April listings, the Divine Edgar

Hello,

Please find below a rapid canter through some things
happening around Birmingham over the next few weeks. First
though, an important notice…

THE DIVINE EDGAR
at FIERCE FESTIVAL 2008
Anyone who came to the 7inch Halloween or Christmas events
last year will know a little about this unique horizontal
ghost-train ride of an installation. While we were setting
up at Highbury Hall one of the ladies working there asked
if she could try out The Divine Edgar, and the cackles of
glee and screams of terror which emanated from the next
room were a joy to behold.

Anyway, Edgar needs your votes. It is currently hovering
outside the top 3 in contention for a place in the
‘Unconventional Spaces’ programme at this year’s Fierce
Festival. How much more unconventional can you get than a
coffin? Voting closes on 11 April, and you’re allowed to
vote each day – so as Mr Capone said, vote early and vote
often…
More information here:
> http://tinyurl.com/69gars
> http://www.myfiercefestival.co.uk

NEXT 7INCH EVENT::
I FOR INDIA
Sunday 27 April, 7pm
At the Hare and Hounds, Kings Heath

In 1965 Yash Pal Suri and his wife Sheel left behind their
families in India to start a new life in Darlington.
Frustrated with letter-writing, he kept in touch with his
relatives by exchanging super 8 home-movies and tape
recordings, and in the process kept a record of the
tensions and regrets that migration can create. His
daughter Sandhya Suri, a graduate from the National Film
and Television School, has woven this unique material along
with archive news footage from the time into a beautiful,
bittersweet film about home and belonging. To accompany the
film we’ll have a selection of appropriately misty-eyed
shorts, and a selection from the recent mac archive project
Another Kind of Play.

£4 on the door.
> http://www.7inch.org.uk/About_7inch/Events/66.aspx

SO WHAT ELSE IS ON?

8/9 April at the Hippodrome in Birmingham
THE ART OF IDEAS
Two discussion events featuring various Birmingham folk
including author Catherine O’Flynn, James Yarker from Stans
Cafe and musician Soweto Kinch.
> http://tinyurl.com/6sbdoe

Weds 9 April at the Library theatre in Birmingham
LOCAL SHORTS FILM CLUB
Drinks and networking from 6pm, with films from 7.
> http://www.creativepathway.org.uk/6501.html

Thursday 10 April at the Light House in Wolverhampton
SCREEN FORUM: NEW MUSIC SHORTS
Screening and discussion devoted to BBC scheme for pairing
emerging filmmakers and musicians.
> http://www.light-house.co.uk/events.shtml

11-13 April at the Hippodrome in Birmingham
THE HARDER THEY COME
14-19 April at the Belgrade in Coventry
THE 39 STEPS
Classic Jamaican and British movies get made over for the
stage.
> http://www.birminghamhippodrome.com/?page=89&show=249
> http://www.belgrade.co.uk/

Sat 12 April at the Hare and Hounds in Kings Heath
FLOWER CORSANO DUO
Lightning Bolt drummer meets Vibracathedral guitarist.

D’oh! Chris Corsano doesn’t play for Lightning Bolt. We knew that.
> http://www.capsule.org.uk/Coming_Up/204.aspx

Monday 14 April at the Glee Club in Bham
A HAWK AND A HACKSAW
Onetime Broadcast drummer and Leicester postman Jeremy
Barnes presents Balkan-tinged instrumentals with a hint of
brass-band swagger.
> http://www.glee.co.uk

Friday 18 April, 8.30 at the Electric
ROY SCHEIDER TRIBUTE
Jaws screening with 22-piece orchestra and pina coladas.
> http://www.theelectric.co.uk

Friday 18 April, 7pm at Crowd 6 in Bearwood High St
HEAR HERE
Art collective present story-telling night.
> http://www.crowd6.org.uk
(No event info there at time of writing)

Friday 18 April at Concrete in the Jewellery quarter
STRAX
New regular AV night with Chromatouch, DJ Reach, Loafers
Lounge and others.
Currently open to ideas from bands, vjs, performers.
> http://chromatouch.wordpress.com/

18-20 April at the Light House in Wolverhampton
DISABILITY FILM FESTIVAL
Including features, shorts, archive work and a new film by
Justin Edgar.
> http://www.disabilityfilmfestival.eu/

Sat 19 April at the Hare and Hounds in Kings Heath
B MUSIC
Launch of a new monthly night, featuring Wolf People & The
Liftmen and DJs Andy Votel and Chris Geddes from Belle &
Sebastian.
> http://www.b-music.co.uk/

Tues 22 April, 7.30 at Warwick Arts Centre near Coventry
CALL THE SHOTS FILM GROUP
Relaunch for a Cov-based filmmaking, training and screening
group.
Contact Richard Wood for more info: rwood[at]leofricfilms.com

Weds 23 April at BAYC, 581 Pershore Rd in Birmingham
AN AFTERNOON WITH ED BLUM
Producers Forum event with the producer/director of Scenes
of a Sexual Nature.
£20, or free for PF members.
> http://www.producersforum.org.uk

