This is our main programme for 2007/08, showing at Swindon Arts Centre, Devizes Road, Old Town on Wednesday evenings, starting at 7.45 pm (doors open 7.15).
At present all films are shown on the Swindon Arts Centre 35mm projector.
(We do show films at other locations using our own DVD equipment.)
Refreshments are available at the Swindon Arts Centre bar before each show.
Tickets are available on the film night (it is not possible to reserve any in advance).
See About SFS -> How to Join for details of membership and admission charges.

19 September 2007
Ten Canoes 15
In Aboriginal / English with English subtitles.
Director: Rolf de Heer & Peter Djigirr, Australia 2006 (90 mins)
A beautifully shot film set in the Northern Territory of Australia's remote Arafura Swamp. It tells a story within a story. Dayindi (Jamie Gulpilil) is taken on a goose egg hunting trip by his tribesmen. He is not married yet and has his eyes on one of the three wives of his older brother. In order to get this notion out of his head one of the elders tells him an ancient story during the hunting trip. There are also three women in this ancient tale and Dayindi begins to see parallels between his own life and the ancient ways of his tribe. It is the kind of story that would be told over many hours if not days. The present of some time ago is shot in black and white, whereas the past or beginning of time is in colour.
Distributor: The Works
Film website
Un certain regard - Special Jury Prize for Rolf de Heer at Cannes 2006

26 September 2007
Volver 15
In Spanish with English subtitles.
Director: Pedro Almodovar, Spain 2006 (121 mins)
Pedro Almodóvar's touching, funny film about a mother who returns from 'beyond the grave' to lend her troubled daughters a helping hand.
Distributor: Pathé
Film website
Awards in various categories at Cannes 2006

17 October 2007 - Our AGM takes place after the film
The Page Turner (La Tourneuse De Pages) 15
In French with English subtitles.
Director: Denis Dercourt, France 2006 (85 mins)
A subtle psychological drama in which a young woman takes revenge on a pianist for ruining her childhood dreams - French director Denis Dercourt pays homage to Hitchcock.
Distributor: Artificial Eye
Film website

31 October 2007
The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen) 15
In German with English subtitles.
Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Germany 2007 (137 mins)
Tense Oscar-winning thriller, set in 1980's East Germany, in which an actress and her dramatist partner are spied on by the Stasi secret police.
Distributor: Lionsgate UK
Film website
Best Foreign Language Film - Academy Awards 2007

14 November 2007
The Blossoming Of Maximo Oliveros (Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros) 15
In English / Filipino / Taglog with English subtitles.
Director: Auraeus Solito, Philippines 2005 (100 mins)
From the Philippines, an unexpectedly delightful film about a gay 12-year-old boy from a criminal family who falls in love with a policeman!
The final scene pays tribute to a classic European film!
Distributor: Peccadillo
Film website
Awards in various categories - Berlin Film Festival 2006

5 December 2007
A Prairie Home Companion PG
Director: Robert Altman, US 2006 (105 mins)
Robert Altman's swansong, with screenplay by Garrison Keillor, is an affectionate look backstage during the final broadcast of a country music radio show. This is about how traditional entertainment has to make way for calculated returns. Nevertheless, the performers have a good time and manage to crack a few jokes. Hugely entertaining.
Distributor: The Works
Film website

9 January 2008
Away From Her 12A
Director: Sarah Polley, Canada 2007 (109 mins)
A powerful, deeply-moving and uplifting love story with outstanding performances from Julie Christie and Gordon Pinsett as an older couple who are separated by Alzheimer's disease.
Distributor: Metrodome
Film website

30 January 2008
After The Wedding (Efter Brylluppet) 15
In Danish/Hindi/English with English subtitles.
Director: Susanne Bier, Denmark 2006 (124 mins)
An aid worker returns to Denmark in search of funding for an orphanage in India, but finds there are a lot of skeletons in his cupboard when he meets his mysterious benefactor.
Distributor: Soda Pictures
Film website

6 February 2008
Pan's Labyrinth (El Laberinto del Fauno) 15
In Spanish with English subtitles.
Director: Guillermo del Toro, Spain/Mexico 2006 (112 mins)
In civil-war torn Spain, Ofelia discovers a fantasy underworld where she must battle against twisted, nightmarish evils to survive. A dark fairytale for adults.
Distributor: Optimum Releasing
Film website
Winner of 3 Academy Awards & 3 BAFTA Awards in 2007

20 February 2008 - Members requested the occasional classic film - here it is.
Mon Oncle U
In French with English subtitles.
Director: Jacques Tati, France 1958 (110 mins)
Celebrating the 50th anniversary of - possibly! - one of the funniest films ever made. Satire and perfect execution in time with charm and humanity.
Distributor: BFI
Curious Tati website
Best Foreign Language Film - Academy Awards 1959

5 March 2008
Water 12A
In Hindi with English subtitles.
Director: Deepa Mehta, India 2005 (114 mins)
From the director of 'Earth' and 'Fire', this controversial and beautifully filmed period drama addresses the plight of Hindu widows in colonial India.
Distributor: Metrodome
Film website

19 March 2008
Esma's Secret (Grbavica) 15
In Serbo-Croat with English subtitles.
Director: Jasmila Zbanic, Bosnia 2006 (90 mins)
In modern Sarajevo a struggling single mother's story about her dead husband, a supposed former war hero, is questioned by her young daughter, with devastating consequences. Esma's secret is revealed towards the end of the film - the viewer perhaps already guessed it earlier.
Distributor: Dogwoof Pictures
Film website
Golden Bear Award 2006 Berlin Film Festival

2 April 2008
Les Petites Vacances PG
In French with English subtitles.
Director: Olivier Peyon, France 2006 (90 mins)
A tense and moving drama in which a recently retired schoolteacher takes her two grandchildren on an impromptu summer trip, but is mysteriously reluctant to tell their parents of her itinerary.
Distributor: Dogwoof Pictures
Film website

16 April 2008
Red Road 18
Director: Andrea Arnold, Scotland 2006 (114 mins)
Tough, intelligent thriller from this first-time British director, in which a woman working in CCTV surveillance has to unexpectedly confront her past.
Distributor: Verve Pictures
Film website
Winner of the Jury Prize at Cannes 2006

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