David Saitch scoops the cup

By Mike Thatcher

Here’s a tip for you: if you want to travel incognito do not carry a huge silver cup around with you. This is what David Saitch learned after being awarded the prestigious Roebuck Cup at the Film Society of the Year Awards at Sheffield last month. ‘Go on my son, champion’ shouted one taxi driver out of his window. Others honked their horns. Conversations were struck on up the train home and even on a London escalator at the sight of this huge trophy.

The evening before, we were in our seats at the Sheffield Showrooms having been awarded a distinction for marketing earlier in the ceremony. I was very pleased and David looked pleased, although underneath I could tell he was chuntering about what more he had to do to win the darn thing.

“The Roebuck Cup is awarded to those remarkable individuals…” continued Deborah Parker, the chief exec of Cinema for All. My mind was wandering and David was texting Manon, asking what more he had to win the darn marketing award. “…names have been engraved upon the Roebuck Cup since 1979 - men and women who have given that extra something to the film society sector…”

At least we get our photo taken with Danny Leigh and Derek Malcolm for our marketing award, I thought. 

It then occurred to me that I was wearing the same dark top I had been at the last two awards. Oh well, no one will notice.

“…known to many for his attendance at this event, year after year, his continual support of groups all over the country…” Well, it’s a man this year, I mused. “… he has been running his own group for many years, bringing great cinema to his community in West Sussex”.

In true sitcom fashion David and I exchanged a glance.

“…several years ago he set up the UK Film Societies Facebook page to bring you all together…”.

“Oh flip”, said David, (I may have misheard), as he realised he would have to go on stage and say something. The tributes continued as he gathered his thoughts: Katie Brandwood of Stanley’s Film Club said: “We are indebted to David for enabling us to get back on our feet after losing access to our equipment, along with our long-term venue. In response to a plea for help on the UK Film Societies group in May, David arranged for the spare projector at his own film society, the Hurst Village Cinema, to be given to us on extended loan, going out of his way to handover the projector in a matter of hours.”

David strode to the stage and modestly accepted the award. “All I did was create a Facebook page, it took 20 minutes.”

[Full story in December 2017 Hurst Life magazine]

Hurst Village Cinema

By Mike Thatcher (Hurst Village Cinema)

At last, a new season upon us and with projector wiped and speakers tuned we present three very different films for October:

Wednesday 11th October 2017 8pm Lady Macbeth

We open with Lady Macbeth, based on a Russian novella, not Shakespeare. Katherine is trapped in an arranged marriage in the North East at the turn of the last century, essentially kept prisoner by her vile father-in-law and dysfunctional son. Bored beyond belief she takes action, but flaunting convention cannot go unpunished. This dark and powerful psychological drama is both riveting and chilling and boasts a standout performance from Florence Pugh.

Friday 27th October 2017 8pm Free Fire

A rare combination in a film; a gripping thriller which is also very funny. It’s the early 70s and a group of IRA operatives meet a South African gunrunner in a Boston warehouse planning to take a cache of M16 rifles back to Ireland. The deal goes spectacularly wrong, and Brighton filmmaker Ben Wheatley treats us to one of the most epic shootouts in recent memory. Everyone has a gun but no one is in control. The story of double-crossing is as old as the hills but Free Fire tells it in a refreshing new way whilst parodying the insanity of gun violence. A good old fashioned hoot!

Sunday 29th October 2017 8pm Hidden Figures

Three unsung heroes of the 1960s space race are given their moment in the sun here. Their story is particularly inspiring because they were African American women who, as well as calculating the angles of re-entry, had to jump through hoops at NASA when racial segregation was still a fact of life. Every day, Math’s whizz Katherine G Johnson must cross the grounds at Langley Research centre to use the ‘colored ladies room’, in a literal running gag, although it not inherently a laughing matter. This film presses all the right buttons for a blast of enlightening, upbeat entertainment.

Hurst Village Cinema

By David Saitch

Hello from the Hurstpierpoint Village Cinema. We have three extraordinary and radically different films and a fantastic Live Broadcast coming up in March.

Thursday 9th March – NT Live Hedda Gabler
Ruth Wilson stars in this stunning adaptation of Ibsen’s masterpiece, directed by Ivo van Hove. Her performance has received rapturous reviews and the productions stark simplicity has been called ‘Dark, bold and devastating’. Not to be missed, an absolutely spellbinding triumph.

Thursday 16th March – Things to Come (12A)
Isabelle Huppert is simply incredible as a philosophy teacher who finds herself having to soldier on as she loses her job, her mother and her husband leaves her over a short period of time. A poignant, wonderfully funny and elegantly crafted meditation on coping with the surprises that life can spring on you. Filmmaker Mia Hansen-Løve just keeps getting better and better and Things to Come marks her out as one of the most talented and exciting directors working today. French with English Subtitles.

Sunday 19th March – I, Daniel Blake (15)
Winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes and Best British Film at the Baftas, the Evening Standard Film Awards and Best Film at the European Film Awards, as well as a host of awards for the director and cast, this searingly angry but also very funny and humane polemical film is one everyone should see. This is a charity event and all proceeds from ticket sales will go to the local food bank - a fantastically worthy local charity.

Friday 24th March – Tale of Tales (15)
Matteo Garrone’s Tale of Tales is fabulous in every sense; a stunningly beautiful but freaky portmanteau film. It is gloriously mad, rigorously imagined, visually wonderful, hilarious and internally consistent. It immerses you in a complete created world. It is a masterpiece of blackcomic bad taste and a positive carnival of transgression. The secret is the deadpan seriousness with which everything is treated. Tale of Tales is a treat, and Toby Jones is utterly superb as a conceited, melancholy, ridiculous king. It has fantastic performances from Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel and John C. Reilly.

Tickets from Mishon Mackay or www.hurstfilms.com