Gower is the anglicised version of the Welsh word ‘gŵyr’, meaning crooked or curved – a poetic word for that stretch of the Welsh coastline. In June, just before the holidaymakers hit this sandy stretch of historical wonder, there will be a celebration of this rich landscape with a different sort of Gŵyr – a miniseries of documentaries.
Each short film screened at the Taliesin Arts Centre’s cinema, in Swansea, will capture an element of local history, culture, ecosystems, and natural resources. This year, as part of World Environmental Day (Wed 5 June), Gŵyr features a few of the short films originally screened at Taliesin in 2022, alongside several brand-new ones receiving their premiere.
Gŵyr is a not-for-profit initiative for the sustainable promotion of Gower, powered by a team of talented, local passionate volunteers and supported by Wales International Film Festival. Its films have been nominated by 33 international film festivals and received a total of 11 awards for Best Documentary.
The films explore the harmonious blend and integration of Welsh culture over centuries of time – an outlook of how local culture was shaped by natural phenomena, climatic conditions, geology and flora as well as human factors. The journey of the documentary series starts some 33,000 years ago in south Gower, continues through the Middle Ages in north Gower and all the way up to modern times. The films blend glorious landscape photography with re-enactments that dig deep into the past of this renowned stretch of Welsh coastline. Castles, sea, rock, flora, fauna and occasional medieval roleplay feature.
A Q&A and discussion after the screening is to be hosted by director, producer and Swansea University lecturer Georgios Dimitropoulos, discussing the films as well as the environmental issues faced by the Gower region. Dimitropoulos has developed many projects across media in the past, innovating, educating and disrupting. He is committed to battling online disinformation and opening up accessibility to the arts through non-profit engagement ventures, kickstarted by his own documentary filmmaking.
Gŵyr, Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea, Wed 5 June.
Tickets: £7.75/£5. Info: here
words KEIRON SELF
