Film Hub NI Podcast

After too long a break, Sara and Hugh return with a new series of podcasts celebrating the return of Film Hub NI members, doing what they do best, showing great films.

First up we're joined from Belfast Film Festival by Michele Devlin, Director and Stephen Hackett, Head of Programming, to talk about the forthcoming in real life return of the Festival.

Covering such topics as the premiere of Sir Kenneth Branagh's  new peon to his hometown, Belfast, Japanese surrealism, archive film and much more, we are so looking forward to the festival, and after listening to this, so will you be.

For details of all screening in BFF21 and how to book, visit the festival website. 

Also this episode see the return of the much missed, 'Sara's Round Up'. It's been too long. 

Enjoy, and let's show film! 

Support the show (https://www.filmhubni.org/contact/)

Before COVID-19, UK & Ireland cinema admissions were booming - increasing year on year, with Northern Ireland performing particularly well. Shutting the entire film sector down practically overnight has had a massive impact on every aspect, from production right through to exhibition. Many cinema operators moved to explore online players, distributors moved to show films online – missing out theatrical runs entirely, and audiences had an overwhelming choice. As (at the time of writing) cinemas are closed for the third time, operating within the confines of government legislation, what does the enforced digital intervention we saw in 2020 mean for the future of cinema? Do audiences still value the collective experience? How can we even measure the impact of online events? What does this all mean for the whole film industry eco system?

Listen to the edited highlights to hear Hugh and Sara from Film Hub NI chat to guests Joan Parsons (Head of Queen’s Film Theatre), David Freyne (Writer and Director, Dating Amber ) and Patrick O'Neill (Wildcard Distribution) about the future of cinema through the perspective of exhibition, filmmaking and  distribution.

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

You’ve chosen the platform, you’ve booked the films now how do you reach audiences to tell them?
For this podcast Hugh and Sara take a deep dive into audience development and marketing for online work. Joined by Ellen Reay (QFT) and Jo Taylor-Hitchinson (Birds Eye View and freelance consultant), this podcast covers how to keep connected with your audience while screens are dark, what challenges venues have faced and what the opportunities long term audience development opportunities may be.

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

Support the show (https://www.filmhubni.org/contact/)

It is difficult enough to measure the impact of screenings and evaluate audiences in real life, so trying to do this in an online world is even more tricky.

For this podcast Hugh and Sara are joined by two experts in evaluation to break it all down into manageable and simple terms. From the perspective of the Film Audience Network, Andy Rae (Film Hub Midlands) and on a wider basis, Andi Jarvis (eximo marketing) chat through what useful data to collect, how to get it, how to avoid drowning in it and how to use it meaningfully to benefit your organisation.

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

Support the show (https://www.filmhubni.org/contact/)

If your organisation has been moved to screening online and engaging audiences in this way, what happens next as we move out the pandemic? 

As cinemas and venues start to reopen, it is important not to lose the connections made and the experiences gained while working in the online space. Hugh and Sara are joined on this podcast by Andi Jarvis (eximo marketing) to look to future and discuss the ‘experience’ of audiences, the value of these experiences, turning online audiences into real life audiences and how to keep using an online space to complement in real life work.

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

Ensuring that your in-venue screenings are as accessible to the widest audience possible is a key consideration for most cinemas and community cinemas.

As the shift to online viewing has increased substantially during the pandemic, how do exhibitors ensure that these type of screenings are available to as many people as possible? While there are some clear opportunities in terms of reaching audiences who may not be able to travel to cinema spaces, there are also some issues in terms of availability of captioned films etc. Hugh and Sara are delighted to have Toki Allison, BFI Film Audience Network Access Officer share her expertise and offer plenty of advice for making online screenings as inclusive as possible.

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

The art of programming film for real life screenings is one which takes much time to learn but how does this transpose into programming online?

How have distributors responded during the pandemic? What sort of engagement can cinemas expect? What sort of content do audiences want from this type of platform? Is hybrid delivery the future of cinemas and festivals? Join Hugh and Sara as they try to answer all these questions with Rose Baker (Belfast Film Festival & WANDA) and Michael Staley (Queen’s Film Theatre).

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

There are a variety of new and established online screening platforms available to film exhibitors of all sizes. Choosing the right one for your organisation can be a tricky decision as all have different pricing structures, functions and analytics.

Hugh and Sara are joined by Hub members Christopher Morrison (Nerve Centre) and Jim McClean (Banterflix) to discuss their practical experience of using Shift 72 and Vimeo OTT for their festivals. They also chat to Patrick Bliss (Your Screen), and Rupinder Gataora and Rob Streeten (filmbankmedia) to hear about platforms specifically developed for community cinemas and small venues.

The Moving Pictures Podcast series forms part of a wider Moving Pictures Programme of training and mentoring for Film Hub NI Members. Sincere thanks to Northern Ireland Screen for supporting this initiative through the Department for Communities.

Every effort has been made to provide a quality listening experience but please note that these recordings were made during January – March 2021 in our homes over Zoom so the sound quality may, at times, be patchy. Many thanks to our wonderful producer, Stephen Mullan, for all his hard work recording and editing this work under difficult circumstances.

Support the show (https://www.filmhubni.org/contact/)

Sara and Hugh talk to Dr Sam Manning about his new book Cinemas and Cinema-Going in the United Kingdom. Decades of Decline, 1945-65, published in March by the University of London Press.

The book analyses in detail the decline of cinema from its post war height to the new realities brought on by social and demographic change. Focusing on Belfast and Sheffield, it's an expert guide that sees cinema grapple with a changing world and competing attractions for audiences.

We talk about technology, programming and pandemics, and we are very grateful very much for Sam's time.

You can get a copy of Sam's book here: https://humanities-digital-library.org/index.php/hdl/catalog/book/cinema-going

Thanks also to our brilliant producer, Stephen Mullan. 

Support the show (https://www.filmhubni.org/contact/)

This week, Sara and Hugh of Film Hub NI speak to Andi Jarvis of Eximo Marketing live from his Bangor hideaway, about how Film Hub NI members can engage and communicate with audiences during this period of shutdown. We explore how social media helps, how to survey audiences, and how to build trust when reopening begins.

Find out more about Andi and the work of Eximo Marketing here https://eximomarketingstrategy.com/ 

Sara also gives us a run down of what's available on-line, while we wait for cinemas to reopen. 

We hope all listeners are staying home and staying safe.