LMFF 2017
PROGRAMME
We have categorised the films thematically, bringing together shorts, features and panels in a way that allows us to draw comparisons, analysing the most pressing themes from diverse perspectives.
To know more about each individual film presented within LMFF 2017 please check our film list page.
Please check each individual event to find the links to ticket sale.
Thursday 30 November
OPENING GALA
Dance + Films + Play + Choir. 18.30-21.30 at the Migration Museum. £6
Tickets here
ACT 1 - EXTRACTS FROM 'DEAR HOME OFFICE' AND 'DEAR HOME OFFICE: STILL PENDING'
by Phosphoros Theatre
Phosphoros Theatre is made up of 10 refugee and asylum-seeking young men from Afghanistan, Albania, Eritrea and Somalia who came to the UK on their own as children. The plays are based on the young men's real lives as they arrive to and live in the UK.
ACT 2 - DANCE PERFORMANCE BY THE NATASHAS PROJECT
The Natashas Project is an international contemporary dance/physical theatre company founded in 2013. Its aim is to use dance to inform and equip the public about Human Trafficking in Modern Day Slavery and support survivors through creative means.
Tonight they will be performing NATASHAS a piece that captures the lost innocence of those caught in sex slavery.
ACT 3 - PREMIERE OF STORIES UNTOLD
Stories Untold is a series of short films featuring London-based migrants, created by filmmakers Lara Singer and Sophie Williams, assisted by Regina Verner and in association with Migration Collective. After almost a year in development, and an extensive casting process, six diverse stories have been selected to help challenge the current rhetoric surrounding migration in a post-Brexit Britain. We are proud to share the final result in the Stories Untold world premiere.
ACT 4 - CHOIRS
Conducted by Matthew Watts
We will close the night with a powerful singing performance brought to us by New Mixed Up Chorus and Sing for Freedom Choir. The Mixed Up Chorus was founded in 2013 to bring people from different backgrounds, faiths and cultures together through music, while the Sing for Freedom Choir formed in 2016 and is made up of clients, volunteers and staff from the Freedom From Torture charity, based in Finsbury Park. The choirs will be singing from their own repertoire and then will perform a song together that they co-composed as part of the recent Singing our Lives project.
WHAT IF YOU GET HUNGRY..?
Worry not! Food will be catered by Welcome Kitchen, a group of friends from North London. They are refugees and exceptionally talented chefs from across Africa and Asia. While evoking memories for some and educating others - their eclectic feasts unite cultures and generations, celebrate heritage, offer employment, and feed action and community empowerment in their affiliated local projects.
Welcome Kitchen will be present at the event selling their amazing food, and all the profits from food sale will remain with the chefs, who are currently deciding what delicacies to present you with.
The night will end with a dance flashmob organised by Speaker Box Street Party, and DJ Sheeb will accompany the night with his sounds. Katie Barlow, photographer and documentarist, will expose her work from Calais, Lesvos and the UK. Two of the portraits she took in Lesvos were recently exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery as part of the Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize 2016.
We will be accompanied by several socially conscious stalls who will be displaying their work and ready to chat:
Chaigaram
Thraedable
Chatterbox
New Internationalist
This event is presented in collaboration with The UN Migration Agency, IOM UK, and it is supported by Counterpoints Arts.
Friday 1 December
LOVE IN THE TIME OF BREXIT
Film and Q&A. 18.30 at Genesis Cinema. £10, £6.5 concession
This event will include the screening of God's Own Country, a film focussing on the experience of a Romanian farm-worker in Yorkshire as he falls in love with a young British man. The film will be followed by a Q&A with:
Alexandra Bulat (PhD Candidate, UCL): Her doctoral research focuses on attitudes towards EU migrants in the UK. When not working on her PhD, she is involved in UK politics, including lobbying for migrants’ rights.
Nicolas Hatton (Co-founder and Co-chair of The 3 Million): in July 2016 Nicolas co-founded The 3 Million, a movement that is campaigning and advocating for the rights of EU citizens in the UK following the Brexit vote.
Seán McGovern (Fringe! Queer Film and Arts Fest): programmer and festival producer; since 2015, he has organised The Vito Project, a film screening series held at London's Cinema Museum, which brings together an intergenerational audience each month for films and discussions that document the queer experience. He currently works for The National Film and Television School.
Buy a ticket here
Lmff presents 'tropical december'
Live music and DJ sets. Doors 19.30-1.00am. Upstairs at the Ritzy. £5 in advance, £6 on the door
We'll be kicking the night off with sounds of DJ Blonde Zilla. She comes with a heavy bag of equally heavy African vinyl; from 70s Ghanaian Highlife, Nigerian Funk and Senegalese Sabar, to Somalian Pop, Sierra Leone party bangers and electro street music from Mali. Expect to shake a leg to these sounds!
To carry on the party we'll be graced with the presence of dream team DJ Sheeb and Emilio. These guys will be playing a back-to-back set of funky, tropical tunes. To warm your ears and get in the groove, have a listen to some of their sounds here and here.
