June Film Events

Feature by Becky Bartlett | 26 May 2010

Between 13-20 June, Scotland celebrates its annual Refugee Week, with both the GFT in Glasgow and the Filmhouse in Edinburgh screening films that offer insight into the lives of refugees around the world. Six films will be shown at the GFT, including Afghan Star (14 June, 6.15pm), an Oscar-nominated documentary about a Pop Idol-style talent show in Afghanistan, and the risks contestants take for their chance of stardom. The Filmhouse is showing four films between 13-15 June, including Moving to Mars (13 June, 1pm), the story of two Burmese refugee families relocated to Sheffield.

For those interested in extreme sports, head to Dundee on 15 June at 8.30pm, where the DCA hosts Glasgow’s International Bike Film Festival Special Event – a mountain biking double bill. First up is the acclaimed Seasons, tracking seven of the world’s best bikers over the course of a year, accompanied by Follow Me, which boasts stunning cinematography and an excellent soundtrack. In a similar vein, the Filmhouse is also screening the latter, followed by The Collective, a series of shorts compiled by the same artistic team, on 11 June at 6.15pm.

For Woody Allen fans, there’s only one place to be in June. The Filmhouse is hosting Woody Allen: An Introspective between 31 May and 1 July, with an impressive seventeen films over the month. A cinematic icon and acclaimed director, the season encompasses Allen’s neurotic, self-doubting humour throughout his forty-year career, from 1973’s Sleeper (one of his many Diane Keaton collaborations) to 2008’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona, starring his new muse Scarlett Johansson. With several packages offered when buying tickets, either catch your favourite or treat yourself to the entire season.

In the last week of every month the CCA hosts Reflections on Black, a free event in which selected contemporary artists’ films are screened on a loop each day. This month (22-26 June) the chosen artist is Lithuanian Deimantas Narkevicius, whose film The Dud Effect combines archive footage and the real location of a former Soviet base as it follows an officer performing the launch of a nuclear missile.

Finally, it’s not just Woody Allen who is being celebrated this month. Paying homage to one of the widely acknowledged pioneers of the New Wave, both the Filmhouse and the GFT are hosting a series of films by Agnes Varda. Catch the last few in the season until 6 June, including one of her best known works, Vagabond (1 June, 6.15pm at GFT), a powerful portrait of a homeless woman, based on a real incident, and The Beaches of Agnes (5-6 June at Filmhouse), Varga’s emotional self-portrait.