Take One Action Film Festival 2012 returns to Glasgow and Edinburgh
Groundbreaking festival to open with Martin Scorsese produced film and features workshops and Q&As
Returning to Glasgow and Edinburgh for the fifth year in a row, the Take One Action Film Festival’s aim is as much to celebrate great work that is being done around the world to fight injustice, as it is to provoke audiences to get up and do something about the situations they see. It’s also an excellent opportunity - and in some cases the only opportunity - for Scottish audiences to see the best films from the past year on the international documentary festival circuit.
Festival Artistic Director Simon Bateson says, ‘Take One Action celebrates the people and movies that are changing the world. It's two weeks of the most moving and acclaimed cinema about some of the biggest issues facing Scotland and the world today. It has discussions with directors and campaigners from Palestine, India, the US, Tunisia, Bulgaria and South Africa. It has pedal-powered cinema at Edinburgh's Botanics and for the first time in Glasgow's Hidden Gardens, alongside our Filmhouse and GFT screenings.’ And for anyone who fears that socially-conscious cinema sounds too much like work? ‘Well, it has premieres of more award-winning Sundance and other international festival hits than we've ever shown before - and there's simply nowhere else to see them.’
Although the Festival has outspoken filmmakers Ken Loach and Paul Laverty as patrons, Take One Action is not about pushing a particular political agenda, but rather showing that film is a global language that can be used to communicate so much more than disposable stories. This year highlights include the Martin Scorsese produced opening film Surviving Progress, acclaimed Arab Spring documentary Half Revolution and a special interactive family screening of Mary Poppins. With many screenings featuring director Q&As, workshops and post-film discussions, this is a rare instance where watching a film really could lead to changing the world.
Take One Action Film Festival, various venues, Edinburgh and Glasgow, Thurs 20 Sep - Sat 6 Oct.