BIFF Signature Film
The making of the BIFF film
At the start of 2022, we set out to create a film which would capture the essence of what we do as an organisation. We wanted to make a film that would celebrate what our members do each year to provide performance opportunities in their local communities. A film that would not only highlight the impact of our festivals within their communities but also showcase the passion, commitment and drive of all of those involved.
From the outset, we knew that we could not capture every single festival, or every single type of class offered. But what we wanted to do was to create a film that reflected all our members, even if they were not shown directly in the film. A film in which all members could see themselves and what they do.
Our filming timetable started in late February 2022 with an aim for the finished project to be available by October 2022. After seeking proposals from a number of film makers, we chose to work with Studio Bokehgo. Studio Bokehgo are a small film studio with a passion for collaborating with community-based arts groups and they were an ideal fit for the project we wanted to deliver. Their passion for storytelling and genuine enthusiasm for this project made them a natural choice.
We matched our potential filming window across our festival calendar to identify and approach festivals who may be happy to have us with them for a day or two. We tried to approach a cross section of festivals who used a range of different venues so that all members could see themselves reflected. From professional theatre venues through to small church halls, we wanted to show the range of different environments from which our fantastic festivals are delivered each year.
Due to the challenges of COVID travel restrictions and budget limitations, we knew that filming directly at our international member festivals would not be possible. We approached a number of our international festivals to see if they had pre-recorded footage that they could share with us so we could see if this could be used alongside the footage that Studio Bokehgo had captured directly. We managed to obtain some footage but unfortunately the picture quality of the pre-recorded footage did not allow it to be used without creating a disparity between this and the directly filmed footage.
Between February and July, we managed to film at six different BIFF festivals and to capture footage across all three disciplines: music, dance and speech and drama. We were welcomed warmly by all these festivals and made to feel completely at home as we captured beautiful performance footage and spoke to their enthusiastic teams. We spoke with hundreds of volunteers, performers, parents, teachers and adjudicators. It was a privilege to be able to do this and the positivity and commitment from everyone involved was clear to see.
We even made an approach to the Kanneh-Mason family to see if they would be happy to be involved in the project as they are passionate supporters of the festival movement and recognise the huge importance of festival participation in their own musical journeys. We were delighted when not only did they agree to be involved but we were invited to spend a day with all seven members of the family as they practiced for a concert together in July. It was a truly inspiring experience to see these hugely talented young musicians play together, talk about their passion for music and reflect so positively on their involvement at our festivals as they were growing up. As this sweltering day in July came to a close, this marked the end of our filming timetable.
The next task for Studio Bokehgo was the enormous job of editing down the hundreds and hundreds of hours of material into one short film. An unenviable task as there was so much fantastic material to work through. We had commissioned Studio Bokehgo to make one main signature film of approximately 10 minutes length and then several other shorter discipline specific films and a short film to highlight the work of our festival volunteers. The main film would be first part of the project with the shorter focused films following later.
‘Studio Bokehgo is an artisanal film studio that only works with projects we believe in and feel are making a positive impact in our world. We genuinely believe that through storytelling with sincerity, integrity, and originality, we can build bridges of connection and welcome people into spaces they may have never felt welcome in before. BIFF and all the festivals involved also believe in building bridges. You all build bridges into the performing arts in the most wondrous ways, and all of your energy inspired and enthused us on our task to tell a story that captured this.
The key idea for us was unity. We wanted to showcase the unified voice that runs through all of these incredible festivals in order to build a voice of the whole, that would allow any festival to use this as a flag to bear proudly and to invite participants and volunteers into this wondrous community, wherever in the world they might be, whatever discipline, whatever experience.
As we visited a number of festivals, we saw the empowering humanity and incredible energy stitched across the BIFF members. We saw the democratisation of the performing arts as so many incredible people laid pathways to an open and welcoming stage. In the same way all these incredible festivals create a stage for participants, I hope this film can be a stage to celebrate all those who make a deep and powerful difference in the lives of so many performers across art forms.
It has been an honour and pleasure to be welcomed into this wonderful BIFF family, and we hope this film can be a proud flag you can bear to catalyse people to engage with your incredible open doorways into the performing arts. You are all amazing and this film belongs to you.’ – John Slemensek-Thorne, Studio Bokehgo
In September, Studio Bokehgo provided us with their edit of the main film, and we were pleased to preview this at our Annual Members’ Conference in Newcastle upon Tyne in October 2022.
We are now pleased to be able to share this with the wider membership and we hope you enjoy watching it and sharing it to promote the amazing work that our members do.
How to use and share the film
We would love for our members to share and use the film as much as you would like.
You can share the film on your social platforms using the link below.
If you would like to embed the film on your website, please contact the team at Festivals House on info@federationoffestivals.org.uk and we will be able to share the embed code with you.