Cousins Coup for Northern Lights Film Festival
You might not instantly know the name, but the likes of Sean Connery, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, the Coen Brothers, David Lynch and Tom Hanks certainly do – and now Northern Lights Film Festival (NLFF) 2010 is bringing the world-renowned film maker, director and curator Mark Cousins to the North East.
In a real coup for the festival and the region, Belfast-born Cousins will not only be introducing and showcasing The First Movie, an innovative documentary filmed in Iraq about kids’ imaginations, storytelling and filmmaking, but will also be hosting a question and answer session for a select audience at the Gala Theatre in Durham.
NLFF, www.nlff.co.uk, takes place between 20-28 March and has always brought the general public, film experts and the media industry together - but rarely is such open access to the world’s filming elite made available.
This latest film by Cousins has already had rave reviews – The First Movie was described by The Guardian as “a terrifically enjoyable and engaging film: open-minded and open-hearted and utterly unlike the material on regular commercial release,” while Sukhdev Sandhu at The Daily Telegraph said the film “really jolted me. Reminded me why I first fell I love with and needed film. Made the world, for all its grief and horror, see, infinitely magical, infinitely beautiful.”
In The First Movie, Cousins goes to an Iraqi village in the Kurdish North to investigate what kids growing up there have in their heads. He explained “Life’s a mash up of fantasy and reality for children and I wanted to know whether living in a war zone curtailed the light sabres and magic princesses. What we discover is amazing, inspiring and full of beauty.”
Creator of the long-running BBC Scene by Scene programme and a former presenter of Moviedrome, Cousins’ CV is exceptional. Alongside a hugely successful film career, he co-founded the charity Scottish Kids Are Making Movies and is a highly sought after writer. His history of world cinema, The Story of Film, was published in ten countries. At the 2009 Berlin Film Festival he received the Salgeber Award and he was nominated for the Spirit of Scotland Award in 2008 and 2009.
About coming to Durham, Mark said: “I’m looking forward to NLFF, which has a dynamic and innovative programme. As well as presenting the film, which will hopefully remind viewers about what the world and its children have to offer, the question and answer session should create interesting debate. I’ll be speaking about cinema, passion and how we are all ageless inside.”
Lisa Laws, programme director at NLFF, said: “Having Mark Cousins join us is an absolute thrill and for most people the chance to meet him is a once in a lifetime opportunity. What we love about Mark’s work is that he is a passionate advocate of the power of film to transform our understanding of the world and he looks at things from a very different perspective, often giving viewers a real jolt. He’s what the festival is all about.”
Samantha Stamp, operations director at Northern Film + Media added: “The NLFF festival has something for everyone and with highlights such as this, tickets will be highly sought-after. It is testament to the strength of the offer that the team has been able to attract Mark Cousins and other big names and we can’t urge people enough to take advantage by getting involved.”
Mark Cousins and The First Movie will be appearing from 3pm at the Gala Theatre in Durham on Sunday 21st March. Tickets cost £10 / £8, contact 0191 332 4041 to book. Limited places are available. For more information, the latest programme updates and to secure places at NLFF, which will take place across Newcastle and Durham between 20-28 March 2010, please visit www.nlff.co.uk.
Northern Lights Film Festival 2010 forms part of NewcastleGateshead’s world-class festival and events programme managed by culture10, is funded by the Northern Rock Foundation and Northern Film + Media and is sponsored by Northumbria University.
