Tucked away from the hustle and bustle of Manchester during the Christmas period, the Independent Film Co-Operative (IFC) put on a screening showcasing their passion and talent through a number of exceptional short films and music videos. The IFC are nearing their 10th birthday, and are made up of a varied range of people, from students, industry professionals and amateurs. What they all share is a true love for filmmaking and cinema, cinephiles in the truest sense. The group meet monthly and host networking events as well as screenings of their productions and general get togethers. One may be mistaken for thinking of the likes of the Bradford Movie Makers who featured in the 2022 Kim Hopkins documentary, 'A Bunch Of Amateurs', however while there may be some similarities (as can be expected) the Independent Film Co-Operative seem far from amateurish even if they are an “indy” film group, and as shown in production stills before the screening began, have access to some top notch equipment. Upon being told that the IFC had a very quiet few years due to COVID, one gets the impression that they are on a serious rebound, all guns blazing, lights, camera, action!
In no particular order the screening consisted of the following music videos: 'Freedom' – Voices Beyond (Dir. Maretha Ilves and Rhys Faghan), '4 The Sake Of It' – Brash (Dir. Sam Bond), 'Fluid' – The Red Stains (Dir. Angela Ricciuto) and 'Soul' – Jamie Borrowdale (Dir. Jamie Burrowdale). These were an eclectic mixture of music videos, each dealing with different themes such as identity and loss. The production quality varied between videos which was rather refreshing and highlights the variety of talent this group has. Although 'Freedom' lacked the polished look of 'Soul' it did not mean that it was any better of worse. In fact 'Freedom' and '4 The Sake Of It' were the two stand out music videos of the night (personally) and both were drastically different from one another in style and composition. It is all about what you do with what you have and this was a point which kept repeating in my head throughout the night.
The short films, again in no order, were: 'The Man Of The House' (Dir. Daniel Elkin), 'Only Boring People Get Bored' (Dir. Kassandra Knight), 'Manic Attacks' (Dir. Lucie Podobska), 'The Estate' (Dir. Alexander Bay), 'Expiration Date' (Dir. Xander Ross), 'I Made War Of The Worlds' (Dir. Luke Walters) and 'Raising Purrfect Humans' (Dir. Samantha and Jack Harpur). Again, an absolutely fantastic mixture of genres and production qualities and styles. Each short had their own qualities and merits, for example 'Expiration Date' was a great silent comedy, making use of the one location (which we never leave) and joke (a bounty hunter’s futuristic gun won’t work due to multiple error messages) as well as some splendid special effects. It’s an incredibly simple premise, but the flourishes and acting really make it work. Another comedy (and the short which may have been my favourite) was 'Only Boring People Get Bored', similar to 'Freedom', was rough around the edges and lacked the polish which say 'The Estate' had, but made great use of the setting and mise-en-scene. A wonderful comic performance by Sophie Toland and an absolutely stupid (in the funny ha-ha way) premise of what a person gets up to when they are at home all day, made it stand out. It was charming and again, it harks back to the thought of getting the most out of what you have.
Now juxtapose that with Alexander Bay’s 'The Estate', the short which looked and felt the most professional and made use of a variety of locations, a country manor, a ruined stables, a prison looking location. A serious thriller/ drama in which a rehabilitated handyman, fresh out of prison takes a job on a country estate; admittedly I saw the twist a mile away, and the “court” scene at the end ruined what had been a stellar production to that point, but it was far from boring or bad. The performances were believable and engaging, as was the plot to a degree. One could watch 'The Estate' on television or even in the cinema before a feature film easily.
As for the other short films, they each brought something new or different to the table. Albeit limited in location or budget, they certainly went above and beyond to present an interesting take on long established trope (the stranger appearing out of nowhere at an old house in 'The Man Of The House'), or touching on themes of conspiracy theories and using social media as a platform to evoke mass hysteria ('I Made The War Of The Worlds'), to body image and self-acceptance in 'Manic Attacks'.
'Raising Purrfect Humans' was a delightful stop-motion amination using the premise of a training video for cats and how to engage with their humans. This short had the most sentiment and was a surprisingly sweet end to the screening.
One cannot be too critical of these shorts and music videos. After all, having had some experience on a professional shoot, I know how much blood, sweat and tears goes into making a short or music video. It is exhausting work, but incredibly gratifying when it can be projected on a cinema screen to a full audience. It is an impressive feat and the IFC should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved and will continue to achieve. This screening also begs the question or at least leaves you mulling over the point of why the film industry appears so insular and hostile to outsiders, when a screening like this shows that amateurs and the like can make equally good material as what is seen on the television and big screen. Personally I feel we are currently experience a creative drought, and those beings higher up and preventing the likes of the IFC from coming along and opening the floodgates. Why, say the BBC for example, cannot screen something like 'Manic Attacks' instead of the 1,000,000th repeat of Flog It, I don’t know.
It is reassuring to know that there are societies and groups out there, locally, who are on the up and up and still love films and filmmaking. Whereas Hopkins’ 'A Bunch Of Amateurs' portrayed these groups as a dying breed, the Independent Film Co-Operative is a hard refusal of that suggestion. I for one would be interested in seeing what else they do, and I know of many people who would also be interested in what they do with a view to join. Let’s hope for many more end of year screenings to come!
Reviewer - Daryl Griffin
on - 15.12.23
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