The crisis in Spain has affected everything and everyone to some extent. Culture is especially suffering the lack of investment, not only from the government but also from citizens. However, on a small island located in the Atlantic ocean, there is a group of people still fighting for their beliefs, for culture as a recipe for the progress of society.

On Tenerife, one of the seven Canary Islands, there is a group of 10 photographers who have organized a cultural event, unique because of it originality. It is a free cultural week named “Diez fotógrafos, diez miradas, cien imágenes” (Ten photographers, ten views, one hundred images).

The event took place September 21 to 29 in the “Centre of Arts and Congress Magma” and there we have found live music, short films from more than 30 worldwide videographers,  and lectures from professional photographers and representatives of international brands, such as Canon, Lomography and GoPro  among other activities planned. Mark Fradley, the head of the group “Ten Diez Movement” agreed to talk with Toonari Post.

Toonari Post: How did “Ten Diez Movement” come about?

Mark Fradley: The idea behind the “Ten Diez Movement” came about after spending many years on-line and being constantly inspired by so much creativity out there from just regular people, from sites such as Flickr, 500px, blogs, Vimeo and other social media. Then came along Facebook where it became relatively easy to share ones artistic expression across a broad audience. This and a passion for art, live music and an embedded belief that working together as a collective is more practical and beneficial then working as an individual.

TP: What the event is all about? Who had the idea of carrying it out?

MF: When I started working on the project back in November 2011 my main concept behind the movement was a cultural one. It was to create a community of people that could work together on various levels & projects and not necessarily just for people based in the Canary Islands. “The event” is just our first step to where we would like to see ourselves in the next few years.

TP: What is the difference between this event and other cultural events?

MF: I think the ability to carry on the concept into other fields is possibly one of the main differences and not having it all boil down to how much money can be raked in from it. That and basing it on the people and being able to offer them a free of charge array of different and interesting activities.

TP: How is the public responding to the initiative?

MF: We are really stoked with the response from the public, local government and the islands’ media. They all seem to want to back the whole deal, it’s a bit overwhelming sometimes how we’ve received so many good critics in such a short space of time. The response has been great across the board and I can only thank everyone involved for we are at now just 10 months down the line.

TP: How are you funded?

MF: Privately. All the project’s funding has been generated entirely from local professional businesses, a small amount to cover general expenditures.

TP: Canon, Lomography or GoPro are helping you with the project. How did you attract the attention of these big enterprises?

MF: This basically comes down to a lot of hard work from the whole team. Myself and the movement’s partner Miguel Issa have spent hundreds of hours projecting different angles to deal with these corporations and successfully we finally got their attention. I would like to think we could put it down to our persistence and professionalism.

TP: The event is focused towards photography; how did photography come into your life?

MF: Yes this event is more focused towards photography. I started my journey at 14 because one of my art teachers was a photography enthusiast and ran a term course there, back in the day before digital cameras were on the scene. We had a darkroom for developing black & white film; I was fascinated.

TP: One of the more discussed economic cuts in Spain in the last months has been the Spanish cinema aids cuts, around 35%. What is your opinion about it?

MF: We don’t want to enter the project into politics, so no comment on that one.

TP:  What expectations do you have for the future? Are you going to organize the event next year?

MF: For sure we are going to be carrying on with project, we are currently at Magma Centro de Arte & Congresos, playa de las Américas, Tenerife and will be extending the exhibition for a month or two more but just as gallery type environment. After this event comes to a close on September 29, we have a couple more exhibitions that will piggy back each other both for local government (in town halls).

TP: The event is completely free, but did you think about charging admission now or in the next editions?

MF: Whilst we are able to offer a free public service we shall continue in that direction. Having said that, there are a few small projects we would like to run in the near future that simply aren’t possible to offer for free.

TP: Personally, what has this event meant to you?

MF: I’m grateful to the 200 plus people involved in the project and grateful for their time and trust. Also thank you for taking the time and I hope you have a little more knowledge about what’s going on, on our little island.

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Celebrating its fifth year, Focus Features’ Africa First Program will accept entries beginning this Monday, May 14 and continuing through Monday, August 20. Focus CEO James Schamus made the announcement on Tuesday

The uniquely conceived initiative, with funds earmarked exclusively for emerging filmmakers of African nationality and residence, is for the fifth consecutive year offering eligible and participating filmmakers the chance to be awarded $10,000 in financing for pre-production, production, and/or post-production on their narrative short film made in continental Africa and tapping into the resources of the film industry there.

The program also brings the filmmakers together with each other and with a renowned group of advisors, major figures in the African film world, for support and mentorship. Past short films to come out of the Program have been showcased at the Sundance, Toronto, London, and Berlin Film Festivals; on The Africa Channel; and with the Museum of the Moving Image and the Film Society of Lincoln Center, among other venues worldwide.