Then we will welcome Darius & Oshan from The Turbans. These guys are part of an international musical collective bringing together exciting traditional near-eastern and eastern-European styles and original compositions, to create a modern and energetic performance with reverence for its ancient roots.
We are looking forward to welcoming you with us to shake a leg and bring in December with the sounds of tropical sunshine!
Buy a ticket here
Saturday 2 December
representing the 'REFUGEE CRISIS'
In the past few years media and politicians have made large use of the expression "refugee crises", referring to the high number of refugees and asylum seekers that have reached Europe since 2013. Is this the right term to talk about this phenomenon? Also, how can we go beyond the mainstream representation of the migrants and refugees subjects of this rhetoric, who are usually depicted either as victims or enemies?
The films presented in these two sessions and the following Q&A offer a new perspective on how to talk about the so-called "refugee-crises".
part 1
Film. 15:30 at Genesis Cinema. £10, £6.5 concession
Saturday at Genesis Cinema will be dedicated to films considering and challenging how we talk about the "refugee crisis". The first part will include the a short, Oksijan, and the documentary The Art of Moving.
Buy a ticket for the first part here
PART 2
Film and Q&A. 18:00 at Genesis Cinema. £10, £6.5 concession
The second part of the day will include a short, Roots, Only Roots and feature film, The Other Side of Hope. The film will be followed by a Q&A with:
Saad Eddine Said: he is the Co-Founder and Co-Director of the NGO Terre Sans Frontière which aims to break down cultural boundaries through art, music and film, and artistic director at Battersea Art Centre
Katie Barlow: she has spent the last few years documenting the "refugee crisis" through documentary film and photography, producing work for the Refugee Council, Channel 4 News, Ai Weiwei, the BBC and UNHCR.
Lucy Carrigan (International Rescue Committee): as the communications lead for Europe, she holds an expertise on the situation affecting refugees in Europe and how these are communicated to a public audience.
Buy a ticket for the second part here
Want to see both films but it gets a bit too expensive? We got your back. You can buy a double ticket for Part 1 and Part 2 together at a discounted price of £16.5, £9.5 concession here
MIGRATION AND IMPERIALISM
Workshop. 13.00 at the Migration Museum. £5 early bird, £7.5 regular. Curated by Consented.
The London-based group Consented will be curating a workshop focussing on the relation between Migration and Imperialism. On the day we will screen two films looking at ways in which imperialism still shapes the lives of migrants today. After each film is screened, we will open up the floor to the audience in order to further explore the themes covered and discuss the current state of affairs in regards to migration and imperialism.
The day will end with a workshop run in collaboration between activists and STRIKE! Magazine that will provide a space to explore how violent borders are affecting communities in the UK and around the world. As we explore the current context of the UK immigration system and deportations, there will be interactive participatory discussion with explorations for how you can get involved in the campaign.
Buy a ticket here
RETURN
Film. 13.00 at Deptford Cinema. £6, £4 concession
This event will look at the experience of migrants returning to their countries of origins, and will include three films: The Parable of the Return, The Ambassador's Wife and The Virgin Vegan. Concepts explored throughout these films include layers of identity, repatriation, change, culture, belonging, and what is the meaning of "home".
Buy a ticket here
LANGUAGE AND EXPECTATIONS
Film. 16.00 at Deptford Cinema. £6, £4 concession
The films included in this event, Toprak (short), Exotique (short) and El Futuro Perfecto (feature), explore themes linked to language, communication and expectations and how they resonate with one another. Language and expectations both bring people together and divide them. They don't make distinctions between categories, thus transcend the various migratory experiences, establishing a common ground.
This event has been organised with the support of MUBI.
Buy a ticket here
ACTIVISM
Film and Q&A. 19.00 at Deptford Cinema. £6, £4 concession
Wearing our Dignity (short) and La Cocina de las Patronas/The Kitchen of Las Patronas (feature), the two films included in this event, provide examples of how small, everyday activism can bring about concrete improvements in the lives of migrants. The screenings will be followed by a Q&A with people engaged in activism at different levels:
Rebecca Baron: Rebecca is the Social Mission Manager for Ben & Jerry’s, heading up their activism in the UK. She campaigns with them and others on refugee rights, climate change and gender equality. Her favourite Ben & Jerry’s flavour is Vanilla Pecan Blondie.
Jennie Corbett: Jennie is the UK Policy & Advocacy Officer at Doctors of the World UK, and her work focuses on improving access to NHS care for excluded people, particularly migrants in vulnerable circumstances.
Sue Clayton: Sue is a feature and documentary filmmaker. She is also Professor of Film and Television at Goldsmiths. She has worked in the field of child rights for a number of years, and made Hamedullah: The Road Home (2012) where she gave a camera to an 18 year old Afghan boy who was being deported from UK back to Kabul. The film has been used as evidence in court to argue against these deportations. Her new film Calais Children: A Case to Answer” (2017) (www.calais.gebnet.co.uk) tells the story of the 2000 unaccompanied minors left alone in the Calais Jungle after it was destroyed - most of whom had a legal right to be in the UK. She - and the film - are part of a current challenge to the Home Office in the High Court.
