CAMERA shy but curious, Gravesend showed mixed reactions to the North West film festival workshop run by freelance filmmaker Rhiannon Windred over the weekend.
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Run out of Caroline Zatschler’s Alternative Arts shop (CZAA), Rhiannon had hoped to help locals create short films to be screened at the newly returned film festival at the Roxy Theatre in Bingara on June 17-18.
However, while attempting to conduct interviews, she found that most residents were far more interested in staying behind the scenes than jumping in front of a camera.
“A lot of people are camera shy,” she said, explaining that many people she met expressed an interest in learning more. Unfortunately this did not translate to workshop numbers, with no one showing up for the Saturday session.
They were really excited and happy to be there.
- Rhiannon Windred
Disappointed but not deterred just yet, Rhiannon continued to meet locals and talk to them about filmmaking and storytelling. On Sunday, she finally had success, with a group of young people keen to make their own fantasy horror flick.
“They were really excited and happy to be there,” Rhiannon said.
The little filmmakers had fun inventing a story involving a witch who turned children into half elf, half human creatures with the intent of taking over the world.
“They had a great time coming up with the story,” she said.
The girls wrote the script, worked the camera and had fun acting out the witch and her mutant servants’ adventures, with a little guidance from Rhiannon.
They had a great time coming up with the story.
- Rhiannon Windred
“One of the youngest girls, I think she was about six. She was helping us with the camera and she was listening to the sound,” she said.
“I think that what it's about. They got to create their own creation and they can now go, ‘This is mine, this is what we can do again’”.
Rhiannon said that while country people may feel they don’t have the resources to make a good film, most have all they need in their pants pocket.
“Crack your phone out and do it that way,” she recommended.
“Most people these days have smartphones and they’re capable of a lot more that we give them credit for.”