This year you’ll be able to snuggle up on the sofa for the Norwich Film Festival which is going online for the first time, with cameos from plenty of famous faces.
The festival returns for its 10th anniversary from November 2 to 29 and due to coronavirus it has an adapted format, with all 132 of the short films available via a streaming platform called Shift72.
Among the highlights include BAFTA award-winning Miriam Margolyes (The Age of Innocence, Harry Potter) who stars in a short film called Wings, an LGBTQ+ love story also featuring Virginia McKenna (A Town Like Alice, Born Free).
Russell Tovey, star of BBC’s ‘Being Human’, appears in ‘It’s Me’ by British director Helen Randag and it also stars Maxine Peake (Dinner Ladies, Shameless).
READ MORE: Christmas drive-in cinema coming to Norfolk
Comedy actor Paul Kaye (The Sunday Show, Game of Thrones) is in ‘Petrichor’, where he plays a “washed up, former wunderkind of the snooker world” who has one last chance to revive his career.
There were 1,268 shorts submitted from 55 countries this year for 19 different strands of films, that make up the official selection, including Animated Shorts, Emerging Talent and Women in Film.
The films are selected by the Online Screening Committee, which has over 200 members, and they also pick the nominees for the six award categories, which are for best British, international, animated, documentary, student and East Anglian film.
A panel of industry experts choose the winners, which this year includes Rocketman director Dexter Fletcher and actress Kate Phillips (Wolf Hall, Peaky Blinders).
READ MORE: 9 of the best Christmas markets running in Norfolk
Kellen Playford, founder of Norwich Film Festival, said: “While this has been an incredibly difficult year for all of us working within the arts sector, we are considerably lucky to have the opportunity to develop an online version of the festival.
“The ability to embrace innovative technologies allows us to reach new audiences and give our filmmakers an even bigger platform to showcase their work.”
View the full digital programme at norwichfilmfestival.co.uk/programme and tickets go on sale on October 30 - ranging from £1 for an individual film to £10 for a UK full festival pass.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here