2024 Film Festival
Supported by Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, and funded by Screen Scotland and National Lottery funding from the BFI.
Weekend Ticket £25 entry to all films (Best Value)
Single Film Ticket £7
Young Scot card holders £4
Entry to Curious Creatures and Faithful Friends (Kid's Shorts and art workshop). FREE (children must be accompanied by an adult).
Community - A Rich Tapestry
Friday 26 January 7.30pm.
Opening Gala - Do The Right Thing (US) 1989 (15) and Ancblaster's New York DJ set.
Dir. Spike Lee
Saturday 27 January 11am. - Landfill Harmonic 2015 Cert.(U)
Landfill Harmonic (Paraguay) Dir. Allgood/Townsley/Peneranda-Loftus
Saturday 27 January 1.15pm - The Summer Walkers (Scotland)1976
Dir. Timothy Neat and Hamish Henderson
Saturday 27 January - 2.30pm Dàn Fianais (Scotland) 2021 - Accompanied by talks by the film-maker Andrew Black and by distinguished folklorist Dr Margaret Bennett.Dir. Andrew Black
Saturday 27 January - 4.30pm Past Lives 2023 Cert.(12 A)
Dir. Celine Song
Saturday 27 January - 8pm Rye Lane 2023 Cert.(15) and Ancblaster's Reggae DJ set
Sunday 28 January 09.45 - Curious Creatures and Faithful Friends (Kid's Shorts)
Sunday 28 January 11.15am - On the Adamant (France) 2023 Cert. (PG)
Sunday 28 January2pm - All That Breathes (India) 2022 Cert. (12A)
Sunday 28 January 4pm - The Old Oak 2023 Cert. (15) and Talk, Maryhill Intergration NetworkTalk from Pinar Aksu, a human rights campaigner, Development Officer with Maryhill Integration Network and a theatre maker. Pinar has been campaigning to raise awareness of the issues asylum seekers and refugees face since a young age and is involved with anti-racism, end to detention and human rights movements.
Film Festival 2024
2020 Film Festival
North, South, East, West and Beyond
2018 Film Festival
Never Stop Exploring
2017 Film Festival
Take A Stand
Dmytro Morykit - Back by popular demand, local composer Dmytro Morykit returns with a live concert performance to accompany another classic silent film from the golden age of cinema, on the theme of ‘Taking a Stand’. Followed directly by Donald Trump does Bohemian Rhapsody.
Donald Trump does Bohemian Rhapsody - Scotland’s Aberdeenshire coastline is home to some of Europe’s last remaining wilderness areas of shifting sand dunes. Dubbed “the Amazon Rainforest of Europe,” by a leading scientist from the University of Glasgow, the irreplaceable land holds Britain’s top conservation ranking. So when property developer Donald Trump built a golf resort on the precious coastline, outraged local residents and environmentalists objected and refused to sell their homes. They continue with their fight to this day.
Back in March 2012, to highlight the issues, a satirical musical spoof of Donald Trump - as a 3 ft puppet - singing “Bohemian Rhapsody,” was created with the permission of Brian May. However, the video so enraged Donald Trump, that after receiving 30,000 views within 24 hours of being released, he had it removed from the entire internet overnight. A censorship battle took place over many months and it was eventually re-released but its impact had by then been lost. Created and produced by freelance writer Hazel Cameron, the video also features most of the residents affected by the development. Puppeteer, Francis Wright, rewrote the words to the 1975 smash hit which tells the tale of this early struggle with the Trump empire. Dmytro Morykit arranged and played the music on piano, including the famous guitar solo.
Hazel & Dmytro will give a question and answer session after the 7 minute screening.
Wadjda PG - comedy, drama
Wadjda is a film of firsts. The first feature film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia, it’s the story of a young girl living in a suburb of Riyadh determined to raise enough money to buy a bike in a society that sees bicycles as dangerous to a girl's virtue. It's also the first feature film made by a female Saudi filmmaker! In a country where cinemas are banned and women cannot drive or vote, writer-director Haifaa Al Mansour has broken many barriers with this highly enjoyable film.
Brave PG - animation, adventure, comedy
A Disney/Pixar film (not just for kids!) set in the Scottish Highlands. Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse.
Glasgow Girls (Free to view)
The compelling story of a group of teenagers with a cause in a musical drama based on the true story of the Glasgow Girls. What started as a grassroots petition to save their friend from deportation inspired a powerful human rights movement which would eventually change immigration practices in Scotland.
Food available by Hansen’s Kitchen
The Clock in Commune
This short experimental video triptych follows communities of men performing ancient rituals to mark succession and the passing of time. Guided by a narrator of ambiguous gender, the film is a meditation on time, ritual and social bonding; exploring the female gaze through a sequence of public and private environments. The film moves from the pagan rituals of our local Comrie Flambeaux and the traditional making of the torches, to domestic rituals and the ordination of a young Passionist Priest. The work was premiered on 3 screens at the historic Glasite Meeting House Edinburgh, for Edinburgh Art Festival in August 2016. Modern Edinburgh Film School have written an essay in response to the piece.
The artist would gave thanks to the Comrie Flambeaux Committee for accommodating the filming.
Helen McCrorie is a visual artist, based locally in Comrie. She is a Masters graduate of Glasgow School of Art and has exhibited her videos and installations internationally, including Fotohof Salzburg, Hunter College Gallery New York and Bloomberg New Contemporaries.
