“…I wake up in the morning I smile… because before I was getting up early, bagging up and getting in the trap”

The story of a Peckam gangsta turned grime star.

Produced by Vice Magazine
Edited by Marta Velasquez, Filmdependence

As featured in:

www.noisey.com

Hidden Truth is a candid and intimate portrayal of the effects of domestic violence on women and children in rural Zambia.

Directed by the Samfya Women Filmmakers
Produced by Helen Cotton, SeeChange Films
Project Directors: Bahareh Hosseini & Abibata Mahama
Edited by Marta Velasquez, Filmdependence
Music by David Thomas

Screenings:

Shown to 100,000 people in rural Africa
Selected for San Francisco International Women’s Film Festival
Broadcast in the UK

Toured with Women’s Film Institute
Shown to parliamentarians in Zambia
Broadcast on GTV in Ghana

Vote for The Great Ones.
Today is the last day to vote for our short documentary in the View Change Online Film Contest which is awarding $50,000 in cash prizes to videos that best tell the stories of progress in developing countries.  The two most popular videos in each category will automatically advance to the Finals.  If the film wins in the category of Empowerment, Camfed will win $20,000 for girls’ education in Africa!

Follow this link, watch the film, login, check your mail for confirmation and Vote.

The Great Ones is a short film about a preschool for orphans founded by young women in rural Zambia.  These young women were supported through their education by Camfed.  More young women could be empowered with your help.

Help send 800 girls to primary school: vote for our film!

Filmdirecting4women was formed to provide training and support to female film directors; this was the first year of the Film Festival.  At the ‘Tough Women Special’ after the screening we were delighted and entertained by the frankness and openness of the speakers, these included Antonia Bird (Ravenous, Face Priest), doc director Hazel Chandler and of course, our Bahareh Hosseini.  The award was truly a delightful surprise! However, I’m not used to standing in front to receive an award… as you see…

Check out the trailer:

Don’t forget to VOTE!

Thanks.

Marta Velasquez – Pretty

Produced by Xanthe Hamilton & Jenny Horwell
Directed by Xanthe Hamilton & Michael Pearce
Edited by Marta Velasquez, Filmdependence

Flower arrangement by Anne Hamilton
Music by Tame Impala

Directed by Michael Pearce
Edited by Marta Velasquez, Filmdependence
Music: ‘Earthquake’ (Fear of Theydon remix) by This Is The Kit

As I sit on my balcony contemplating on time passing, thinking of the creative things in life and writing them down, all I can think is: “Ahhh, isn’t the weather lovely… Oh! I know!  I should sit in the sun, with my laptop and write a newsletter…”  So with the sun reflecting on the screen and my fingers burning on the hot metal keys… Here I go!

I am now sharing an office space with a bunch of very creative people both fromBranchage Film Festival and Margaret.  They have allowed me to settle in the ‘boiler room’ of the new office (I call it the ‘boiler room’ because there is actually a boiler in here… Not because I run a bogus stock broking company!).
Anyway, escaping from the open-plan and into my own four walls seemed like a great idea to begin with, but then something happened which I hadn’t predicted, I began offering everyone out there countless cups of tea in a bid to have some kind of interaction.  All I got was a few complements on a good cup of tea.

But then along came B Flat Productions and moved all their audio post-production equipment into the ‘boiler room’!  This is perfect, now we can offer everyone Professional Audio as well as Video Editing Facilities and some dodgy shares!

Actually we’ll keep our shares thank you.
But we will offer your some deals instead!

Got a few DV tapes in your cupboard?
Fancy sharing them on a DVD?  Simply visit movies on DVD and get the ball rolling on those forgotten tapes…

Don’t miss out!

Also, don’t forget to read our exciting updates…
See you at the screenings!

Best regards
Your editor

Marta Velasquez – Pretty
on behalf of Filmdependence Ltd

A play between the sounds of a stairwell, beatboxing and tango.

About the Artist…

Phil Poppy has created a number of art films edited through Filmdependence.

‘Unidentified Individual’ and ‘The Stairs’ dealt with themes of isolation and the role of the camera within the city.

Both pieces captivate the audience through quiet contemplation; eventhough we are spying on the subjects through a CCTV camera, the music and passive observation bring out feelings towards the subjects and their environments.

In ‘Red Carpet’ the extremes of the need to record every moment with such rigour and urgency is given the Phil Poppy treatment.  Expressions from fans, smiles from stars, the seriousness, desperation and graciousness of the whole ordeal is slowed down and ordered to a point in which a passing moment is now charged with exploration.

Throughout Phil Poppy’s earlier pieces a close relationship between sound/music and the landscape has been used to bring out sensibilities towards each subject.  Lately this use of sound has become more complex.  ‘Quartet’, as screened last year at Kings Place and Richmix, combined four rotating video and audio tracks into a surround sound installation.  Each character’s singing and atmospheric sound created an interplay that can be experienced differently from each corner of the auditorium.

If you would like to know more about the artist please visit his website here.

Trailer for the new Son of Dave album, Shake A Bone.
Recorded in Chicago with Steve Albini, the album is released via Kartel on the 22nd March 2010.

Produced by Kartel Records
Edited by Marta Velasquez

Music video for ‘Nuthin But The Blues’ by Son of Dave.

Produced by Kartel Records
Edited by Marta Velasquez

Dancers from the Juilliard School in New York: Ryan Redmond, Lea Ved, Alex Hille, Katie Wells, Zack Tang, Grace Song, Nathan Makolandra.
Choreography: Nathan Makolandra
Music: American Stitches by Richard Walters taken from ‘The Animal’ album

Directed and filmed by Charles Kirby-Welch for Kartel Ltd
Editor Marta Velasquez at Filmdependence
Produced by Kartel Ltd

Well I can’t be blamed, it was a busy year and lots of exciting stuff took place.
Son of Dave recorded a new album with Steve Albini and the resulting video was a fun project to edit!  There were successful appeals for Camfed and UK Sport; an IVCA Award winning travel series for Enjoy England and lots of documentaries!

The website has also received a complete overhaul, the edit suite has moved into a new office and this is our first newsletter!…
so for those of you who don’t know…

Filmdependence is a post-production facility set up 5 years ago to help emergingfilmmakers make new and exciting short films, promos, documentaries and music videos to add some variety and new blood into the film scene.

Since then we’ve had the pleasure of working with some very talented directors, including Bahareh Hosseini who’s directorial debut‘Afghan Girls Can Kick’ won best international documentary at the Garden State Festival and was screened on BBC World; and Xanthe Hamilton who’s short film‘Family Vilakati’ won Best Foreign Short Documentary at Hollywood International Film Festival.

Filmdependence has also been the first point of service for various companies needing a personalized DVD authoring and duplication service.  From publicity promos for film festivals such as Birds Eye View to campaigning packages for charities such asWar on Want, or showreels for directors such as Stephen Sherman.

2010 is set to be a good year, even better if the year can be shared with you…

Enough sentimentality!

Your editor

Marta Velasquez (a.k.a Marta Pretty)

A feature documentary following the journey of 150 young girls from backgrounds of extreme rural poverty as they are taught the skills and are given the confidence to set up their own social and business enterprises to help their communities and themselves.

Ng’andwe & Penelope are some of the inspirational young women featured in The Entrepreneurs.

Directed by Helen Cotton
Edited by Marta Velasquez
Creative Consultant: Ross Kauffman
Sponsored by Camfed, The University of Cambridge and Goldman Sachs