantly I learnt no man is an island. A wise man (or woman) knows that his (or her) network is their net worth.

 

In closing I’d like to refer to a Christopher Hitchens quote, “Everybody does have a book in them, but in most cases that’s where it should stay”, and offer my own variation:

 

“Everybody has a film in them but in most cases getting it made can be a bitch, but I’m up for it if she is… ”

                                                                                                                                  (c) Lawrence Coke  

Buff Enterprises is the home of urban film coverage in the UK – keep up to date online, on-air and in person at www.britishurbanfilmfestival.co.uk BUFF 2012 comes to London in October

BUFF 2012 LAUNCHES FESTIVAL PUSH

Actor Wil Johnson will host the opening night of the 7^th British Urban Film Festival in October, the producers of BUFF 2012 have announced. 

Johnson, whose previous film and TV credits include “Waking the Dead”, “Waterloo Road” and “Babymother”, will be making his debut as festival presenter having previously featured in starring roles at BUFF in the films ‘Disoriented Generation’ and ‘Colour Blind’.   

SERTUC Film Club, which has agreed to extend its sponsorship of the event, will once again stage the opening night from Congress House (in London’s West End) on Friday October the 12^th. The festival then moves to London’s East End with “Super Saturday” on October the 13^th at Oxford House in Bethnal Green. 

Festival director, Emmanuel Anyiam-Osigwe is banking on audiences to clear their diaries for what’s been billed as the buffest weekend of the year. 

"This year, perhaps more than any other, BUFF and its partners will bang home the message that the UK as a nation is unashamedly proud in celebrating the best of British and embracing diversity. As a festival, we are uniquely placed to reflect that vision through some of the great work that is being made by some of the UK’s most talented filmmakers”. 

Alongside the Q&A sessions, the all-star tribute and the BUFF Shorts UK strand, the festival will be headlined by the UK premiere of ‘Melvin – Chronicles of a Player’, a spoof documentary (directed by the award-winning Lawrence Coke) which primarily centres on the relationships that self-confessed ladies man and all round cad Melvin Cartright, shares with the various characters that inhabit his world, especially the relationship with his long-suffering twin brother Martin.  

The full schedule of 20 films (of which 4 will be streamed online), together with TV coverage of the festival plus details on how to book for free tickets, will be released to the public on Friday August 31.

 

ENDS

Picture: (c) Buff Enterprises Ltd/Alex Winn. All rights reserved. 

 

For more information, please contact the BUFF Press Office - T: 08712 885 785      E: info@buffenterprises.co.uk 

Official BUFF sponsors & partners: SERTUC Film Club, Community Channel, CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), 

The Knice Project, 4front Media, Shooting People, Link Up TV, Film London, Think Sync Music, Phink TV, Urban and Otherwise, Kush Films, Scene TV, Urban Screen, Colourful Radio, Vox Africa.

Official BUFF 2012 venues: TUC Congress House, Great Russell Street, London W1     (October 12)

Oxford House, Derbyshire Street, Bethnal Green, London E2                                         (October 13)

The BUFF Blog (May 2012)

(Actress Kyla Frye with Actor boyfriend, Marcus Onilude)

The much maligned profile of Black British actresses has been well documented on this blog over the past 18 months and most recently in the London Evening Standard with the forthcoming feel-good flick ‘Fast Girls’ and the supposed significance of Leonora Crichlow playing the lead role in a British film. On such matters is primarily where Twitter comes into its own as a live news editor run by the public. It doesn’t take long before feedback is immediate and corrected (many thanks to @ECForde, film critic for @colourfulradio) for his contribution in the debate at the time. Those of you who joined in via Facebook @buffenterprises thanks you also. Since then, BUFF has gotten into the Twitter spirit by launching its own hashtags – the latest one being #FFFF which stands for Fascinating Friday Film Facts. The 1st tweet in this feed related to @NoelClarke and the fact that in 2008 Adulthood was released in June as was Doghouse (in 2009) and 4321 (in 2010). In June 2012, Noel will feature in 3 films – the aforementioned Fast Girls, Storage 24 & What If. The 2nd tweet in this feed relates to this month’s BUFF blog which – for the first time in its history – is being published on a Friday c/o #FryesFridays. The woman behind FryesFridays just happens to be an actress in her own right who, like many others, are self-publishing their experiences as a blog in their chosen profession – and why not! (Apparently that wasn’t the catchphrase of that other film critic Barry Norman).

