The Yellow Monster was screened this weekend as part of the AMARE programme (Alternative Media and Renewable Energy) at the Big Green Gathering festival in Somerset. Appropriately enough, the cinema where the film was shown was run wholly on solar power - no nuclear-powered electricity at the BGG!

Details about the festival, and the AMARE field, can be found at http://www.big-green-gathering.com/index.php?pageid=9

Here's a sneaky preview of The Yellow Monster for anyone who's missed our screenings so far. Keep checking back for news of how our festival submissions are going...

Exciting news. The Yellow Monster will be screened THIS Saturday (30th June) at 12:00 pm as part of the UNCUT Independent Film Forum at the ICA in London. If you couldn't make it along to the screening in Balham or even if you could but fancy seeing it in plusher surroundings and on a bill with other emerging directors, do try and make it down.

http://www.ica.org.uk/UNCUT%20Independent%20Film%20Forum%20June+13693.twl

This is a great moment for Tenner Films and for me and hopefully will be the first of lots of other screenings as we take on the festival circuit. Thanks to everyone for your continuing support of the project and do tell all your friends!

An important milestone this. On Saturday we finally screened the first fruits of the nuclear project, a short documentary on uranium mining on the Navajo reservation. Around 35 people turned out to the launch of the Fiver Film Club in Balham to watch The Yellow Monster and the 1979 Hollywood movie, The China Syndrome. A good time was had by all (aided by some delicious homemade refreshments).

Initial responses to the film have been very positive and I've had some interest from some other parties re screening it elsewhere so will keep you posted...

In the meantime, please do consider donating your tenner if you haven't already!!

Hosted By: Vicki Lesley
When: 19 May 2007, 19:30
Where: Balham Baptist Church
21 Ramsden Road
London, LO SW128QX
United Kingdom
Description:
Vicki Lesley

Click Here To View Event

Things have quietened down somewhat on the fundraising front recently as I've been spending most of my time getting the Navajo short finished but thanks to the following people who've all donated to the project.

Lucy Hurn
George & Diana Short
Nellie Guttmann
Richard Martin
Alex King

Special thanks to George & Diana Short who have been my most generous benefactors to date donating a fantastic £1000 to the project - thank you very very much!!

Realised it's been quite a while since I last updated here but there's very good reason. In February I went out to the Navajo reservation in New Mexico/Arizona to do some filming with Navajos living in the midst of one of the biggest uranium mining sites in the world. Mining ceased there in the 1980s but with the current stock market boom in uranium, there is renewed interest from mining companes who want to restart mining on Navajo land.

The trip was very successful, we met some incredible people including an 89 year old former miner and his family, and got some great footage. I'm now working on editing it all together and hope to produce a short stand-alone piece specifically on the Navajo situation as well as feeding this material into the main film in due course.

And of course, fundraising continues apace as ever. Will update the Tenner list again soon.

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Before me peaceful. Behind me peaceful. Under me peaceful. Over me peaceful. Around me peaceful. - Navajo Blessing

They're still coming in - here are the latest additions to the Tenner list.

Martin Rochford

Nancy Hirst

Andrew Ensor

Mary Mollison

Torla Evans

Danni Davis

Philippa Bradnock

Saskia O'Sullivan

Kirstin Hill

And big apologies to Steve Huxton who I realised I missed off the original list, especially unforgivable since Steve made an exceptionally generous donation... Sorry Steve!

 

Here's the latest list of people who've contributed to the Tenner Films project this month - thanks to all of you!

Christopher Hird

Shona Thompson

Anna Woodcraft

James Follett

Barnaby Lankester Owen

Kate Carter

Catherine Chew

Sean Ingle

Tracy Worcester

Lisle Turner

Maxine Williams

Martin Rochford

Rosalind Wells

Tony Stattersfield

 

For those who are interested in keeping abreast of the minutiae of my funding applications, you'll no doubt be pleased to learn that this week I found out that my application for fiscal sponsorship from the International Documentary Association in New York has been successful - hurrah!

Without going into all the tortuous details regarding 501 (c) tax status and the like, what this basically means is that I can now apply to many many more fine funding bodies in America who require applicants to be tax exempt in the US. Which is good news indeed.

Even more excitingly, Tenner Films has also had its first genuine funding  success with a grant approved by the Andrew Wainwright Reform Trust in Leeds - it's a relatively small grant but it represents a significant step forward in the life of the project.

In the meantime, do keep on clicking cos we need all those tenners to keep rolling in...