Spotlight 15 - crime, drama, history
The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core. Academy Award for Best Picture - 2016
Kubo and the Two Strings PG - animation, adventure, family
In ancient Japan a young boy named Kubo must locate a magical suit of armor worn by his late father in order to defeat a vengeful spirit from the past. Selected due to rave reviews, including - “A movie of epic proportions. Lovers of film, animation, storytelling, do not miss out on this one!”. “Outstanding! Original, beautiful and heartful”
Food available by Hansen’s Kitchen
Good Vibrations 15 - biography, drama, music
In 1970s sectarian Belfast in the midst of the bloody Troubles DJ Terri Hooley opens a record shop “on the most bombed half-mile in Europe”. He is a music-lover, idealist, radical and rebel. He is inspired by the new underground punk scene and in turn galvanises the young musicians, branching out into record production and bringing life to the city.
The Eagle Huntress U - adventure, documentary, family, sport
This documentary presents the real-life story of Aisholpan, a 13-year-old Kazakh girl from Mongolia attempting to be the first female eagle hunter in her country. She exists in a land without much modern technology; no Internet, no computers. While there are many old Kazakh eagle hunters who vehemently reject the idea of any female taking part in their ancient tradition, her father, Nurgaiv, believes that, with determination, she can do anything a boy can. Set against the breath-taking expanse of the Mongolian steppe, THE EAGLE HUNTRESS features awe-inspiring cinematography, giving this intimate tale of a young girl's quest the dramatic force of an epic narrative film.
Dialog is in Kazakh; narration switches between Kazakh and English.
Promised Land 15 - drama
Corporate sales partners Steve Butler (Matt Damon) and Sue Thomason (Frances McDormand) arrive in a small town to secure drilling rights for a natural-gas company. They believe that the economic decline has done their work for them and that the townspeople will happily accept whatever offer they make. However, they don't consider the objections of a respected schoolteacher (Hal Holbrook) and the leader (John Krasinski) of a grassroots campaign against the company's objective. “Promised Land is an involving and timely tale that explores the changing nature and complex challenges of rural life” - USA Today.
2016 Film Festival
On the 12th and 13th March 2016, The Comrie Cinema and Events Club held Comrie's first ever film festival. The event was a true success and was atteneded by more than 100 local film enthusuasts. The Festival was opened by local composer Dmytro Morykit who played a specially composed accompanyment to the screening of Charlie Chaplin's The Immigrant.Saturday
The Immigrant
Charlie Chaplin, considered to be one of the most pivotal stars of the early days of Hollywood, lived an interesting life both in his films and behind the camera. He is most recognised as an icon of the silent film era, often associated with his popular "Little Tramp" character; the man with the toothbrush moustache, bowler hat, bamboo cane, and a funny walk. Charlie is an immigrant who endures a challenging voyage and gets into trouble as soon as he arrives in America.
Winged Migration
A 2001 documentary film directed by Jacques Cluzaud, Michel Debats and Jacques Perrin, showcasing the immense journeys routinely made by birds during their migrations. The movie was shot over the course of four years on all seven continents. It was shot using in-flight cameras, most of the footage is aerial, and the viewer appears to be flying alongside birds of successive species, especially Canada geese. They traverse every kind of weather and landscape, covering vast distances in a flight for survival. The filmmakers exposed over 590 miles of film to create an 89-minute piece. In one case, two months of filming in one location was edited down to less than one minute in the final film.
The Visitor
Walter Vale (Richard Jenkins) is a widowed Connecticut College economics professor who lives a fairly solitary existence. He fills his days by sometimes taking piano lessons in an effort to emulate his late wife, a classical concert pianist, and infrequently works on a new book. When he is asked to present a paper at an academic conference at New York University, he is not enthusiastic to make the trip, given he is only the nominal co-author and has never even read the complete work. Charles (Michael Cumpsty), his department head, insists and Walter is forced to attend.
Break for the Middle Eastern Feast and drinks from the Bar
The Hundred Foot Journey
Hassan Kadam (Manish Dayal) is an extraordinarily talented and largely self-taught culinary novice. When he and his family are displaced from their native India and settle in a quaint French village, they decide to open an Indian eatery. However, Madame Mallory (Helen Mirren), the proprietress of an acclaimed restaurant just 100 feet away, strongly objects. War erupts between the two establishments, until Mallory recognizes Kadam's impressive epicurean gifts and takes him under her wing.
Sunday
Kirikou and the Sorceress
Free entry!
In a little village somewhere in West Africa, a boy named Kirikou is born in a spectacular way. But he's not a normal boy, since he can speak and walk immediately after being born. He is also very determined. His mother tells him that an evil sorceress has dried up their spring and devoured all the males of the village except for one. Hence the tiny Kirikou decides to accompany the last warrior, his uncle, to visit the sorceress.
Welcome
Bilal is 17 years old, a Kurdish boy from Iraq. He sets off on an adventure-filled journey across Europe. He wants to get to England to see his love that lives there. Bilal finally reaches Calais, but how do you cover 32 kilometres of the English Channel when you can't swim? The boy soon discovers that his trip won't be as easy as he imagined... The community of struggling illegal aliens in Calais is captured with authenticity, from the point of view of people who arrived there knowing nothing about France. This immigrant drama, with wonderful performances by the actors, is a strong story which uses documentary austerity and minimalist style to create a great emotional impact.
Middle Eastern Feast and drinks from the Bar
Dirty Pretty Things
Okwe is an illegal Nigerian immigrant to the United Kingdom who drives a cab in London during the day and works at the front desk of a hotel at night. The hotel is staffed with many immigrants, both legal and illegal. Okwe keeps himself awake by chewing khat, an herbal stimulant. A doctor in his home country, he was forced to flee after being falsely accused of murdering his wife. In London, he is pressed into giving medical treatment to other poor immigrants, including fellow cab drivers with venereal diseases. Okwe's friend Guo Yi, an employee at a hospital mortuary, provides him with antibiotics under the table.