For a few months last year I worked on a couple of Screen West Midlands’ Digital Shorts. Yesterday a private screening was arranged of “The Secret of Year Six” for cast and crew at the Custard Factory and I had my first chance to see it on a big(ish) screen.

The director, had sent me a VHS copy at the start of the year and I’d watched that on the TV but it really doesn’t compare with being amongst a group of people and watching it in a theatre.

Which reminds me of a conversation I was having with another Digital Shorts director a couple of days ago about broadband based distribution of films. I had finally come round to his point of view that for directors there is no alternative to having your film projected onto a large screen; if TV is a compromise then the Internet is even more so. I’m sure broadband distribution is finding it’s place though and must be great if you’re a zero-budget filmmaker starting out and trying to gauge some sort of audience reaction.

If the reaction last night was anything to go by then this short film should be a success. Though it has to be said the audience were a bit biased!

The official premiere of most but not all of this year’s Digital Shorts is actually on Friday and is part of the Birmingham Screen Festival 2004 beginning tommorow. These Digital Shorts, will be screened at the UGC Broad Street – Birmingham this Friday at 6.00pm.

At the same location on Saturday at 12.00pm, also as part of the Festival, there’s a screening of the First Cut series first shown on Carlton TV last month, (entering smug mode) including the two I worked on (leaving smug mode). In fact there’s an article by producer Nicky Smith on the BBCi website for Birmingham about her experience with the production of “Whips Chains ‘n’ Rubber Tips” (which I still haven’t shown my mom … how exactly do you explain what fetish is to an Asian senior?). (entering self promotion mode) You can read what I had to say about the First Cut and the Digital Shorts experience via the ‘luvvie log’ link on the top right of this page. (leaving self promotion mode)

Now, decisions, decisions, decisions – should I wear my Gold Lam?