It All Starts Today

The clock is counting down. Whether you are en route to Keswick, arriving over the weekend or are already here, we look forward to welcoming you to the 20th Keswick Film Festival.

If you are around on Friday please try and find time to visit the Theatre's Studio to see what students from Carlisle College have put together for the The Patron's Legacy Project. Based around the legacy of John Hurt, who was patron of the festival before he passed away, students were given the task of watching six of Hurt’s films over the Christmas break and from this they drew upon inspiration for designs and ideas which developed into artwork such as fashion outfits, fine art sculptures to short reel films and even a poem recital.

We hope you enjoy a great weekend of film and thank you for your support.

Programme Addition: Prevenge

With Alice Lowe joining us for the screening of Sometimes Always Never it seemed like a great opportunity to show Prevenge the film she wrote, directed and starred in while 7 months pregnant.

Described as a "pitch black, wryly British comedy" Prevenge follows Ruth, a pregnant woman on a killing spree that's as funny as it is vicious. It's her misanthropic unborn baby dictating Ruth's actions, holding society responsible for the absence of a father.

The screening will be at 14:30 on Saturday 2nd March in the Theatre's Studio. Joint tickets to see both Prevenge and Sometimes Always Never for just £10 are on sale from the Theatre by the Lake.

Alice Lowe to guest at Keswick Film Festival

We are thrilled to announce that Alice Lowe, one of the stars of Sometimes Always Never will be joining us for the screening on Saturday 2nd March at the Theatre by the Lake. Alice will be holding a Q&A after the screening, with Director Carl Hunter.

Alice is no stranger to Keswick. She starred in and co-wrote the wonderful black comedy Sightseers, released back in 2012, which featured the Pencil Museum as a key location in her character’s bizarre and murderous adventures. Since then she has been a regular face on both the small screen (Inside Number 9, Hang-ups) and the big screen, notably as writer, director and star of Prevenge.

Programme Changes: Maria By Callas

Unfortunately we are no longer able to show Carmilla but in it's place we have a UK preview of Maria By Callas - the first film to tell the life story of the legendary Greek/American opera singer completely in her own words. Told through performances, TV interviews, home movies, family photographs, private letters and unpublished memoirs-nearly all of which have never been shown to the public -the film reveals the essence of an extraordinary woman who rose from humble beginnings in New York City to become one of the greatest artists of all time.

20th Anniversary Souvenir Brochure

The digital version of our 20th Anniversary Brochure is now available on our website. The printed version is nearly ready and should be available from the the Alhambra, Theatre By The Lake, libraries and assorted coffee shops around Keswick soon.

All arthouse roads lead to Keswick

Don't just take our word for it, but "All arthouse roads lead to Keswick"

So says Newcastle's The Crack Magazine who took a look at our programme and wrote this marvellous editorial -

It's particularly lovely in Keswick from late February and into March, not least because that's when the annual Keswick Film Festival will be taking place, and for their 20th anniversary event they've got a truly stunning line-up. It's not often that you find a festival that appears to have been curated especially for you.Glastonbury, for instance, always manages to throw a spanner in the works by shoving a Coldplay or a U2 on to spoil things, and I've lost count the number of times I've sat through crushingly unfunny improv sets at the Edinburgh Fringe. But the clever people behind this year's Keswick Film Festival appear to have tapped directly into The Crack's 'Very Favourite Films of Recent Times''list because on flicking through their programme I’ve found myself exclaiming: "Love it! Love it! Love it!"

You can see the full article on The Crack Magazine website.

Documentaires at the Festival

There is an intriguing strand of documentaries at KFF this year.

Keswick Peace and Human Rights Group has chosen a remarkable pair of films. Citizenfour is the story of the journalists working with Edward Snowden to publish his revelations about NSA surveillance. USA Today said "Citizenfour plays like a thriller as it chronicles a complex and vitally important chapter in our history".  A Long Hot Summer in Palestine is Norma Marcos' fascinating account of the impact of conflict on ordinary citizens and Norma will be flying in from Paris to talk about the film and her experiences.

Nae Pasaran is the inspiring story of the workers in Glasgow whose refusal to service the engines from Pinochet’s air force saved lives, several thousand miles away, in Chile. Thanks to guest Neil Sinyard and his contacts with the family of Director, William Wyler we have The Memphis Belle which takes us to the heart of a bombing mission in World war ll. Down to Earth, at Rheged takes us to special places on the planet, safeguarded by some special people.

Film lovers will need no introduction to Agnès Varda, whose Faces Places takes her on a trip around France. In the company of JR, a young photographer, they travel in a special box truck equipped as a portable photo booth and traveling printing facility. They take photographs of people around the country, creating special, colossal mural pictures of individuals, communities and places they want to honour and celebrate.