Aesthetica Film Festival - 06/11/15

Last Friday, myself and some other students from CCAD visited York for Aesthetica Film Festival. The festival commences over the weekend, from Friday to Sunday. Many venues around York showcase masterclasses from some internationally successful companies and individuals, along with a variety of short films. 

We set off on Friday morning arriving in York for around 10 o'clock. With a few hours to roam York and see some films with our all day pass. This was my first visit to York, therefore a perfect opportunity to have a little explore. We then headed to a small cinema in the centre of York, where we found out from our guidebook that a 2 hour comedy screening was taking place. There were around 5-6 short comedies screened within that time. Some very funny and some struggled to bring out any laughter in the audience. After the comedy screenings we then moved screens to the drama shorts. We only had the chance to view the first drama before our masterclass. The drama we did get to see was extremely well-made. A french production I cannot remember the name of, consisting of some bold religious undertones and stunning cinematography. All complimenting a gripping story.

At 4 o'clock we headed to our masterclass at York St John University. The masterclass was  from Framestore, a visual effects company founded in 1984. They have worked on some blockbuster films such as Guardians of the Galaxy and Gravity. I took some notes of key points given in the presentation, and I have scanned those in below. 

As a Film student this outing was extremely useful and informative. I was able to observe the reaction of audiences to humour in the comedy short films. Then I was able to see how an audience perceive a drama, ultimately what did or didn't work. I also found this out by asking members of the audience and my peers after the screening. I believe that the underlying strengths of most films, and the most humorous ones of the screening were the ones that engaged with the audience. Rather than just humour between the characters, the humour was relatable to the audience. The Framestore masterclass was equally informative. Despite visual effects not being the area of the industry I wish to enter, nonetheless it was interesting to see how the company has developed over the years. Also, how visual effects work themselves through the creation process. 

All in all Aesthetica was a great experience. I look forward to next years event in the hope that I can purchase a weekend ticket, rather than just the one day!