The Cornwall Film Festival ( Cornish: ''Gool fylm Kernow'') is an annual festival, first established in 2002, which focuses on supporting and celebrating the film and media industry in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, England. Aside from the annual festival, the organisation also engages with film-makers and audiences throughout the year by offering local and national premieres, and hosting masterclasses, workshops and discussions for everyone from the enthusiast to the professional. The film festival has been recognised by a number of well-known individuals in the film industry, such as film critic Mark Kermode, who created a five-minute promotional video for the event in 2013. The festival supports Cornish filmmaking in both the Cornish and

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the ...

and there is a "govynn kernewek" competition in which applicants present their idea for a film in the Cornish language, with the winners receiving financial, material and technical support for the production. Many filmmakers who work solely in English will refer to themselves as Cornish filmmakers. Their films often make use of Cornish themes, landscapes and ways of life. Certainly the concept of a Cornish film industry exists, the term 'Oggywood' has been coined (from oggy meaning

pasty A pasty () is a British baked pastry, a traditional variety of which is particularly associated with Cornwall, South West England, but has spread all over the British Isles. It is made by placing an uncooked filling, typically meat and vegetab ...

and Hollywood). Similarly, there has been a Young People's Festival which runs a day prior to the main festival. This has run for the same amount of time as the main festival. In 2014, a new director was appointed by the board to create a "sustainable creative vision" for the future of the festival. The 2023 event is scheduled to take place in November in Falmouth.

Previous Festival Dates

Feature Films Screened

2017

The Florida Project ''The Florida Project'' is a 2017 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Sean Baker and written by Baker and Chris Bergoch. It stars Willem Dafoe, Brooklynn Prince, Bria Vinaite, Valeria Cotto, Christopher Rivera, and Caleb Landry Jon ...

, Dir. Sean Baker Even When I Fall + Q&A , Dir.Sky Neal & Kate McLarnon The Party , Dir. Sally Potter The Square , Dir. Ruben Östlund Last Fisherman , The Yukon Assignment , Pro. Charlie Fripp Wilderness , Dir. Justin Doherty

God's Own Country "God's Own Country" is a phrase meaning an area, region or place supposedly favoured by God. Examples Australia In Australia, the phrase "God's own country" was often used to describe the country in the early 1900s, but it appears to have gr ...

, Dir. Francis Lee Killing of a Sacred Deer , Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos

Patti Cake$ ''Patti Cake$'' is a 2017 American drama film directed by Geremy Jasper. It was screened in the US Dramatic Competition section of the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. It was released on August 18, 2017, by Fox Searchlight Pictures. Plot Patricia ...

, Dir. Geremy Jasper

2018

PREVIEW FoxTrot , Dir. Samuel Maoz Songbird + Q&A with Dir. , Dir. Jamie Adams On a Knife Edge + Q&A with Dir. , Dir. Jeremy Williams PREVIEW

Colette Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (; 28 January 1873 – 3 August 1954), known mononymously as Colette, was a French author and woman of letters. She was also a mime, actress, and journalist. Colette is best known in the English-speaking world for her ...

, Dir. Wash Westmoreland Peterloo + Q&A with Dir. , Dir. Mike Leigh The Wife , Dir. The Eyes of Orson Welles , Dir. Mark Cousins The Tale , Dir. Jennifer Fox

Shoplifters Shoplifting Shoplifting is the theft of goods from an open retail establishment, typically by concealing a store item on one's person, in pockets, under clothes or in a bag, and leaving the store without paying. With clothing, shoplifters ma ...

, Dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda Hannah , Dir. Andrea Pallaoro The Wrecking Season , Dir. Jane Darke (Closing Gala)

2019

PREVIEW

System crasher ''System Crasher'' (german: Systemsprenger) is a 2019 German drama film directed by Nora Fingscheidt. Plot The nine-year-old Bernadette, known as “Benni”, is considered aggressive and wayward. If anyone but her mother touches her face, she l ...

, Dir Nora Fingscheidt Honeyland , Dir Tamara Kotevska, Ljubo Stefanov Monos , Dir Alejandro Landes Good Posture , Dir Dolly Wells Little Monsters , Dir. Abe Forsythe Only You + Q&A with Director , Dir. Harry Wootliff PREVIEW

Jojo Rabbit ''Jojo Rabbit'' is a 2019 comedy-drama film written and directed by Taika Waititi, adapted from Christine Leunens's 2008 book ''Caging Skies''. Roman Griffin Davis portrays the title character, Johannes "Jojo" Betzler, a ten-year-old Hitler ...

, Dir. Taika Waititi (Closing Film) Blues Brothers , Dir. John Landis Hedwig and the Angry Inch , Dir. John Cameron Mitchell

2021

Petite Maman ''Petite Maman'' is a 2021 French fantasy drama film, written and directed by Céline Sciamma. Starring Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Stéphane Varupenne, Nina Meurisse and Margo Abascal, the film follows a young girl coping with the death ...

, Dir Celina Sciama

Titane ''Titane'' (, "Titanium") is a 2021 body horror drama film, drama film written and directed by Julia Ducournau. The French-Belgian co-production stars Agathe Rousselle in her feature film debut as Alexia, a woman who, after being injured in a ...

, Dir Julia Ducournau Spencer , Dir Pablo Larraín Ali and Ava , Dir Clio Barnard Bad Luck Banging Or Loony Porn , Dir Radu Jude

The Card Counter ''The Card Counter'' is a 2021 American crime drama film written and directed by Paul Schrader. It stars Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan, and Willem Dafoe. Martin Scorsese is an executive producer. It had its world premiere at the ...

, Dir Paul Schrader Memory Box , Dir Joana nHadjithomas, Khalil Joerige Lamb , Dir Valdimar Jóhannsson

Awards

2005 Delabole Slate Audience Award Film of the Festival: Encounters, Dir: Pat Kelman Prod.: Jonty Reason on behalf of Pittot Films 2005 Delabole Slate Audience Award Student Film of the Festival: Sunday Bench, Dir: Russell Hancock 2005 Govynn Kernewek Award: Tap Tap Tap, Dir: Marie Foulston 2019 Fellowship Awards: Rory Wilton (Actor) Golden Chough:

Mark Jenkin Mark Jenkin (born 1976) is a Cornish director, editor, screenwriter, cinematographer and producer. He wrote and directed the film '' Bait'' (2019), which earned him a BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer. ...

(Director)for

Bait (2019 film) ''Bait'' is a 2019 British drama film written and directed by Mark Jenkin. Starring Edward Rowe as a struggling fisherman, the film deals with the tensions that arise between locals and tourists in a Cornish fishing village against a backdrop ...

Music Video Award: JERUSALEM (Ofer Winter, Shimon Engel) Best Short Award: FUNFAIR (Dir. Kaveh Mazaheri) Best Regional Short: YN Mor (Dir. Zoe Alker) Sub Awards: Best Scriptwriting (supported by The Writers Collective) THE SEA Written by Cameron Richards Highly Commended for Writing: FLYING LESSONS Written, produced and directed by Laurence Donoghue Best Actor (Supproted by WeAudition): Anna Friel: The Sea Best Ensemble Cast: 'Yn Mor'

References

External links

Cornwall Film Festival official site
* https://twitter.com/CornwallFilm

Film Festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upo ...

Film festivals in England Mass media in Cornwall Festivals in Cornwall Cornish festivals {{UK-festival-stub