Thurs 24 April at Symphony Hall in Bham
THE BLUE PLANET LIVE
Fish off the telly, with live orchestral score.
> http://www.thsh.co.uk/view/the-blue-planet-live

from 24 April at Vivid in Digbeth
ENDURANCE
Programme of live art and moving image featuring 60s
pioneers alongside contemporary artists.
> http://www.vivid.org.uk/projects.php?work=40

25-27 April at Town Hall in Birmingham
ENGLISH ORIGINALS
Folk music weekend featuring Billy Bragg, Tunng, Norma
Waterson and full screening of the BBC series Folk
Britannia.
> http://www.thsh.co.uk/englishoriginals

….And if you’re that way inclined keep in mind that the
next 7inch event on 18 May will feature stunning 60s
footage of the Watersons in Travelling for a Living:
> http://www.7inch.org.uk/About_7inch/Events/67.aspx

Sat 26 April at the Custard Factory Warehouse in Digbeth
RADIO SOULWAX TOUR
With 2ManyDJs and new documentary ‘Part of the Weekend
Never Dies’.
> http://www.soulwax.com
(Stupidly busy site)

26/27 April at the Electric in Birmingham
GRINDHOUSE
The QT/RR doublebill complete with trailers. (Perhaps
testament to the quality of the films themsleves that
people are so excited about the trailers.)

Sunday 27 April at the Hare and Hounds in Kings Heath
7INCH no.31:: I FOR INDIA
> http://www.7inch.org.uk/About_7inch/Events/66.aspx

Mon 28 April at the Rainbow in Digbeth
SHORTS ON WALLS
New animators get-together.
> http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=16048985189

1-4 May in Stoke-on-Trent
AXIS 2008
Festival of music, art and film. Includes an archive
evening called ‘The History of the British Lorry’.
> http://www.axisfestival.co.uk

from 2 May in Heath Mill Lane, Digbeth
EASTSIDE PROJECTS
New artist-run space for Birmingham.
> http://www.eastsideprojects.org/

12 May at the Academy in Birmingham
MGMT
This month’s hot thing, tickets going fast.
> http://www.birmingham-academy.co.uk

til 18 May at Ikon Gallery in Birmingham
LANDS END
Ruth Claxton spent a long cold winter in a Digbeth
warehouse wrestling with metalwork, and the results are now
on show at the Ikon.
> http://www.ikon-gallery.co.uk
(Site includes installation film by Chris Keenan)

til 15 June at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery
ART OF THE STITCH
Embroidery in contemporary art.
> http://www.bmag.org.uk

til 2 August at Initial Access in Wolverhampton
PASSAGE TO INDIA
Large exhibition of Indian contemporary art.
> http://www.initialaccess.co.uk

BITS AND BOBS

Desperate Optimists, famed for one-take cinemascope
spectaculars featuring whole communities, have picked up a
Prix UIP at Rotterdam filmfest for their latest short Joy
filmed in Handsworth park.
> http://www.desperateoptimists.com/

Channel 4 launch new £10m production fund in Birmingham.
> http://tinyurl.com/3cfb4a

Development scheme for up-and-coming film types. Deadline
29 April.
> http://www.guiding-lights.org.uk

New animation festival Stoke Your Fires (in Stoke, in May)
are open to submissions.
> http://www.stokeyourfires.com/submissions.html

One spare ticket for next month’s ATP vs Pitchfork
weekender at Camber Sands is going begging. Write to
info[at]7inch.org.uk for further info.
> http://www.atpfestival.com/events/pitchfork

We’d also like to say thanks and bigup respect to all the
staff at mac for their support during numerous festivals
and events over the years; particularly to Max Simpson, all
in box-office, and the projection boys. The Birmingham Mail
have an interview with John and Phil here:
> http://tinyurl.com/5rn3hl

SOME FILMS SHOWING THIS MONTH

SON OF RAMBOW (Dir: Garth Jennings)
After Be Kind Rewind, lofi 80s charm continues to bombard
the multiplex…
On general release

MISTER LONELY (Dir: Harmony Korine)
Sam Morton as a Marilyn impersonator in a remote lookalikes
commune.
Electric, 12-13 April
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ufN1RxFu-4

HAPPY-GO-LUCKY (Dir: Mike Leigh)
Leigh in chirpy mode, apparently.
From 18 April
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqTlFY84yYU

PERSEPOLIS (Dir: Satrapi & Paronnaud)
Much-feted animated memoir of growing up in Tehran.
From 25 April
> http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony/persepolis/

>>>>>

> What is 7 Inch Cinema?
A Birmingham-based outfit which produces all manner of
film/music events and projects.

> Do you take open submissions?
Yep – of DVDs, CDs, installation ideas, napkin doodles,
etc. Write to info[at]7inch.org.uk or:
7 INCH CINEMA / 4 BIRCHWOOD CRESCENT / BIRMINGHAM B12 8BN

> How do I get on/off this list?
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> http://www.7inch.org.uk
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