Encounters Short Film and Animation Festival 2015
Please note : this season finished in Sept 2015
Home-grown yet internationally renowned, Encounters returns to Bristol this September to bring you six jam-packed and inspiring days of film screenings, events, special guests and workshops. Over the course of the week, the festival will screen over 300 films here, celebrating the best new short films.
Presenting some of the best new short and animated films from the UK, Europe and around the world, Encounters has become one of the most prestigious short film and animation competitions in the world. The competition programmes, which run from Wed 16 to Fri 18 Sept, will also offer evening and weekend showcases including the ever popular Music Video and Late Lounge screenings, along with the hotly-anticipated Comedy category.
The best of the best can be watched on Sunday here at Watershed in the Award Winners Screenings at 12:00 and 17:00. And when you’re not in the cinema feasting your eyes on this year’s talent, you can join the festival for evening and weekend events, special Q&As and meet the filmmaker sessions taking place throughout the week. There will be family friendly screenings and workshops during the festival weekend, and plenty of free, drop in experiences for everyone to enjoy.
For filmmakers and industry professionals there will be a three day Industry Forum with high-level workshops, masterclasses and panel discussions. For more information just visit the Encounters website.
Find out more about the festival, see the full programme and sign up to the Encounters newsletter at encounters-festival.org.uk.
Ticket price range: free drop in sessions - £8.00.
Previous screenings & events in this season
Award Winners Screening
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Catch a selection of the award winning short and animated films in this unmissable showcase...a regular sell out, make sure you get your tickets quick!
Ursula Meier's second feature is about the growing gap between rich and poor as we follow the lives of a sister and brother who live in a housing complex below a luxury Swiss ski resort.
Ursula Meier Retrospective
classified 15 Encounters 2015
A retrospective of the work from Swiss director Ursula Meier, with an introduction from Meier herself before the screening.
DepicT! Showcase
classified 15 Encounters 2015
The big screen premiere of the tiny shorts (90 seconds or less) in the running for the DepicT! awards - plus a chance to meet the talent behind the films.
The 400 Blows
classified PG Encounters 2015
François Truffaut's landmark autobiographical film traces 13-year-old Antoine Doinel's bleak odyssey through a life of aloof parents, oppressive teachers and petty crime.
Animation Highlights 2015 - Politics, Pals and Power
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Discover a fantastic array of superbly produced international works each offering something unique and excellent either in technique, story or visual flair.
A Celebration of Halas and Bachelor featuring Animal Farm
classified U Encounters 2015
To celebrate the 75th anniversary of the creation of what was once the UK's biggest and most important animation company Halas and Batchelor, Encounters is delighted to present a digitally re-mastered version of the classic Animal Farm.
Nina Needs to Draw Children's Workshop with Disney Junior
Encounters 2015
Encourage your children's imaginations and pencils to run wild with a free illustration workshop presented by ArthurCox, the producers of popular Disney Junior animation Nina Needs to Go.
Short Film Highlights 2015
classified 15 Encounters 2015
As the festival comes to a close and winners are celebrated, we bring together a collection of highlights from the 2015’s live action crop.
Petite Perpetual Cinema - Family Friendly
classified PG Encounters 2015
Back by popular demand...this year the 2015 Encounters Perpetual Cinema offers free, drop in viewing of a selection of top family friendly short and animated films which have screened in competition during the festival week.
Mauerblüten (Wall Blooms)
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Five short films about life with The Berlin Wall, which marked the deadly borderline that cut through the city for 28 years, symbolising both the division of Germany as well as the state that entrenched itself behind it.
Late Lounge
classified 18 Encounters 2015
Bring a bucket, sit back and try to make yourself comfortable for one helluva rollercoaster ride! Behold the annual grungefest of outrageous sick and twisted shorts.
Concert of Collage
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Join us for the performance of Citation City - a time-travelling voyage through one city, assembled from hundreds of movie clips and inspired by the wanderings of Walter Benjamin.
Reasons to be Cheerful
classified 15 Encounters 2015
The second of two comedy programmes that offers up a plate of humour and comedy - from a cartoon dog desperate for walkies to a dinner party that goes disastrously wrong.
