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Arts: The Catalyst The Peoples Story
Director: Simon Hynds
Producer: Mickey McPherson (Plum Films)
Winner of The Saltire Award for best Scottish Short Documentary, Edinburgh International Film Festival 2005
In 2004 we gained funding from The Craigmillar Partnership to commission a film to document how Art acted as a Catalyst to create The Craigmillar Festival Society. The documentary was to be part of the "Arts the catalyst Craigmillar" exhibition at The City Arts Centre, October to December 2004. The film interviews many people who were involved with The Festival and uses original footage including BBC documentaries from 1969 and 1978. In 2005 a new version of The documentary won The Saltire award for best Scottish short documentary at The Edinburgh International Film Festival.
The film was directed by Simon Hynd and produced by Mickey MacPherson at Plum
Films. The film was commissioned by Craigmillar Communiversity and funded by
Craigmillar Partnership and sales of publications from Craigmillar Communiversity
Press.
The documentary tells the story through the words of local people, actors and
professionals who were involved in creation and development of The Craigmillar
Festival Society. It uses footage from The BBC and local filmmakers from the
sixties, seventies and eighties and excerpts from Bill Douglas classic 1972
film " My Childhood".
The film includes many voices from Craigmillar including Janet Howie singing " When
the People play their part", Helen Crummy, Muriel Wilkinson, Alice Henderson,
Heather Henderson, Clare Elder, Joanne McPherson and many others. Also interviewed
are Willie Roe, Richard Demarco, Steve Burgess and River City star John Murtagh.
Helen Crummy said about the award " This award is in recognition of the enduring creativity and strength of the families and people of Craigmillar".
This movie is available for viewing.
Listen to a sample of Janet Howie singing "When people play thier part""When people play thier part"
or others singing The Plenty and Craigmillar Now or More of us than you or We are gonna roll
(full recording can be purchased, as MP3 or CD see publications)