A compilation of films completed through the Program is available on DVD and across VOD and EST platforms. Complete details on Africa First – including application information – can be accessed year-round through www.focusfeatures.com/africafirst.

Africa First is supervised by Program Director and producer Kisha Cameron Dingle (…Sometimes in April), whose company, Completion Films, has a first-look and consulting deal with Focus, and who coordinates the Program’s submissions and evaluations with Focus director of development & production Christopher Kopp.

In addition to on-site work in Africa, the winning filmmakers of Africa First will visit New York City in the fall of 2012 for a weekend of one-on-one workshop discussions with each other; members of the advisory board of experts in African cinema; such Focus executives as Mr. Schamus and president of production Jeb Brody, covering topics like international distribution and the economics of studio financing; and Mrs. Dingle and Mr. Kopp.

Mr. Schamus said, “In celebrating the fifth anniversary of Africa First this year, we are also celebrating the dynamic and talented group of filmmakers we’ve had the privilege of collaborating with during the Program’s tenure. The kudos and acclaim their films have generated around the world is gratifying, and we look forward to working with them again.”

In 2008, the Africa First Program selected these filmmakers and their respective films; Mr. Edouard Bamporiki (from Rwanda) for Long Coat, Ms. Jenna Bass (from South Africa) for The Tunnel, Mr. Jan-Hendrik Beetge (from South Africa) for The Abyss Boys, Ms. Dyana Gaye (from Senegal) for N’Dar (a.k.a. St. Louis Blues), and Ms. Wanuri Kahiu (from Kenya) for Pumzi [Breath].

The winning filmmakers for 2009 were Mr. Stephen Abbott (from South Africa) for Dirty Laundry, Mr. Matt Bishanga (from Uganda) for A Good Catholic Girl, Mr. Daouda Coulibaly (from Mali) for Tinye So, Mr. Matthew Jankes (from South Africa) for Umkhungo, and Ms. Rungano Nyoni (from Zambia) for The Adventures of Mwansa the Great. The 2010 filmmakers chosen were Ms. Chika Anadu (from Nigeria) for The Marriage Factor; Mr. Lev David (from South Africa) for Down; Ms. Jacqueline Kalimunda (from Rwanda) for Sky Burning Down; Ms. Ebele Okoye (from Nigeria) for The Legacy of Rubies; and Mr. Julius Onah (from Nigeria) for Nepa Don Quench.

The filmmakers selected in 2011 were Ms. Oshosheni Hiveluah (from Namibia) for 100 Bucks; Mr. Cedric Ido (from Burkina Faso) for Twaaga [Invincible]; Mr. Mark Middlewick (from South Africa) for Late Night Security; Ms. Akosua Adoma Owusu (from Ghana) for Kwaku Ananse; and Mr. Zelalem Woldemariam (from Ethiopia) for Adamet [Listen].

This year, the submissions period begins on Monday, May 14, 2012 and runs through Monday, August 20, 2012. The five filmmakers selected will be notified by October 2012 and will retain the copyrights and the distribution rights to their completed shorts, with the exception of North American rights; Focus retains those, as well as the right of first negotiation to productions derived from the shorts, such as a feature-length expansion.

Completion is developing feature, documentary, and television projects. Its president, Mrs. Dingle, previously worked as director of development at Walden Media, and as an executive at New Line Cinema, where she oversaw the development and production of Spike Lee’s Bamboozled.

The Africa First advisory board members are Ms. Mahen Bonetti, founder and executive director of the African Film Festival; journalist and documentary filmmaker Ms. Jihan El-Tahiri; Ms. June Givanni, who for four years programmed the Toronto International Film Festival’s Planet Africa series; Ms. Sharifa Johka, film programmer and independent producer; Mr. Pedro Pimenta, producer and manager of training programs throughout South Africa; and Mr. Keith Shiri, founder/director of the Africa at the Pictures film festival in the U.K.

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As the democratic process in Africa grows momentum and the people express their will, news from the Continent continues to dominate the headlines. The people are increasingly challenging the status quo, their efforts recalling the works and philosophy of the late author and director Ousmane Sembene, known as the “Father of African Cinema.”

Sembene’s life work was designed to get Africans to reject deeply embedded colonial views of themselves and to recognize their collective power to solve Africa’s problems. Now his films, and those of other award-winning directors, will be available for rental through digital download as Electronic Media Network (M-Net), the South African-based corporate broadcaster, producer and distributor, launches the largest-ever collection of award-winning African cinema content, the African Film Library.