Anyway get ready to read this month’s edition of the BUFF Blog – guest written by @kylafrye (and don’t forget to FF @kylafrye @buffenterprises plus any other twitter handles that you can handle – literally... )

Greetings One & All...

Welcome to this special British Urban Film Festival (BUFF) edition of Frye's Fridays! I am honoured to have been asked by the founder of BUFF, Emmanuel Anyiam-Osigwe, to write a blog entry for the website. Thank you, Emmanuel, for believing in me and allowing me to share my thoughts with fellow BUFF supporters.

For those of you who may not have heard of me, my name is Kyla Frye, I am 24 years old and I am primarily a film actress who has also worked in TV and on stage. I have worked with the likes of Noel Clarke, Ashley Walters and Aml Ameen and have been fortunate enough to be nominated for Best Actress twice - Black Filmmaker Magazine (BFM) in 2008 and Black Entertainment Film Fashion TV and Arts (BEFFTA) in 2011. Last year, I also won the Black Youth Achievement (BYA) Award, for my contribution to the Arts. 

I would say I am a born performer as ever since I was a toddler, I would sing, dance and act out scenes from my favourite Disney movies. I studied drama throughout school, college and university whilst also attending a variety of theatre groups including, most notably, the youth theatre group at Theatre Royal Stratford East. I joined the Identity Drama School at the age of 17 and it was here where my professional acting career began and I started to audition for shows like the BBC’s Casualty and ITV’s The Bill before eventually being cast in the BBC Three drama, West 10 LDN. Since then, I have done a number of short films, including the award-winning Zion and also Black British feature, The Naked Poet.

Since the launch of my website, www.kylafrye.com in April last year, I have been the author of Frye’s Fridays, where I blog about my experience of being a Black British actress and I have to admit, I have found it somewhat therapeutic. The idea of getting your innermost thoughts and feelings down on paper is not a new thing however, thanks to social networking, sharing these experiences with the world is still relatively new & rising. The most rewarding thing I have found about blogging is that it enables others who feel and think like I do to share their experiences with me... It's comforting to know I am not alone! 

Francis Ford Coppola once said, 'I don't think there's any artist of any value who doesn't doubt what they're doing', and I haven't found that to be any truer than where I seem to find myself at this moment in my career. I KNOW, without a shadow of a doubt, that acting is what I do best. What is more, I KNOW that my pursuit of a career and success in acting is my destiny... I KNOW that - but that doesn't stop the “army of enemies” in my mind, trampling over that knowledge and replacing it with doubt, worry and fear. 

It's natural at times to feel doubt, especially when working in this industry. You are constantly under scrutiny and being picked apart by people who believe they can sum you up in the space of three minutes in what can quite often be an awkward situation. Furthermore, the constant rejections are very difficult to continually rise from. The only thing that keeps me (and I suppose, many other artists going), is the knowledge that this is the right path laid out for us by the ‘Big Man’ upstairs and that one day, He will reward us for all our efforts. 

Whilst watching a recent episode of The Graham Norton Show, I witnessed an interview with the Avengers star, Mark Ruffalo (i.e. Hulk) who explained that it "took years to become an overnight sensation..." and that he had roughly 600 auditions before his big break. In that moment, I tried to calculate the amount of auditions I have had but I couldn't. The answer was simply, "countless". Did Mark's story inspire me? No, because it comes with the territory but it sure did console me.

I always knew (as most people do) that trying to become a global star is one of the hardest things you could ever embark upon. Never one to shy away from a challenge, I have to remind myself that patience is key! Being in this acting game is like being in a marathon... you just keep chugging away until you get to the end. Through all the stitches, breathlessness, cramps and blistered feet, you WILL get to the finish line & bask in the glory of your achievements. However, I wasn't much of a long distance runner - I am a sprinter and like a kid at Christmas - I literally just can't wait!

