Author

About the Author /

Sarah is a true multi-hyphenate within the film industry. Alongside her role as Associate Editor & Head of Outreach for Directors Notes, her extensive festival experience ranges from MC and juror duties to previously serving as Deputy Director of Brighton Rocks, where she helped steer its growth into a BIFA-qualifying event. Sarah also produces for Brighton film collective The Imaginary Project and contributes as a freelance writer for publications including 1.4 and Shots Magazine.

Live Action, Premiere

A Relationship Revelation Leads to a Spiral of Insecurity in Sam Baron’s Tragicomedy ‘Tall Dark and Handsome’

We chat to Sam Baron about his love of subversion in comedy and digging into the paranoid fragility of the male ego in the conclusion of his Amit Shah trilogy.

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Awards, Live Action

A Dark Secret Threatens to Disrupt a Perfect Family Gathering in Simon Woods’ BAFTA Debut ‘Such a Lovely Day’

Simon Woods walks through the ways he played with dark and light in the telling of his shocking drama about a young boy navigating his parents' marriage.

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Live Action, Premiere

A Young Clubber Dissociates From Reality on a Wild Trip in Sami Schinaia’s Stylistic Short ‘LOVE U 2CB’

Sami Schinaia details how his relationship to social media helped to shape his vibrant short following a young clubber on a surreal trip.

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Live Action, Premiere

An Imbalanced Friendship Plays Out Through a Series of Bizarre Flashbacks in Nathan de Paz Habib’s ‘La Bicicletta’

Nathan De Paz Habib discusses experimenting with the form of the distinctive scenes representing a series of emotive flashbacks in his surreal debut short.

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Awards, Live Action

Elham Ehsas Spotlights the Devastating Loss of Afghan Women’s Liberties in BAFTA Nominated Short ‘Yellow’

Elham Ehsas talks about placing the audience in his protagonist's shoes in his film shining a light on the loss of women's freedoms under Taliban rule.

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Live Action

An Unsavoury Opportunity Offers a Lucrative Solution for a Desperate Woman in Giuseppe Garau’s ‘L’Incidente’

Giuseppe Garau extols the creative perks of not being glued to a monitor when shooting his 16mm film about a woman who enters the seedy world of tow trucks.

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Live Action

Yasmin Afifi’s BAFTA Winner ‘Jellyfish & Lobster’ Extols the Joys of Living Without Conforming to Expectations

Writer/Director Yasmin Afifi tells DN why magical realism was the perfect genre in which to tell her dark comedic story about finding joy at the end of life.

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Live Action

Jon Ryan Sugimoto’s ‘Full Time’ Is a Stark Warning Against Falling Into the Trap of the 9 to 5

Jon Ryan Sugimoto defines the visual motifs he deployed to capture the passion crushing effect adulthood and responsibility can have on youthful dreams.

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Live Action, Premiere

A Shy Englishman Abroad Isn’t Quite Able to Read Between the Lines in Edoardo Ulivelli’s Flirtatious ‘Lo Sguardo’

Edoardo Ulivelli discusses the catharsis of putting his own insecurities into his short film following a young man unable to decipher romantic advances.

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Live Action, Premiere

Imminent Death Forces a Wall Street Suit to Assess Her Boujee Life in Tomson Tee’s Comedy ‘click, click, BOOM!’

Tomson Tee details the narrative division of warm and cold tones and wide frames within his dark comedy pointing a mocking finger at the super wealthy.

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Live Action

Two Warring Sisters’ Desperation Reaches Its Peak in Tom Berkeley & Ross White’s Bleak Western ‘The Golden West’

Tom Berkeley & Ross White discuss subverting character expectations in their psychological pitch black comedy Western about sisters hunting gold in Wales.

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Article

Sarah Smith Top Ten Feature Films of 2023

With seven female filmmakers leading the way, Sarah Smith walks us through why these 10 feature films of 2023 refuse to leave her consciousness.

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