The Video On Demand (VOD) collection will provide film lovers around the world with easy and affordable access through digital download to 110 films from some of the most creative minds in the industry, while providing African filmmakers a much-needed global distribution platform.

The African Film Library’s premiere will be marked by the online release of 14 films by or about Sembene. A native of the West African nation of Senegal, Sembene was first a celebrated novelist.

At 40, yearning to inspire social change and to reach a wider audience in Africa, he directed the first film by a sub-Saharan African, the 1963 short ‘Borom Sarret’ (The Wagoner). The auteur went on to direct many feature films, cinematic works meant to help Africans liberate themselves from mental yolks that lingered long after independence from colonial rule and to urge collective action in overcoming societal ills.

“Africa must get beyond deriving everything from the European view. Africa must consider itself, recognize its problems, and attempt to resolve them,” said Sembene.

One of the oldest film industries in the world, African cinema—which began with ‘Ain El Ghezel’ (The Girl of Carthage), the 1924 Tunisian film by Chemama Chikly—has long been overlooked by those outside the continent as being limited to educational, documentary-style productions. The programming available through the African Film Library, however, dispels this myth with a mélange of short and feature films spanning the genres of comedy, drama, musical and sci-fi, both narrative and documentary.

M-Net has negotiated the rights to around 700 works. The launch is the culmination of a project which began more than three years ago and has seen the digitization and restoration of the continent’s finest cinematic titles.

Film rentals are $5.00 per movie and can be accessed by registering and purchasing credits at www.africanfilmlibrary.com. Users are then able to watch the film multiple times within a 36-hour period.

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The only premiering Tribeca film initially viewable from Europe was, perhaps ironically, European. The Irish director, Thomas Hefferon, delivered ‘The Heist’ alongside his competing short film ‘Switch’. Hefferon has before been selected for the Festival competition with his short film ‘The Confession’ and had ‘The Pool’ premiere at Tribeca last year. The Heist had the privilege of serving as a global sneak peak for the online Tribeca audience just before the actual event kicked off.

The movie is a 9 minute short comedy shot mainly from the insides of a parked car. Three amateur bank-robbers are making a last run-through of their plan, but quickly realize that the robbing business is a complicated affair.

The leader is Francis, played by Sean Flanagan, whose feeble leading skills are seriously strained as he attempts to reason with the other two characters. It seems obvious that Francis is far from intelligent, but at least he stands out as the most sensible in the group. Nicky, the guy on the left played by Donal Gallery, reminds you of every skinny bloke with the backbone of an earthworm ever to be portrayed in modern cinema. He comes off as simpleminded; almost childish, with a distinct feminine inclination for sulking. However, he is not the one causing the most problems in the tiny vehicle; that would be Dave.

Like my boyfriend use to say; “there’s always a Dave.” In this case, Dave is a Neanderthal of a man, clearly failing to realize the seriousness of the act he is about to commit, and with a serious case of the munchies. Within the feature’s 9 minute time frame, Dave manages to fizzle the momentum for the gang repeatedly with his outrageous requests.

The movie got plenty of positive feedback in the comment section while it was still viewable. Those in favor found the ‘verbal slapstick’ – exaggerated idiocy exceeding the boundaries of common sense, highly entertaining, and enjoyed the failure of the gang to pull off a ‘proper’ heist. I personally have to join the haters. Though it is clearly meant as a lighthearted take on bank robbers, having watched movies such as The Town, nominated at this years Academy Awards, you probably have no problem imagining that being victimized in a robbery is no picnic. What bothers me, however, is neither the crime nor the pending human consequences – it’s the characters.

For a character-driven short film, this is a problem. Why the writer chose to make the characters as shallow as the bottom of a water bottle I don’t know, but the result left me with a strange feeling of defeat, and funny enough, recognition. First of all, even when we agree that the collected IQ of the car come closest to 150, it is hard for me to believe that empathy is a foreign country to men of their un-profession. On the other hand, if we agree to relinquish their moral scruples, surely they must have fears and doubts about their impending action. But this is left untouched, denying the introduction of interesting characters. Secondly, as a native Dane, I found the dialogue oddly familiar. Tar-black humor that relishes in illogical, yet conceivable problematics. My research confirms that the writer is a Dane named Troels Jacob Hundtofte, and my guess is that he’s no stranger to modern Danish action comedy. He seems, however, a stranger to the fact that direct adaptation often ruins the intension. Being stranded on the beaches of an average cast, the already hampered dialogue is left to fend for itself and ends up being forced and uncomfortable. Since Hefferon obviously has drawn inspiration from the work of British gangster prodigy, Guy Richie, The Heist ends up as the awkward child of two offbeat genres.