How do you tell your heart to settle down and chill out when all it wants to do is jump out of your chest and onto a film set or onto the stage? I have NO idea and that, I have to say, is my biggest problem. I love acting... I love becoming someone completely different to myself and telling their story in a way they couldn't do themselves. Acting is my air and all I want to do is breathe! So what do I do whilst waiting and working towards my “lucky break”? They say that luck is opportunity meeting preparation so I choose to focus on being in a constant state of readiness and I do my best to wear my skin basked in resilience. Not only that, but I feel that I’m in a position now where I can finally take ownership of my craft. From my years of experience and also, the inspiration I receive from my peers, I have been encouraged to write and direct my own work. The whole idea of hanging around, waiting and hoping that someone will cast you in a project is something that I can no longer stomach, so I’ve decided to be the change that I want to see. 

I’m tired of the same old, stereotypical, negative and destructive stories depicting an unrealistic and unrepresented look at the Black British experience. It is time for those in charge of new writing and production at the big movie companies and television networks to wake up and the only way this can happen is if the work that I and my peers create, ring a very loud alarm in their heads!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to go out of my way to be famous for famous sake. Fame doesn't appeal to me, however I do want to reach out to millions and be successful. Success is what drives me and through my own success, I want to encourage others to live out their own success stories. I’ve always said that my motivation is to inspire a generation and earlier this month, I became a BYA (Black Youth Achievement) ambassador which enables me to speak to young people up and down the country, share my story and hopefully, inspire them to turn their dreams into a reality. I believe there is a star in each and every one of us and it is our duty to let our own light shine bright!

So what is next in store for me? Well, the great thing about being an actor is that you never know what’s next. You trust and hope that your agent is working as hard as they can to get you seen by the right people. You also trust and hope that when you do get an audition, the casting directors et al. see and hear exactly what you do when you go through the scene and that is greatness!

At the moment, I’m in rehearsals for two Writer’s Avenue events; the first being the Writer’s Avenue Films Launch on Tuesday the 29th of May and following that, in “6 Degrees” on Saturday the 23rd of June, both at Soho Theatre. Other than that, who knows what the good Lord has in store for me? He knows my heart and I trust in Him to fulfil my heart’s desires. In the meantime, I will continue to work hard on my craft, give the best of me in every situation handed to me and leave the rest up to Him.

Thank you all for taking the time out to read this and to everyone who has continually shown me their love and support - It has not gone unnoticed and I appreciate it more than you’ll ever know! 

Wishing you all nothing but love & blessings…

Kx

Buff Enterprises is the home of urban film coverage in the UK – keep up to date online at www.britishurbanfilmfestival.co.uk BUFF 2012 comes to London in October

The BUFF Blog (April 2012)

 

Traditionally in the UK, the most-watched programmes on television are always scheduled on a Saturday night. The last few years have seen a more aggressive approach to win hearts and minds with the UK’s 2 biggest broadcasters (BBC & ITV) going head-to-head and scheduling their ‘MUST-SEE’ programmes against each other. In the last 6 months alone, Strictly Come Dancing was beating The X Factor when previously the ITV juggernaut was winning hand over fist.

On Saturday March 24th 2012, BBC1 launched a brand new series of The Voice UK an hour before ITV1 launched its’ latest series of Britain’s Got Talent. In the 4 weeks since then, The Voice UK has consistently won the Saturday night ratings war which led to ITV conceding defeat and putting its’ 5th episode (on Saturday April 21) back by half an hour, allowing The Voice UK to run a full show without a clash.

On the same day, the British Urban Film Festival returned to TV screens for the first time in 5 years with the launch of #buffpresents screening 4 films previously shown at BUFF. One of the films featured marked the directorial debut of Aml Ameen with ‘Drink, Drugs &  KFC’. Those of you who’ve read Aml’s BUFF Blog will know that Aml has a clear vision as to how he sees the future of urban independent cinema having been a part of its’ birth with Kidulthood. It just so happened that BBC 3 screened Kidulthood at around the same time that viewers would’ve been watching Aml’s film - co-incidence or brinksmanship?

