DETAILS have been announced of the line-up for the 11th annual Saltburn Film Festival Documentary Special.

The event, funded by the Northern Film Hub, will take place at Saltburn Community Theatre on Albion Terrace, from Thursday, March 10 to Sunday, March 13.

“It is with great pleasure we are able to reinstate the Annual Saltburn Film Festival,” said SC&AA Arts Development Officer, Wilma Gardiner-Gill. “We have a great line up this year, with something for everyone’s taste.”

At 7pm on Thursday, the festival will open with Woof! A celebration of dogs in Silent Films, in collaboration with Yorkshire Silent Film Festival, with musical accompaniment by Jonny Best.

Friday, March 11 will celebrate the work of this year’s guest, international contemporary film maker Jeanie Finlay. Originally from Stockton, she is mainly known for bringing overlooked and unknown stories to wider audiences and spent 2019 in Ireland filming The Last Watch, the HBO documentary about making of the final series of Game of Thrones.

Friday presents three of her films. At 2pm, Sound it Out features the last independent record store at the time in Stockton along with its owner, her schoolfriend Tom Butchart. At 4pm, Goth Cruise, the most downloaded film on the Independent Film Channel, documents the Fourth Annual Goth Cruise around Bermuda. Finally at 7pm, there will be Seahorse, which is British Independent Film Association nominated, about a transgender man pregnant with his own child. This will be followed by a Q&A with Ms Findlay.

Saltburn Community Theatre

Saltburn Community Theatre

Saturday, March 12, at 7.30pm will be the Mark Thomas Project Cinema Tour, when the award winning comedian and political activist will appear with a mystery guest.

The final screening is on Sunday, March 13 at 2pm with Where the Stone Dropped, about the history and development of South Gare. This will be followed by a Q&A with filmmakers Ian Paine and Graham Williamson.

Saltburn held its first film festival in 2007. The idea of Mrs Gardiner-Gill, and with the committed support of the Saltburn Film Society, it was opened by the late great Barry Norman and became an annual tradition through to 2016.

“There have been some amazing times and some wonderful guests,” said Mrs Gardiner-Gill. “Mark Herman, who wrote and directed the film The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, was a stand-out guest. He chose to come to Saltburn rather than the Cannes Film Festival.”

She added: “This festival has been a joy to curate and we hope audiences will be delighted at the range of genres on offer,”

Maureen Shevis, a longstanding SC&AA supporter, especially within film, said: “It was a privilege to work with Wilma. She has a very good knowledge of films, excellent organisational skills, and being ex-BBC was very well used to dealing with celebrities.”

See www.saltburn arts.co.uk or call 01287 624997 for details.