MONDAY, MARCH 24th – 19:00
Bill Douglas was one of Scotland’s foremost filmmakers – now rightfully celebrated as an auteur in his own right, and one of the British filmmaking greats. Having directed only 2 feature length projects in his career (The Bill Douglas Trilogy and Comrades) before his death in 1991- Bill sadly left us longing for more from him. His films have gone to inspire many modern filmmakers, including Lynne Ramsay and her seminal debut Ratcatcher.
While Douglas’ work may have only graced the silver screen on a few occasions, he was an avid filmmaker – and after being gifted an 8mm filmmaking set by his best friend, Peter Jewell, Douglas decided to experiment behind the camera and produce homespun short-films with the help of his friends – and especially Peter.
The New Lanark Film Festival is delighted to present, alongside the Bill Douglas Cinema Museum, a collection of Bill Douglas’ 8mm films, made between 1966 – 1969 – some of which have never before been seen. Douglas’ early films offer a glimpse into his filmmaking future and are a delightful watch, knowing they were produced with great care and detail by a group of close, creative friends. The films are very much a collaborative effort between Bill and Peter, and provide an important context to the friendship that was behind most of Bill’s work and life.
For the screening, we will be joined by Dr. Phil Wickham, Curator of the Bill Douglas Cinema Museum iat the University of Exeter, who will offer some insight on the short films. Phil has been curator of the museum since 2008 and previously worked at the BFI. He frequently writes and lectures on British film and television.
The Bill Douglas Cinema Museum is comprised of over 90,000 artefacts and is the leading cinema museum in the UK. It was founded from the collection put together by Bill and Peter and has expanded with many other donations since. It covers over three centuries of moving image history and captures the wonder of making pictures move that so entranced Bill as a boy growing up in Scotland. It is a testament to Bill’s life and art.
Director: Bill Douglas
Year: 1966-1969
Runtime: 120 minutes