Short, Sharp Shocks At The London Short Film Festival

By Stuart Black Last edited 111 months ago
Short, Sharp Shocks At The London Short Film Festival

The Gulf Of Narcolepsy in the Surreal Worlds segment at the LSFF.

Short films don’t need to be well-behaved. They never make any money and serve mainly to showcase the skills of film-makers who have everything to prove. That means, for better or worse, you often get the weird, edgy and the attention-hungry. The punky quote at the head of the London Short Film Festival’s website says it all: “We’re not here to entertain you, we’re here to make you feel uncomfortable.”

So if you want your brain addled and your eyeballs tattooed with unusual images head to one of the three London venues that are involved in January’s festival. Now in its 12th year, there are an impressive 75 events across 10 days with over 300 films being screened.

Shorts are grouped into a few in-yer-face categories including: Funny Shit, Fucked Up Love, Lo-Budget Mayhem, Leftfield and Luscious, and Teenage Girls Go Crazy! There are also intriguing themed events such as an evening exploring the relationship between transgressive fashion and film hosted by the London College of Fashion.

Our own fair city is also well-served with the London Stories selection, which includes trips on the tube and adventures on a canal, a jumper on Waterloo Bridge, famous figures in Shoreditch and a magical toy shop in Gospel Oak. Broadchurch's Olivia Coleman also pops up in The Karman Line, about a woman who is struck by a rare and fantastical condition. There are also a couple of intriguing London-made films up for the British Council's Best UK Short Award.

The London Short Film Festival runs 9–18 January 2015 with the majority of events on at the ICA, Hackney Picturehouse and Oval Space. Tickets are £7 - £14 depending on the venue and can be booked on the LSFF website. There will also be opening night drinks at the ICA bar on 9 January 2015 at 6pm where you can get a free beer courtesy of Warsteiner UK if you show a ticket for one of the events.

Last Updated 16 December 2014