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Random Acts

Random Acts

Nicholas Popham, The New Cut, film still

Calling The Shots ran a three-year project to nurture new talent in the south west. This Random Acts Network, funded by the Arts Council England, supported young filmmakers of all backgrounds to create short films for Channel 4s Random Acts strand.

Spike Island was a key partner in the delivery of the project, linking the young filmmakers with practising visual artists who acted as artist mentors. Spike Film and Video took a technical consultancy role and provided post-production services, particularly supporting the final delivery of the films. Other partners included Arthur Cox, who led on supporting animators, Icon Films and a panel of independent producer-mentors.

Working with a broad range of partners, including Spike Island and the Universities of Gloucester and Plymouth, Calling the Shots delivered a programme of education, mentoring and technical support to facilitate the creation of these films in a playful, challenging and nurturing environment. The project aimed to engage young people who might not otherwise have these kind of opportunities.

 

Films produced by Spike Island in partnership with Calling the Shots as part of Channel 4 Random Acts series

Isobel Adderley’s film Qwake explores an extended moment of tension, in bodies, space and sound, and its eventual and inevitable collapse.

Nicholas Popham’s film The New Cut takes a closer look at the hidden gestures that disturb an otherwise empty riverbank.

Ben Tupper used his family home as a set and drew influence from Sergei Parajanov’s The Colour of Pomegranates and Jean-Luc Godard’s 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her in this poetical analysis of domesticity.