Who knows, but it did mean that Aml was on 2 channels at the same time appearing in 3 films – a unique hattrick if ever there was one. It also meant a feverish night for the British Urban Film Fraternity both online and on-air, flipping channels, setting their sky plus’s and providing live commentary via Facebook and Twitter hashtagging #Sky539 and #Virgin233. The viewing figures are out next month and it will be interesting to see whether the programming clash between BUFF & the BBC had the desired effect.

Another of the featured films from #buffpresents was ‘Before They Were Dubz’ which not only featured Fazer, Dappy & Tulisa but also contributions from Wretch 32 & Arnold Oceng who happened to know them when they were starting out as 14 year olds. A lot has happened for all of them since then and in this month’s edition of the BUFF Blog, Arnold ‘SnakeyMan’ Oceng (in his own words) guest writes for us and talks about how he himself started out to where he is right now, bagging a role in Adulthood along the way – the monster which grew out from Kidulthood...

In the words of Daneao ‘Hello, hi’. Many of you know me as Arnold Oceng, some of you know me as SnakeyMan the award winning musician. I will formally introduce myself as Arnold ‘SnakeyMan’ Oceng!

In ALL interviews I get asked 2 questions – one being ‘how did you get the name SnakeyMan?’ and 2: ‘if you had to choose between acting and music what would it be?’ As I’m sure you will emphathise it does get a bit tedious, though I am of course grateful to get as much press as I do. What is refreshing is that I get the reigns on this one, HA!!

 

My journey into the spotlight of the media started when I was 6 so from pretty early on I guess you could say it was my destiny - which is a gift and a curse. My acting didn’t really become the focal point for so many people until I was 12 when I got the role of Calvin Braithwaite in ‘Grange Hill’ - which I was fortunate enough to do for 6 years. That was pretty cool as it was like I had 2 schools... imagine going to school every day with people like Reggie Yates!! Within 6 years on set I had achieved more than what most actors do in their whole career and through the success of the show I embarked on the start of another part of my journey without even knowing it.

It was at the Kids TV Choice Awards in 2001 where I first met Noel Clarke. He approached me about Kidulthood and kind of put me on the spot. I was actually with my agent and they chose to do their ‘agent’ thing and take over the conversation. Little did I know that Kidulthood would become so big, no one did! It got a bit political and my agent advised against me featuring in the film. By the time Adulthood came around and Noel approached me for the second time, there was no way I wasn’t going to be a part of it.

Because of Grange Hill and all the prior TV work I was able to pick up beforehand, life was nice before Adulthood. I had also started my music career and had already won Best Newcomer aged 21 at the Urban Music Awards. However Adulthood did change my life for the better, but in truth in has changed British cinema forever.

Never before had ‘Urban’ London been so cool - it just wasn’t given that much spotlight! With Kidulthood selling so many DVDs (over 1 million copies and still selling!), there was just so much hype around the release of Adulthood. The brand was already established and the new characters just added to the hysteria. It felt funny because most people knew what it was all about and it just felt like the people had finally been given what they had been waiting for. When I look back, I think I’m genuinely more proud of what the film achieved rather than me just saying ‘yeh, I was in that film’. I remember I went to the cinema to watch it and the way that people reacted to it on screen was just amazing, I was hearing that fights were breaking out in cinemas and ridiculous stuff like that.

I remember the week it was announced as a box office number 1 and the film titles below us on the list included Sex in the City and The Incredible Hulk. That was an amazing feeling man. I think it goes without saying, but the grass is not always green for an aspiring actor, or any other ambitious young person and the success of Adulthood hasn’t changed that reality. There have also been tribulations and this has forced me to understand the business side of the media. I choose to control my own destiny as well as style choice with the music that I put out. This enables me to stay away from scripts and just express myself.

I think that the film’s notable success was instrumental in how Noel (at the time) and more recently Adam (Deacon) have gone on to win BAFTAs. With all due respect, it’s not necessarily about the quality of their films, as that’s relative. In my opinion, it was because both their films represented the people; it was about the kids that needed these heroes in their lives. Both won the people’s choice award and that’s no coincidence! It’s logical - Noel inspired Adam and out of all the young people that Adam touched and inspired through Anuvahood, one will go on to achieve something big man - could even be another BAFTA for the streets.

