Community & Business
26 October, 2022
Success for first pocket film festival
LIFE on the Tablelands was the theme of entries for the inaugural Herberton Pocket Film Festival, held during the town’s annual Jacaranda Festival.
A large crowd gathered in the Herberton Shire Hall to witness the first pocket film competition, with the building transformed into a complete movie theatre for the event, thanks to the Cairns cinema group, End Credits.
Festival committee member Peter Whalley-Thompson says pocket films are short stories, shot on a smart phone, expressing whatever the creator wants to say.
Tablelands Regional Council, through its Regional Arts Development Fund, gave a grant to hold workshops on film-making and editing techniques, so that people with no background in film could still enter and succeed.
“Entries spanned the full spectrum of the community. We had stories of how people found themselves starting new businesses and new lives up here on the Tablelands,” he said.
“We had a murder mystery drama set in the old Herberton Railway Station. We saw the story of one young boy’s dreams to join the world soccer league and the sacrifices he has made to get to Europe and be seen.
“We even saw the virtual sing along video that community choir BellaCapella made during the Covid lockdown when they couldn’t be together in a hall.”
With a full screen, full stereo sound and a high-end projector, entrants to the festival saw their work up in lights, and a crowd of around 100 people enjoyed a full night’s entertainment.
Major sponsor of the prizes, Karl Schuch from the 5 Star supermarket in Herberton, said they were very happy to be involved. The film festival may now become an annual event.
