Candy Guard, 5th March 2013
We had a very full house (40+ people) and were delighted to have Candy Guard as our special guest, introducing a selection of her films. She described the influence on her work of both Beryl The Peril and Bob Godfrey’s and Anna Jackson’s book The Do It Yourself Film Animation Book. She talked about how she started producing films for Channel 4 by having to remake her debut animation The Bag Lady but without swearing and of her later work for them with the animated sitcom Pond Life. We also discovered, weirdly, that she and my sister actually live on the same street in Catford. Candy’s amazing ear for dialogue and her ultra minimal drawing style which brought it to life were very much in evidence, as was the distinctive voice of her friend Sarah Ann Kennedy. You can see videos of Candy talking about her films and introducing them on our YouTube channel: Part one: Part two: Part three: Thank you to Captain Zip for filming the Q&A. The films Candy showed were: Programme 1 1. Target Breast Cancer Campaign (2007): (a series of seven-second micro-films) 2. Baglady (Candy’s first animated short film) Sadly I cannot find either of these films on YouTube! 3. Alternative Fringe (1993): 4. Fantastic Person: 5. Pondlife Episode 1: Boyfriend (1996): In fact there is a Pond Life channel on YouTube. You can visit it here: http://www.youtube.com/user/PondLifeChannel?feature=watch The second half was then an improvised screening of work which members had brought along on the night. And unfortunately hardly any of these films are on YouTube. Programme 2 1. Exquisite Corpses – the intermediate cut of our LAC group-project as a work in progress. We hope to show the final version with music next time. 2. Awesome (2013) by Philip Green: Philip’s brand new film takes the piss out of how young people talk. 3. All That Passed (2013) by Stuart Pound These two films use elements of The Matrix with Victorian film-damage effects (AfterEffects filters supplied by Ben Fox) to present how The Matrix would look if made in 1895. 5. The Nettle (2013) by Gareth Morinan. A brand new animation Gareth made for the Hatrick Productions animation competition, with character designs done by my sister Adela. This was the world premiere. 6. Act Of Terror (2013) by Gemma Atkinson. This film is – in a way – another LAC group project: in April 2011 Gemma Atkinson, Adem Ay and Fred Grace of Fat Rat Films came and gave a presentation at London Animation Club to ask for collaborators for their animated documentary (you can see details here. Through this presentation Gemma met LAC member Una Marzorati, who animated the entire film, and LAC technical director Tom Lowe, who designed the soundtrack. Sadly the film is not available online yet, but you can read Gemma’s synopsis here: Act Of Terror – Synopsis
While filming a routine stop and search of her boyfriend on the London Underground, Gemma found herself suddenly surrounded by five police officers. Detained, handcuffed and threatened with arrest, Act Of Terror tells the story of her fight back against the police.
It is easy to forget about the 2005 Terrorism Act and its damaging effect on civil liberties and human rights. Act Of Terror puts the spotlight back on this murky law, and demands that we keep vigilant in the face of ever increasing state power.
An animated journey through the labyrinthine world of English Justice, the sinister caveats of Terrorism legislation, and the shocking cronyism of the police complaints system, Act Of Terror is about strength in the face of powerlessness and finding the courage to fight back.
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