Since Adulthood, I’ve starred in more UK movies which has been nice. Like I said, my Grange Hill days meant a lot, but in hindsight I guess Adulthood was kind of a deliverance, a deliverance in 2 different ways. I delivered on screen and also featured on the movie soundtrack alongside the likes of Plan B, Tynchy, Dizzy etc. which I don’t think a lot of people know. The second, in a more literal way, was deliverance from being a child actor to becoming a young, hungry, qualified actor who’d already done a bit.

I think I am most proud of my progression moreso than any one particular role. Like I stated in the intro, I always get asked the 2 questions. All that shows is that people can be stuck in the past, but I’ve chosen to look forward and be guided by a desire to succeed. In the humblest of ways, my career has progressed alongside all of the UK’s top actors (Ashley Walters, Adam Deacon, Noel Clarke etc) and of course I haven’t been in all the same projects but I can definitely hold my own when it comes down to our CVs. Apart from Ashley, the other 2 were not in Top Boy. Not many UK black male actors have ever had 4 films coming out in 1 year!

This year I have chosen to submerge myself moreso in the creative process of film and I’m starting to realise where the money is long term. This I believe is a natural progression, and also a healthy one as I’m keeping my eyes and my mind open. I feel a lot of people are jumping on the bandwagon a little now that Adam has turned writer/director though, so I’m carefully watching and waiting as opposed to becoming a jack of all trades, but master of none.

Part of that submergence is me becoming an ambassador for ‘Knice’ which has launched a nationwide film competition entitled ‘Priceless Moment’. 16-25 year olds across the UK have been asked to produce, write, edit, and/or direct a film. Not only am I proud to be an ambassador for it, but I’m also taking the role quite seriously as I could quite literally assist in finding the next potential Orange ‘rising star’ award winner.

The main reason I was attracted to this project was because of the prizes on offer. Film and in particular cinema is all about an ultimate experience in my opinion and I don’t think a lot of people still value that. Films are marketed to us in a way that makes us feel that we will miss out if we don’t go and see them with our friends. However, they don’t really stand for much. What I mean by this is that we often enjoy so much more and respect a film that we have an emotional connection with, an Aladdin or a Jungle Book. Everyone has a childhood Disney classic right? It’s all based on a euphoric feeling...

The prizes for the winner of this film-making project will change the person’s life as they can use the equipment on offer time and time again, hopefully making multiple films. In addition, getting the film shown at a film festival is priceless, and in time they will see that. Lastly, I didn’t go to a drama school - as mentioned I learnt on the job, so I’m a serious advocate for young creative people rolling up their sleeves, coming together and learning as they go.

In the words of The Guvnor, ‘I’ll be back’ on your screens with 2 films this summer… unless someone tells me otherwise.

Peace, love & laughter, Arnold ‘SnakeyMan’ Oceng

The deadline for submissions to BUFF 2012 is Friday June 29, 5pm.

For more information About The Knice Project read the article here http://linkuptv.co.uk/anti-knife-crime-organisation-knice-launches-short-film-competition-for-young-people-priceless-moment/

N-Dubz Documentary Headlines British Urban Film Festival TV coverage in April

The UK Hip-Hop group N-Dubz will headline the British Urban Film Festival's broadcast coverage on Community Channel in April. The four-time MOBO winners, who got together as teenagers, are the subject of a documentary which followed the band when they first started out in their career over a decade ago.

'Before they were Dubz', directed by film journalist Jessie Grace Mellor, is the centrepiece of the "BUFF Presents..." strand premiering on Community Channel on Saturday April 21, which also includes 'The Holiday', directed by Ida Akesson, 'Special Delivery', directed by Geoff Searle and starring Kamara Bacchus and Aml Ameen, who also directs 'Drink, Drugs & KFC' which completes the line-up.

"BUFF Presents..." will debut on Community Channel in its' peak-time weekend schedule. The 4 featured films were previously screened at the British Urban Film Festival (also known by the acronym BUFF), now in its' 7th year and a regular autumn fixture on the London arts scene.

"BUFF Presents..." is being brought to Community Channel by Jasmine Dotiwala, executive producer and Alex Kann, editor of TV & Online at *Community Channel.

