Four of our graduating students, and two students from Cardiff University, along with the University of Lincoln School of Film & Media’s Senior Lecturer Marcella Forster undertook a 16-day filmmaking project in Dalian called Looking China 2014. Its aim was to enhance cultural communication between China and the rest of the world through the art of film. Soon-to-be Class of 2014 Ash Wilks, Tom McKie, Luke Winter and Alex Whitcombe worked as media producers with fellow student filmmakers from universities in China, America, Australia, India, Singapore, South Korea and France.
Participating students produced 10-minute films, which were screened at an exclusive ceremony earlier this month. Now the shorts will be shown accross China and worldwide from the USA to the UK. Marcella outlined our students’ short films: Tom displayed to us the architectural heritage and splendour of the city; Alex’s study of the spiritual focus in Dalian’s physical activities introduced us to some captivating characters; Luke captured the young people of Dalian and the fascinating phenomenon of Lightning Play; and you can see Ash’s film here, which brought home to us the care that Dalian workers put into their jobs and the pleasure they derive from them. [Ash, Luke and Tom have their own production company called Wallbreaker, see the services they provide here.]
Luke said: “Making a film in a foreign country alongside my friends and colleagues has been one of the best experiences of my life. The project certainly wasn’t easy however; I came up against more challenges in filmmaking on this trip than I ever have before, and the language barrier in particular was difficult to overcome. The whole experience has been completely eye-opening.
Looking China 2014 was organised by the Academy for International Communication of Chinese Culture at Beijing Normal University. The group’s visit was led by the University of Lincoln’s Professor Brian Winston who is a Guest Professor at Beijing Normal University.
Marcella will have a round-up of the project on this blog later: Everyone was a winner …. Chinese students were able to work alongside talented UK filmmakers and to learn from them, and our Lincoln students gained a truly memorable experience of filmmaking in a foreign country and in an unfamiliar language. Their flexibility, ingenuity and creativity were tested on a daily basis, and the programme is an invaluable addition to their CVs.
LSFM Head, Sarah Barrow: We are extremely proud of what our filmmakers have achieved. They had just two weeks to plan, research, film and edit their documentaries, and their final productions are beautifully shot. They are a credit to the University of Lincoln.