Celtic Film and Television Festival

Celtic Film and Television Festival

  • Published in Film

The Celtic Film and Television Festival is an annual event which is designed to showcase the best work from the Celtic countries. Around 500 actors, film and TV programme makers, producers and animators will converge on the city of Cardiff in preparation for the four-day event which celebrates the best in broadcasting from the Celtic countries.



Cardiff 2005: 26th Celtic Film and Television Festival

Welsh in a Week - proud winners of the spirit of the Festival Award, Quimper, Brittany 2002 - Photo © CFTFThe Festival is an annual four-day celebration of broadcasting, film talent and excellence from the Celtic countries. It is the first international film festival to bring together film, television and associated media from the Celtic nations, and to attempt to discuss the problems and possibilities of working within these countries. The CFTF is also in a position to offer a distinctive view of the media industry to government consultations etc, which may otherwise be underrepresented.

The CFTF was born in 1980 and is staged in each Celtic country in turn. The 26th Celtic Film and Television Festival will be held in Cardiff from 6-9 April 2005.

Cardiff is celebrating its centenary as a city and its 50th year as Wales’ capital in 2005. Cardiff is a vibrant, cosmopolitan capital and has undergone enormous regeneration over the past decade. Its traditional attractions are now complemented by a stunning waterfront development in Cardiff Bay and world-class venues such as the awesome Wales Millennium Centre and the iconic Millennium Stadium, the biggest under-cover stadium in Europe.

Cardiff is also the largest production centre in the UK outside London and with plans to develop the much talked about Dragon International Studios, the local industry is firmly establishing itself on the map. According to recent figures, Cardiff is home to approximately 150 production companies, all currently working in film, TV, and new media.

The CFTF is supported by broadcast, film, cultural and economic development organisations throughout the Celtic countries. The 26th Celtic Film and Television Festival being held in Cardiff this year is expected to generate over £500,000 for the local economy.


CFTF: Showcasing Celtic media talent

The Celtic Film and Television Festival Cardiff 2005 promises to offer 4 days of debate and celebration with a Welsh flavour. Around 500 actors, film and TV programme makers, producers and animators from the Celtic countries will converge on the city of Cardiff in preparation for the four-day event which celebrates the best in broadcasting from Brittany, Cornwall, Galicia, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The Festival opens with the Civic reception at 6.30pm on Wednesday the 6th, which will be followed by the opening night entertainment. The rest of the week will feature a wide range of film screenings, seminars, panel discussions, workshops, and award ceremonies. Highlights of the festival include features on new studios in Wales, including Celtic Studios and Dragon Studios; speakers from Sweden, Belgium, Ireland and Brittany; and a discussion with Russell T. Davis, writer of the new "Dr. Who" science fiction series for BBC TV.

Iain Smith, Producer (Entrapment, The Mission, The Killing Fields) - Truro, Cornwall 2001 - Photo © CFTFThe closing Gala Dinner and final awards ceremony promises to be a fantastic closing celebration. The final night of awards and celebrations will take place at the National Gallery of Wales. There will be a chance to view the Davies Sisters’ Impressionist collection, and the touring exhibition of Gwen and Augustus John at the Champagne reception.

Award winners will be screened at the Festival venue after the awards have been presented. There will also be public screenings at Chapter Cinema of selected shortlists in the run up to, and during the Festival to increase the awareness of the event’s visit to Cardiff. All entries to competition will be available in the comfortable Media Point to be viewed on VHS, online or heard on CD, and all shortlisted entries will be available on DVD compilations according to category.


Festival Venues

The Celtic Film and Television Festival Cardiff 2005 will offer delegates a taste of modern and traditional Cardiff - the MacDonald Holland House Hotel and the National Museum & Gallery of Wales.

The central Holland House Hotel, the festival’s main venue, is Cardiff’s new luxury hotel and epitomises the vibrant new mood sweeping this exhilarating city.

The National Museum & Gallery of Wales is an impressive, white stone building, housing a number of separate exhibition rooms and art galleries. The galleries include works by some of the world's most famous Impressionist painters, as well as displays by Welsh artists. The National Museum will be the setting for one of the main highlights of the Festival - the closing Award Ceremony and the celebratory Gala Dinner.


Youth Forum, Cardiff 2005

The Youth Forum will take place between 2pm and 6pm on Wednesday the 6th April at the Holland House Hotel. The afternoon will include main sessions where delegates can hear from Welsh practitioners about how they got to where they are now, workshops that will need to be pre-booked on editing from Chris Lawrence, who has edited 13 films and many more TV projects – including Hedd Wyn, which was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar in 1992.

There will also be a chance to speak to those taking part in the sessions in dedicated one-to-one surgeries. The afternoon will conclude with the presentation of the Cardiff 2005 Celtic Student Awards for the Best Animation, Best Film, Best Factual and Best New Media entry from Irish, Scottish, Welsh and Cornish students studying at BA level and above.



Do you want to know more?

» The Celtic Film and Television Festival
The festival is a celebration of the best of production from the Celtic countries.

» Irish Film Institutes:
+ The Irish Film Institute
+ The Irish Film Board / Bord Scannán na hÉireann
+ The Irish Film and Television Network
+ Screen Producers Ireland
+ Film Ireland Magazine

» Scottish Film Institutes:
+ Scottish Screen
+ The British Federation of Film Societies in Scotland
+ The British Academy of Film & Television Arts in Scotland

» Welsh Film Institutes:
+ Sgrîn Cymru / Media Agency for Wales
+ Wales Screen Commission / Comisiwn Sgrîn
+ The British Academy of Film & Television Arts Cymru

» Galician Film Institutes:
+ Consorcio Audio-Visual de Galicia / Media Agency for Galicia
+ Galicia Film Commission

» Breton Film Institutes:
+ Films en Bretagne - Union des Professionnels

Celtic Countries is the online magazine for people who enjoy the Celtic nations, their natural splendour, culture, and lifestyles.

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