Following the production of Passion of Remembrance (1986), Blackwood went on to produce a range of award-winning short films. Her playful fiction on black beauty Perfect Image? (1988) won Best Film at the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1990. The documentary A Family Called Abrew (1992) archive images and personal family interviews to tell the illuminating and unique story of pre-Windrush migrants, the film won Biography Section at the Black Independent Film and Screenplay Competition, Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1993.

Inspired by a story in a newspaper, Blackwood also wrote and directed the multi-award-winning British Screen/Channel Four short drama, Home Away from Home (1993), which was an official selection for Critics’ Week, Cannes Film Festival (1994) and Winner of Best European Short Film, Films des Femmes, France (1995). Also included in this selection is a rare screening of Lift Stories, a film shot very quickly while participating in a workshop run by Abbas Kiarostami. Despite a rapid and organic production process, Blackwood remembers the experience fondly, stating it as being, ‘very short but feels complete’.

16mm and 35mm prints c/o BFI with thanks to Maureen Blackwood. Lift Stories screens on Digibeta with thanks to Channel 4.

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