New Forest Film Festival 2012 :: OFFICIAL SITE

Thanks to all the musicians, technicians, volunteers and attendees for making our inaugural festival so incredibly memorable
There are those rare moments in life where you are privileged to bear witness to a unique event, this, for me was one of them. Should they saddle up and recreate this triumph at any time in the future, then my advice to anyone, is buy your ticket early. Richard O’Brien, creator of The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Wow - what a great event! Everyone in our party was spellbound. Tim
It was a brilliant evening, starting with the smell of popcorn at the entrance. The dandelion and burdock soda was a long overdue childhood experience I’d missed out on, and opened the way for a superb evening. The Dodge Brother;s music conveyed all that words could have, and much, much more. Looking forward to next year’s Film Festival already… Liz
We came to the Film Festival and had a truly great evening - it was an absolute blast! Who knew silent films could be so enthralling and so much fun? Jane
I just wanted to thank all your team for putting together such an awesome weekend of festivities. Sarah
Well, WHAT a Film, WHAT a Performance, WHAT an Experience …… CONGRATULATIONS to you all. It was the most BRILLIANT evening from the moment we arrived you set the scene with the old Cinema queue then walking into a room laden with goodies all crying out to be consumed! I loved the Minstead films with their wonderful faces and hats! Then to the Main Feature …. WOW!!! ….. I was gripped by the film, what a performance by Louise Brooks, amazing AND THE MUSIC was outstanding what a marriage between the two, really quite extraordinary, I can’t stop thinking about it. Thank you all for your terrific organisation and innovation for the Inaugural New Forest Festival - WELL DONE! Nicky
I especially enjoyed the movie with live accompanyment, that was a new experience for me and many others I suspect. The music was wonderful, it fitted the film like a glove, very clever. Pauline
Wonderful comments from everyone as we were leaving tonight - a HUGE success! Thank you for all the hard work involved in planning & making it happen - and then putting it into action through your own talented skills. The music was terrific and it flowed beautifully throughout the whole 75mins (which is a very big achievement I know !!). We loved the film, plus the Forest Taster beforehand, and we got a buzz from working-off the spare tyre on the bikes (even though they had remarkably unforgiving saddles!) Cynthia & Bryan
My husband and I came to the Beggars of Life screening last month and thought it was fantastic. We had a really great time and loved the film. Julia
I attended the New Forest Film Festival last year on the Friday for the screening of Beggars of Life with the live band and thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Jennifer
The best event I’ve ever been to in Brockenhurst. Malcolm
It really brought together lots of people in such an imaginative way and with a fantastic atmosphere. The cycling was genius….it was a first for me…cycling whilst watching a film! Sarah
We had an amazing time, and so did everyone else I spoke to! Tori
Went along to offer support to friend locally, had no idea what to expect, the film made me jump, made me laugh and got me emotionally too - it was a top top night. Anne
It was incredibly well done and enjoyable. Brian
Just to say what a terrific occasion in every respect (and there were lots) yesterday’s film evening at the Festival was. The music is still circulating quite pleasantly in my head (I had never experienced a silent film with live music before). Curiously, I found the soft rustling continuum from the cycles in the back blended with the instrumental playing to form a rather unique whole. Keep it coming, I say! David
In over a quarter of a century of playing piano for silent films I’ve never known quite the reaction that Beggars of Life gets with our score - the particular pleasure of the reaction is that so many people seeing it have never seen a silent film with live music before. Whether it is the pitch-perfect sound of the Dodge Brothers with this film, the fact that its a great, entirely modern film, with an appeal to today’s audience that belies its age, or maybe the fact that ‘Beggars’ is almost unknown in the UK, so that it comes to all its audiences as a wonderful surprise - for whatever reason the reaction from every audience has been unanimously positive. My personal pleasure has been to play Blues piano (which I love) with a great blues band who also happen to be great mates, and its a joy being part of that. But the New Forest festival did its own part in creating a memorable night with the bikes (I’ll never forget catching, out of the corner of my eye, the sign going up in the gloom and another obedient audience member toddling off towards the racing wheels), an unexpectedly huge audience and a buzz beforehand which did wonders for our confidence. The best silent movie and live music experiences always result, oddly, in great theatre, so getting a rave response in Brockenhurst College hall from Rocky Horror’s Richard O’Brien was the icing on the cake to an extraordinary night. Neil Brand, Silent Pianist