IRIS PRIZE 2020: OPENING NIGHT | REVIEW
Livestream broadcast, Tue 6 Oct
What a difference a year makes. This time last October, we all packed into a large auditorium at CineWorld in Cardiff in our hundreds for the opening of the 2019 Iris Prize & Film Festival. Little did we know then, as Iris TV Live enjoyed its first outing, that a year later Iris would welcome its audience to Cardiff in digital form only during a pandemic.
How would this change things for the festival this year? Well, it has meant that the affectionately named ‘Iris Family’ has not been able to come together in person to enjoy this annual celebration of LGBTQI+ film. There really was a palpable feeling during this online opening that the physical coming together of filmmakers and audiences, and the party that comes with it, is being sorely missed by all this year.
Does that mean that this year’s festival has been compromised in terms of quality? Not a bit. Indeed, Festival Director Berwyn Rowlands told his digital audience in his welcome speech that this year’s Festival is “a turning point for our work … reaching more people than we have ever done before … all over the world”.
And so it was. Interspersed with stunning aerial shots of Cardiff and interviews with a veritable who’s who of the Welsh media were messages and interviews from the likes of Christopher Racster in Los Angeles and Katie White in Edinburgh. While the many messages of goodwill from media figures, friends and Iris sponsors were prevalent, maybe a little too much so, this night was about LGBTQ+ film – and that’s where this event came into its own.
Whether it’s the beautiful animation Cwch Deilen from writer and director Efa Blosse-Mason, Lewis Carter’s Lifeline – shot during the COVID-19 pandemic – or Involuntary Activist [pictured], directed by Iris Prize 2017 winner Mikael Bunsden, there’s no denying the wonderful talent and important storytelling that this Festival always uncovers. Unquestionably, though, the highlight of the night came right at the end. No, not the bizarre video of Heather Small singing Proud, but the UK premiere of S.A.M from writing and directing duo Eyre And Ely.
Here is a film that shines a light on something unexplored, cinematically speaking: a budding love affair between two boys, both called Sam, one of whom has Down’s syndrome. The makers of this film wanted to create a story that represents people in the LGBTQ+ community with learning difficulties and they do it with some serious poignancy. This event really didn’t need Heather Small to end the night, when you have a film of the quality of S.A.M.
words JAMIE REES image KRISTOFFER JÖNSSON
Iris Prize 2020 runs until Sun 11 Oct. Info and livestreams: www.irisprize.org