"BUFF Presents..." starts on Saturday April 21 at 9.00pm (repeated Sunday April 22)

*Sky channel 539/Virgin Media 233

Watch the promo here:

BUFF Blog (March 2012)

At the time of publication, it was recently announced that ifeatures2, Britain’s low-budget, feature film-making initiative, has just reopened for submissions. Creative England, the BFI Film Fund and BBC Films are joining forces to support the development and production of three full-length features, all to be set within the English regions. Each film will be produced on a budget of £350,000 and the BBC is also pre-buying UK Free TV rights to the completed films. It’s open to writer, director and producer teams who can already demonstrate a strong body of work. There are many from the British Urban Film Fraternity to whom this would apply to. One of them is Ida Akesson who is this month’s guest writer of the BUFF Blog. When the question is asked (as it invariably is) about ‘What is British Urban?’ Ida doesn’t just tick the box, she stamps all over it. Ida has been a friend of the festival for many years and BUFF has been both fortunate and delighted to have witnessed a real talent at work.

The last 12 months in particular has seen Ida win a Film London award (following in the footsteps of other BUFF filmmakers who’ve won the same award including Mawaan Rizwan & Rohan Green); she also had 2 of her short films showcased online and in person at the British Urban Film Festival and starting on April 21, she completes the set by going on-air with ‘The Holiday’, which has been selected by BUFF’s newest broadcast partner The Community Channel as part of the #buffpresents strand marking the festival’s return to TV for the first time in 5 years (watch the promo here - http://www.blottr.com/london/breaking-news/british-urban-film-festival-unveils-tv-idents).

Ida also happened to correctly forecast the winners of all this year’s main Oscar categories (best actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, best picture) as part of a Shooting People competition – it seems she can do no wrong. Remember the name – Ida Akesson… here’s her blog.

They say it’s not the most talented people who succeed at what they do, but those who are the most focused. It’s certainly true that to get things done as an up and coming filmmaker you need to be focused - and passionate - but you do need some talent too, and a bit of luck.
Support from true champions of filmmakers such as the ever energetic BUFF is also helpful, as getting the film made is only half the battle - once you’ve broken your back getting the film made you need all the help and luck you can get in getting it seen by as many people as possible. And that’s before you start all over again and make another one.
My short film ‘The Holiday’ screened to a very healthy-sized audience at BUFF 2011, and thanks to BUFF it will also soon screen on the Community Channel. Overall it’s screened at many festivals and this is a great reward as I had to be quite determined to get the film made in the first place.
I wrote the film whilst studying for an MA in Screenwriting at LCC (London College of Communication) and knew that I also wanted to direct it - I had quite a set idea of how I wanted the tone and feel of the film to be.
I knew that it would cost more money than I had to make the film, so once I had graduated I applied for some public funding at a grass roots filmmaking scheme. I was told that the script was good but seeing that I didn’t have a sensible piece of drama on my showreel - mainly stuff I had done in art school - I could not be trusted with any funding. Fair enough really, and not enough to deter me in any way whatsoever.
Therefore, to be able to get a decent piece of narrative film on my showreel, I sat down and wrote the cheapest possible script I could come up with, my self financed 2009 comedy ‘Door to Door’, which screened online as part of BUFF 2010 (go to www.britishurbanfilmfestival.co.uk and watch it on the videowall).

There is so much to learn in filmmaking, so many parts of the process, and had I not made Door to Door first, ‘The Holiday’ wouldn’t have been the film it is - surely the case for any other director - and in this case a very good thing.

The plan was to make Door to Door for as little money as possible – a figure that quickly doubled even though it was made on love and favours. As my first proper narrative film it has its flaws but I’m still fond of it, and in the end it found its audience. It won Best Short Fiction Award at the Festival du Film Pan African 2010 and got licensed to Canal+ in France and the African Territories for a year, a great feat for a film shot on DV Cam on my own doorway.

Armed with a narrative piece of fiction on my showreel I again applied for some public funding to make The Holiday, and this time I had better luck. The Eastern Edge Film Fund - one of Film London’s Borough Film Funds - supported the project with funds but also with workshops and guidance, and we completed the film in 2010.