Overall, the story was tame and uninteresting and could have been dealt with in a 5-lined joke. My only thumps-up is for the technical achievements – the film is well shot, well editing and the setup itself works. But in the end, what was meant as comic relief didn’t move me beyond thinking that I could be doing something else with my day.

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“I haven’t always been here. I mean before… I was normal.”

This quote is from the striking French animation short film Skhizein (2008), written and directed by Jérémy Clapin. It tells the story of Henri Debrus who departs from himself precisely ninety-one centimeters as a consequence of having been struck by a 150 tons of meteorite.

The title of the movie gives us a clue about Henri’s situation.

The term schizophrenia comes from the Greek words “skhizein” (to split) and “phren” (mind) which can be put as “split mind”. Henri has a mental disorder, but the film indicates more than that. The strong metaphor that has been used also shows us the effects of the alienation of a person to his own being. During this thirteen minutes short movie, we witness Henri’s deep loneliness because of this alienation, by being 91 centimeters from himself (and the distance gets even more with the second meteroite strike), Henri is not where he is supposed to be. Despite the fact that he is suffering from schizophrenia (and careful audiences will notice the signs that proves his delusion), the case here is not just a matter of having a mental disease, the metaphor also indirectly brings up the question of an existential matter which can also be evaluated apart from pyschological aspects. Since Henri is not “normal” anymore as he used to be, we see how he has been dragged into a crisis as well as having difficulties with keeping on his daily life. Despite his despair, his therapist claims that “there is no actual damage after all”. So we clearly see the gap between two different approches, one is experiencing the existential turning point as a facet of alienation, whereas the other is analyzing it without its philosophical depth since its only a matter of a disease that has to be cured. Not being understood by anyone, Henri is thrown into a solitude that he does not seem to overcome it.

Whether social or psychological, the concept of normality is open to discussion since the legitimacy of the authority which decides where exactly is the border between normality and abnormality is uncertain. Skhizein leads us to think about this borders as well. It is interesting that Henri actually measures the distance (precisely ninety-one centimeters) between normality and madness. By calculating the unmeasurable,  we sense a subtle irony in this film, which points out the mental, social and philosophical dephts of human mystery/misery. One wonders if this ninety-one centimeters is whether a mere symptom of a mental disorder or an existential dislocation which “normal” or not anyone may encounter.

Skhizein is an amazing film that has won seven awards. It pulls the audience into an abyss of the mental struggles by focusing on this bizarre and touching inner life of a man out of his mind. It’s an outstanding animation that definitely worths to watch over and over again!

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A young British student (Ed Speleers) trying to make his way back to his University gets more than he bargained for in Ride. When the young man heads out to make his way back to uni. we meet an older man (Anthony Lapaglia) willing to help the young stranger out. When the boy first sets out on what was meant to be a quick jaunt to school, he couldn’t possibly imagine what would happen next, or that the life he had back home would never be the same again.

Throughout the short film we see the young man’s internal struggle with battling against his morals and being safe. He finds it hard to do what’s right, or to do what other think makes more sense. The older man’s menacing control pulls the young man towards the dark end of the moral compass. This moment of being led astray, paired with his shear panic at what he has been thrown into, creates an intense atmosphere sure to keep the viewer intrigued.

The entirety of the short film had a very dreary foggy feel to it. The characters show little emotion from the beginning, and the young man appears to not want to converse all too much because of his unease towards the stranger. When certain events unfold we see a sprout of intense anger and confusion by the boy, but see a calm, uncaring, even cold show of emotion from the driver. Race comes to play in the middle of the film when the older man shows carelessness on the road, and shows indifference to the condition of individuals of other races. All of these factors come together to make the film a dark snapshot of what should have simple been, as the title shows, a ride.

I was curious from the first instance of action in the short film, yet still left short of amazed. The beginning was a bit slow and hard to really keep much interest in the mundane event of hitchhiking. Including the long barren roads that they appeared to be traveling on. The ending, however, makes up for some of these shortcomings. The strange events throughout, and the ominous feel of the film from the middle on, leaves the viewer craving to know how everything will turn out.

When we finally arrive at the University we meet a young woman (Emer Kenny). She appears to be the young man’s girlfriend and enthusiastically greets him after spotting him outside the gates. While he appears to remain lost at confused, but begins to try and confess to her the events of the day. She is, of course, oblivious to what has occurred and is happy and energetic to see him. She fails to notice the young mans grave demeanor. Now, this is where we get our little twist, so I won’t reveal any more, other than to say you’ll never expect what happens next. Unfortunately, this was probably one of the only two exciting, or really interesting, pieces of the short film.

In the end I think the film was interesting with nice film angles, but lacking a moving opening, and proper structuring to keep the momentum of the film. If you think that you can look past these downfalls, you may be pleasantly surprised at the intriguing twist at the end.

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