Ursula Meier and John Parish in conversation
Encounters 2015
We welcome Swiss filmmaker Ursula Meier and Bristol-based musician John Parish (best known for his work with PJ Harvey) to discuss their collaboration and the importance of music and sound in the filmmaking process.
Short Matters Programme 3
classified 15 Encounters 2015
One of three short film programmes offering you the chance to see the short film nominations for the European Film Awards - all are free drop in screenings!
Animation 6 - A Breath of Fresh Air
classified 15 Encounters 2015
The natural world plays a central role in most of these clever animated gems, which all say something fresh about the way we live and breathe.
Shorts2Features: The Survivalist + Q&A
classified 15 Encounters 2015
A post-apocalyptic drama where a ruthless loner's carefully ordered world is upset by two women who find his cabin. As trust and food quickly run into short supply, self-preservation takes on a new meaning...
Short Film 9 – About a Girl
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Celebrate a variety of fascinating and multi-faceted female characters in this programme of female-focused shorts unrestrained by stereotypes.
Encounters with Romanian Shorts Part 2
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Part 2 of a country focus produced in partnership with Arkadia Shortfest, we are glad to present a selection of the most rewarded Romanian short films in recent history that have helped shape the 'New Romanian Wave'.
Animation 5 - Rise and Fall
classified 15 Encounters 2015
From the evolution of life to the end of civilisation, these films touch upon forms of power and how we invest time and effort in social identity, competition and warfare.
Encounters with Romanian Shorts Part 1
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Part 1 of a country focus produced in partnership with Arkadia Shortfest, we are glad to present a selection of the most rewarded Romanian short films in recent history that have helped shape the 'New Romanian Wave'.
Short Film 8 - Stranger Than Fiction
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Blurring boundaries between narrative, documentary and video-art, the formally daring films in this programme demonstrate the freedom inherent in the short form to experiment with, deconstruct and ultimately reinvent film language.
The Aardman Panel - Comedy Writing For Animation
Encounters 2015
A panel of the finest screenwriters and directors in the business on comedy writing for animation - don't miss this wonderful opportunity to hear from these first rate professionals and learn about what it takes to be outstanding in their field.
Short Film 7 - Reality Checks - International Documentaries
classified 15 Encounters 2015
A trip around Europe in five outstanding documentaries - the films in this programme put the spotlight on some of the most interesting and daring developments the factual format has achieved in short film this year.
C4's Moments of Horror
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Fancy a late night fright? Join Film4's Catherine Bray as she presents Channel 4's Moments of Horror short film strand.
Music Video
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Dazzling visual art, wild stories and animated adventures in sound, music and image that showcase the best and most innovative examples in this groundbreaking genre of the short form from new and emerging talent.
Desert Island Flicks - Carol Morley
Encounters 2015
In this special event Carol Morley (Dreams of a Life, The Falling) will talk about and show clips from films which have inspired her alongside clips from her own film work - and will read from her new semi-autobiographical novel.
Pillow Talk
classified 15 Encounters 2015
In the second of the loved-up film offerings these shorts have stories about relationships and the making and breaking of them.
Short Matters Programme 2
classified 15 Encounters 2015
This is your chance to watch all of the 2014 Nominees in these free, drop in screenings.
Animation 4 - Friends and Family
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Where would we be without friends and family? Each of these outstanding films explores and celebrates the strength of relationships - from the joys of domestic nostalgia to the pain of losing a loved one.
Short Film 6 - Life. Camera. Action.
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Blurring boundaries between narrative, documentary and video-art, the formally daring films in this programme demonstrate the freedom inherent in the short form to experiment with, deconstruct and ultimately reinvent film language.
Astley Baker Retrospective
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Highlights from the BAFTA-winning, Oscar®-nominated career of Mark Baker and Neville Astley, two of the most commercially successful British animators ever, responsible for the well-known and much-loved children’s TV series Peppa Pig.
Animation 3 - Close To The Edge
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Be Brave. Whether it is a portrayal of insanity, impending doom, senseless murder or the outer limits of life and imagination; you will find a taste of all that in this strong and powerful programme.