Buy a ticket here
Sunday 3 December
YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE 'REFUGEE CRISIS'
Roundtable + short films. 13.30 Upstairs at the Ritzy. £2
This interactive and informative event will focus on the unique experiences, role and difficulties faced by young refugees within the European "refugee crisis" and three uniquely-placed charities will present the work they do with young refugees: IOM United Kingdom, Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), and Coram Young Citizens.
Following a screening of the short film Misafir "A Guest" and presentations by each organisation, the audience will be encouraged to learn about, question and even challenge the way young refugees have been treated within the broader 'refugee crisis'. And there will be plenty of space to network and learn how you could get involved!
This event is presented in collaboration with The UN Migration Agency, IOM, UK
Buy a ticket here
MIGRATION STORIES
Storytelling event. 16.00 Upstairs at the Ritzy. £4
Stories are a powerful medium: they underpin the myths that shape our worlds, they allow us to peek through a window into other lives, they show us that the experiences of people we never thought we could know are not so different from our own. Stories allow us to take part in a spoken community and transcend the isolation of the written word. So bridges can be formed that allow us to see migrants not as 'other' or numbers, but as our neighbours and friends - people whose lives interweave with our own in place and kind.
Do you have a story to tell? Contact us!
Buy a ticket here
RIGHTS AND POWER
Film. 15.30 at Genesis Cinema. £10, £6.5 concession
The films in this event, Underground (short) and Between Fences (feature), explore how both physical and legal boundaries effect migrants' personal agency and ultimately lives as part of a society. Both films involve imbalances of power within the asylum process that limit people's ability to access and exercise their rights: of protection, citizenship and justice.
Within the broader theme this event will ask, of the films, of the audience and of the panel discussants: How do the arts give asylum seekers and ‘illegal’ migrants a voice? The film will be followed by a Q&A with:
Sue Clayton: Sue is a feature and documentary filmmaker. She is also Professor of Film and Television at Goldsmiths. She has worked in the field of child rights for a number of years, and made Hamedullah: The Road Home (2012) where she gave a camera to an 18 year old Afghan boy who was being deported from UK back to Kabul. The film has been used as evidence in court to argue against these deportations. Her new film Calais Children: A Case to Answer” (2017) (www.calais.gebnet.co.uk) tells the story of the 2000 unaccompanied minors left alone in the Calais Jungle after it was destroyed - most of whom had a legal right to be in the UK. She - and the film - are part of a current challenge to the Home Office in the High Court.
Federica Mazzara: senior lecturer in intercultural communication at the University of Westminster in London. Federica teaches classes on Intercultural Communication, Complex Narratives, and Migration and Cultural Encounters. Her research interrogates contemporary concerns in Europe regarding multiculturalism, gender and urban spaces as represented in cultural practices. She is in the early stage of writing a monograph entitled "Re-imagining Lampedusa: Migration from the Border spectacle to the Aesthetics of Subversion'. She is also keeps a research blog: movingborders.blogspot.co.uk.
New Arts Studio: a therapeutic art studio for asylum seekers and refugees founded by and managed by Art Psychotherapists Tania Kaczynski and Jon Martyn. The New Art Studio works to give relief from the effects of profound trauma. They currently offer life drawing classes, English classes, yoga workshops and opportunity to exhibit art work. In June 2017, they hosted an art exhibition at the Ben Uri Gallery in London. The forty paintings showcased at the exhibit reflected the often overlooked or unseen freedoms that making art unlocks.
This event is being supported by Oxford Migration Studies Society and STAR Oxford - Student Action for Refugees
Buy a ticket here
SECOND GENERATION
Film and Q&A. 18.00 at Genesis Cinema. £10, £6.5 concession
The films within this event, Ambaradan (short) and Per un Figlio/For a Son (feature), explores the 'othering' and the disconnect prompted by migrant heritage. While the themes are universal, both films take place within Italy, a country still coming to terms with the changing texture of its society. The film will be followed by a Q&A with:
Golam Tipu: he is the representative of the Italian/Bengali community living in Ilford and cultural mediator.
Angelo Boccato: he is an Italian journalist focusing on migration and citizenship issues, both with an international as well as national focus.
Paolo Negro and Marzia Ercolani: they are the director and lead female actress in Ambaradan.
This event is presented in collaboration with Cinema Italia UK.
Buy a ticket here
LABOUR
Film. 17.30 at Deptford Cinema. £6, £4 concession
The films within this event, Abigail (short) and The Dog (feature), offer quiet glimpses into the private lives of migrant workers, exploring the intersection between migration and labour.
Buy a ticket here
Tuesday 5 December
CLOSING GALA
Film. 19.30 at Somerset House. *sold out*
In a London preview at Somerset House, the new film by Ai Weiwei, Human Flow will be presented at the LMFF 2017 Closing Gala. Captured over the course of an eventful year in 23 countries, the film follows a chain of urgent human stories that stretches across the globe in countries including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, France, Greece, Germany, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, and Turkey.
The event will be introduced by Tim Finch, one of the film's writers.
This event is presented in collaboration with The UN Migration Agency, IOM, UK and Dartmouth Films.
