Visiting clubs in competition

At its October meeting Surrey Border Film & Video Makers hosted a popular annual competition between three visiting clubs. Each visiting club proudly showed its best video of the year and enthusiastically told us about its making; and a well respected film critic, Terence Patrick from Circle Eight film makers, was with us to act as judge and announce the overall winner.

Harry Page accepts award from Terry Patrick

The club from Chichester was first off with a poignant film called Arthur’s Birthday. Arthur was a second World war veteran who was now very old. As he had outlived his friends and colleagues, his birthday was a sadly lonely affair. One’s heart went out to the poor old fellow who carefully put out birthday cards saved from yesteryear and then dressed very smartly, wearing his war medals even though no-one was due to join him. The film was sensitively narrated with short memory flashbacks, and the audience was visibly moved as the old man went for a walk past the local war memorial, and in a sequence of flashbacks, passed away. This was to be the eventual winner of the evening’s competition with compliments for every aspect of its production. Harry Page stepped up to accept the winners trophy on behalf of the Chichester club.

Visitors from the Copthorne club provided a comedy entitled “It could only happen to a postman”. This excellent production was also narrated, but this time in rhyme. There was something about the well chosen couplets which seemed to add both charm and character as we were taken from one mishap to another.

Visitors from Portsmouth showed the longest film of the evening which was a murder mystery rather in the vein of television series like Miss Marple or Midsommer Murders. Complete with a gory murder, an obvious culprit and plenty of red herrings, it had a nice twist at the end, as the real murderer was revealed.

The film critic, Terrence Patrick, entertained us well in his difficult task of summing up such a wonderful set of films. He expertly highlighted the excellent features of each film and then presented the prize to the winning group from Chichester.