27 March, 2011
Showcasing unions fighting back against austerity cuts will be featured in the line-up for the Global Labour Film Shorts in 2011. Affiliates are invited to submit their films for possible inclusion in the one hour line-up of the best short films from around the world by April 1.
Since the beginning of the global economic crisis, trade unions internationally have denounced its fast and increasing negative impact on workers. Some of this action has been captured on film, an essential platform for communication in many union campaigns and actions today.
Over the last four years, the Geneva Labour Film Shorts Festival has taken place in downtown Geneva enabling unions and working people worldwide to share their stories. This year, in order to reach a wider international audience, the festival is refocusing to an on-line and DVD presentation that will be submitted to over 36 labour related film festivals around the world. The line-up will also be available on DVD for affiliates of all Global Union Federations and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) to use in their own events and activities.
The one-hour DVD will focus on short films that are excellent examples of communicating labour stories and messages and the selection will include a range of different films from different parts of the world. The launch of the Global Labour Film Shorts 2011 will take place at the European Metalworkers' Federation (EMF) “Unions in Motion” film festival, coming up on June 10-11 at Landschaftspark Nord in Duisburg, Germany.
Please send copies of your films on DVD with a short paragraph describing the film, why it was produced and how it was used. The IMF, coordinating the work, will need unfettered rights to show the film and publish it online, of course with full acknowledgement of who created the material. Due to resource constraints for interpretation, the IMF is only able to accept films in English language or with English subtitles.
We need to receive copies of all possible films by April 1, 2011.
Please send to:
Cherisse Fredricks
International Metalworkers' Federation
Case Postale 1516
CH1227 Geneva
Switerland