AN audience of over 100 people, from Scotland’s advertising community, is expected to converge on an Edinburgh hotel this evening, to watch the screening of two short films, as part of a scheme to encourage filmmaking talent within the sector.
The ‘Stevies’ is an initiative launched by STV, and was open to all staff at ‘Scottish creative agencies’. The two ‘best’ scripts were each awarded a budget of £5,000 – plus the assistance of STV production personnel – to be made into short films. The first theme was football, the other was open-ended.
The two winning films – to be shown this evening at The Scotsman Hotel and to be screened on STV later this year – are The Dead Ball, by Chris Watson of Newhaven Communications, and Close Your Eyes, by Michael Hart of The Union.
Directed by Watson and produced by Simon Ross, The Dead Ball is described as “a stern warning of what might happen if you play five-a-side football too near where the zombies hang out”.
Meanwhile, Close Your Eyes – directed by Hart and Ben Craig, and produced by Lisa Baruffat – is described as “a beautifully-observed film about the unforeseeable consequences of spontaneous actions”.
In a statement issued by STV, account manager, Mark Gorman, is quoted, saying: “We were delighted with the quality of response and the whole experience of developing these films has been a great learning experience for everyone involved. We’re really looking forward to gauging the reaction.”