Widening the Lens
Encounters 2015
A Panel discussion hosted by Filmmaker Joanna Coates, and in collaboration with Film Fatales, addressing the frequent contemporary stereotypes we often encounter on screen.
Short Film 5 - New Beginnings
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Dealing with loss, courage, hope and second chances, the diverse international short films in this programme provide an affecting and life-affirming look at human relationships and the challenges involved in picking up the pieces and making a fresh start.
Film Bilder
classified 15 Encounters 2015
interfilm Berlin presents eight diverse, entertaining and award-winning short films created by the ground-breaking animation studio FILM BILDER.
Short Film 4 - Strangers in a Strange Land
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Telling stories of immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers and the chilling return of far-right nationalist groups as seen through the eyes of a child, these bold and thought-provoking films explore what is arguably one of the hottest topics currently on the Western world’s agenda.
Pro-creations
classified 15 Encounters 2015
From ‘tipping the velvet’ to ‘whispering sweet nothings’ ...there are many euphemisms for sex and love, and so we discover there are some rather good films on the subjects as well. In the first of two collections of shorts you will find they all have one or two things on their mind.
Terry Jones presents Boom Bust Boom
classified 12A Encounters 2015
A mix of live action, animation, puppetry and song, Python Terry Jones' new documentary walks us through the history of financial crashes and shows the link between our unstable economy and how economics is taught.
... Why the Short Face?
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Presented here for your evening’s delight is a fantastic mix of films, each with a funny take on life - and there’s a strong dose of dark humour thrown in for good measure!
Short Matters Programme 1
classified 15 Encounters 2015
One of three short film programmes offering you the chance to see the short film nominations for the European Film Awards - all are free drop in screenings!
Animation 2 - The March Of Time
classified 15 Encounters 2015
From bittersweet memories to futuristic virtual visions, this collection of films is focussed on chronology and what lies in the past and future.
Shorts2Features: Dartmoor Killing + Q&A
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Bafta winning director Peter Nicholson's feature film debut is a dark and atmospheric story of female friendship tested by deceit, betrayal and a terrifying past.
Short Film 3 - Mysterious Ways
classified 15 Encounters 2015
All revolving around some kind of mystery, these atmospheric and immensely captivating short films will draw you into their enigmatic world and sometimes leave you with a tingle down your spine.
NAHEMI
classified 15 Encounters 2015
The National Association in the Moving Image (NAHEMI) presents a programme of outstanding recent work produced by film, television and animation students around the country, with special awards for creativity and cinematography.
Animation 1 - Sensual Delights
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Sit back and drift through this wonderful galaxy of animated worlds where experimentation is the name of the game.
BBC at Encounters: The Future of Short-form Channels
Encounters 2015
This panel session with BBC Three's Max Gogarty provides an update on the themes, strategy and creative direction that will enable a more personalised and social form of digital broadcasting for the first time.
Short Film 2 - Extreme Measures
classified 15 Encounters 2015
The compelling characters in these short films provide us with an insight into the intricacies of human nature and the many ways our actions can escalate to the point of no return.
Cartoon d'Or
classified 15 Encounters 2015
An exclusive UK screening of the 2014 Cartoon d'Or shortlist, featuring the best of the best in animation.
Short Film 1 - Turning Points
classified 15 Encounters 2015
Life-changing times arrive in many different shapes and forms and the young protagonists of these short films find themselves face-to-face with a shift in their reality which will transform them forever.
Encounters Industry Forum
Encounters 2015
An intensive three day event, the Industry Forum combines high-level masterclasses, panel discussions and industry film screenings with networking opportunities designed to connect filmmakers to industry.
How Film Can't Live without Music with Huey Morgan
Encounters 2015
Join revered musician and DJ Huey Morgan in this exclusive event as he explores a selection of films using music as a focus - and examining how some films just would not be complete without it.
Cinematography - State of the Art (TBC)
Encounters 2015
Join some of the world's most successful cinematographers, including Stuart Dryburgh (The Piano), Geoff Boyle (Wallander) and Nic Knowland (Berberian Sound Studio) to learn how they create and capture unforgettable pictures and how they see the future of the big screen.