It’s different making a film within a structure where you have received funding and I quickly learned what a collaborative process filmmaking is. Whereas with Door to Door I had written a script that I was directing and financing and nobody really questioned any of my decisions, making The Holiday was a different kettle of fish. Throughout the development period I was getting questions and feedback not only from my two producers, who were great and very involved, but also a professional script editor and the executive producer. I remember being pulled up on things in the script as late as a week before shooting – which felt like a hassle at the time – but it meant that we ended up shooting some extra stuff that made its way into the final cut and the film is better for it.

My editor also refused to read the script and instead just had me tell her the story of the film over the phone before assembling a first rough cut – interesting for someone like me who’s studied screenwriting and been picking over words for years. But I guess that old cliché that you picture the film three times - in the script, on camera and in the edit suite - really is true, and this is also a good thing. Once you’ve shot the film it’s better to throw the script away and look at the footage you’ve got instead, at least for a short film. And then of course, because you’re making the film within a public funding structure, at every stage of the editing process you get questions and feedback from an entire panel of people, keeping you on your toes as you go along.

You also obviously have a rigid deadline since you’ve signed a contract saying that you will deliver the film at a particular date, and this is not something I would ever take lightly. What matters the most of course is quality of the final film but getting on in this industry is also all about building successful working relationships with people so if I have promised to get something done by a particular date I will bloody well do my best to deliver.

Once The Holiday was out there and playing at festivals I was lucky enough to get to make another publicly funded film, ‘Moments’. As they say, every director’s new film is a reaction to his or her last one and in this case that was certainly true. I guess after all the years of screenwriting and quibbling over character arcs I just wanted to make something short and beautiful.

It was, again, the Eastern Edge Film Fund who supported Moments and even though I don’t think they were entirely convinced at first, perhaps due to the slight experimental nature of the film, I’m sure it was our previous successful collaboration that finally persuaded them. And a good thing that was too as Moments went on to win the Jury Prize at Film London’s Best of Boroughs 2011. Amazing - and this wouldn’t have been possible if the film had been self funded.

Looking at the difference between making a publicly funded short, as opposed to a self funded one, I think the most important factor is that it’s good training for when you eventually – hopefully – get to make a feature. As a feature is so much more expensive to make I imagine the process is likely to become much more business-like than a short film you make for the bare minimum. I know that if I invested 100 grand or a million in a film I would want to know that the filmmakers knew what they were doing – really – and would be able to work to deadlines and be willing to discuss feedback etc.

Unless you happen to be rolling in money you’re going to have to – metaphorically - get into bed with somebody to get your idea made, whether that is a public funding body or someone else willing to invest in your project. I’ve only made a handful of very low budget short films but I do know that making a really great film is difficult – and that’s the aim, isn’t it? - to make a really great film.

I see films all the time that are good or pretty good but by no means great. So when you come to shoot your own film, maybe it’s not just about someone giving you the money to do it, maybe it’s also about being able to collaborate with other people within the industry who are very good at what they do and can help make your film better?

Choosing between trying to go the publicly funded route or the ‘striking out on your own’ route, I think you have to look at each project to decide what suits it best. As I have churned out five shorts in three years, two of them funded with strict deadlines etc, and two commissioned documentaries, one for BFM and one for Tate Gallery, I now fancy a breather and have started working on a project all on my own. Like I said before: every new film is a reaction to the last one and as I have been either working to a brief or having had to pitch and summarize the film at every stage of the process, I’ve now embarked on a different kind of project that needs very little money and resources and can be shot over a much longer period of time. It’s nice starting a project and having no idea where it’s going. I would imagine that once I’ve shot enough material and put together a cut I’ll again come knocking for feedback and funds to finish the project off, whether that’s from a funding body or anyone else who might be interested.

There is no best way to make a film, you just have to try and be flexible in what’s available to you and to be as critical about your work as possible, to always challenge yourself and try to make the best film possible. And occasionally keep your fingers crossed.

‘The Holiday’ screens as part of "BUFF Presents..." starting on Saturday April 21 at 9.00pm (Sky Channel 539 & Virgin Media 233). The Community Channel is also available on Freeview and BT Vision – check for availability.