Cornwall Film Festival 2022 preview
Matthew Bowden, Screen Editor, sets out why any film-loving Exeter student should check out the upcoming Cornwall Film Festival
The 2022 Cornwall Film Festival is back and celebrating its 21st anniversary this November, running from Monday 14th to Sunday 20th at The Poly Falmouth. The South West’s largest regional film festival boasts a plethora of mouth-watering screenings, Q&As and events that should interest any movie-loving Exeter student, celebrating the power of cinema and collective film-watching experience.
This year, the festival is doing everything it can to increase accessibility and encourage younger viewers to attend. Ticket prices are reduced for 16-30 year-olds, displaying their commitment to draw in a new generation of cinemagoers, particularly students, from across the region who previously might not have been to a film festival before. Further accessibility options include relaxed afternoon screenings, which are free for carers, and the brilliant “pay as you can” scheme. This sets out the general individual ticket prices into three tiers; £2, £4 or £8, depending on your financial situation. This level of generosity is highly commendable considering the context of the cost-of-living-crisis, and how many people are currently struggling to comfortably pay their bills.
This level of generosity is highly commendable considering the context of the cost-of-living-crisis, and how many people are currently struggling to comfortably pay their bills.
The festival line-up doesn’t disappoint and is bookended by two excellent choices. The opening film, screened at 7:30pm on Tuesday 8th November, is Ruben Ostlund’s black comedy/social satire Triangle of Sadness, about a group of super-rich cruisegoers who don’t quite end up with the luxury experience that they signed up for. This film won the Palme d’Or (best film) at Cannes this year, and it is easy to see why given Ostlund’s razor-sharp subversion of elitist culture, and how material wealth and status corrupt without exception. To offset this, the festival closes on Sunday 20th at 7:45pm with Sam Mendes’ Empire of Light, about a once-reputable picture house in a seaside town trying to restore itself to its former glory. This film appears absolutely perfect for a film festival – highlighting what cinema can bring to a community as well as the joys for those involved in the heart-warming, wholesome venture of running a cinema. Special mention also needs to go to Charlotte Wells’ debut feature Aftersun, screening on Tuesday 15th at 7:30pm, starring Normal People royalty Paul Mescal. The extent of critical acclaim this film has received through the festival circuit has been relentless and unavoidable – this is definitely the event that I would be looking to the most.
The festival line-up doesn’t disappoint and is bookended by two excellent choices
On top of these heavyweights, there’s a great mix of local and international cinema on display, with a number of genres ranging from drama, comedy and sci-fi. A standout seems to be Ukrainian war drama Klondike, depicting a couple anticipating the birth of their firstborn caught up in the 2014 Crimean annexation; a stark precursor to the destructive and topical events occurring right now. There’s also a dual shorts program, celebrating both the best short film of the festival (Best of the Best) and the best short by a regional filmmaker (Best of the West). Full information about ticket prices and bookings is available on the Mor Media charity website (www.mormediacharity.org). It promises to be a jam-packed, exciting week!
