The COVID 19 pandemic has pushed us apart physically, but cinemas and their audiences are still finding ways to come together, through watch parties, exclusive previews, tweet-alongs and VOD//venue partnerships.
Film Feels Connected was a season designed to spotlight innovation across BFI FAN, to promote online activity during lockdown and to help cinemas, festivals and societies access support to try out new activity.
How FAN members took part
Live listings for all FAN-supported online activity at filmfeels.co.uk - the audience-facing site for listings and recorded content from special events.
Funding awards of up to £1,500 were available to help enhance events, put toward marketing or speaker costs, or cover tech and hosting fees.
Use the hashtag #filmfeels or #filmfeelsconnected to link to the season's activity on social media.
Relevant resources and articles (see below) were commissioned to inspire and inform members considering taking part.
The final funding call for Film Feels Connected closed on 3 July 2020.
Funding (closed 3 July 2020)
Major Programmes funding was available for costs up to £1,500.
Applications were eligible if received before 3 July 2020 and we made decisions in two rounds, in the middle of June, and at the beginning of July 2020.
Film Feels Connected activity and listings were live between June - August 2020.
To find out more about funding conditions and eligibility, read the funding guidance below.
Resources
Working with Reframed Film, Inclusive Cinema and The Bigger Picture we have pulled together various resources to help FAN members plan and deliver online engagement activity.
Reframed Film have created a resource to identify titles streaming both for free on platforms and broadcast, as well as via paid VOD, as well as hosting their own watch parties and events.
You can also sign up to receive Booking Now, FAN's fortnightly newsletter which details programming opportunities for independent cinema. During lockdown this has included offers from distributors around profit sharing VOD initiatives and streaming partnerships.
Inclusive Cinema work to support and highlight inclusive practice in film exhibition, and have amassed resources and information to help make events and screenings accessible to a broad audience. In particular, delivering activity online or using recorded intros, Q&As or engagement present an opportunity to include accessible resources, or subtitles as part of your project. The link below lists various resources to help with this.
The Bigger Picture is FAN's central resource for case studies, industry news and articles. During lockdown, TBP has pulled together resources to help identify and explore online activity, including links to various 'How To' guides and articles.
We have also put together a quick (non-exhaustive) list of some of the main platforms, VOD services and plugins that organisations could work with to deliver activity. You can download this at the bottom of this page.
Contact us
Get in touch via filmfeels@filmhubmidlands.org to find out more, send through your event listings or to arrange a phone call during office hours (0900-1700 Monday - Friday).
Due to the impact of the pandemic on working arrangements in-venue, our office line is currently unavailable but we are happy to call you back for a conversation.