A SHORT film festival which took place in York has attracted more than £200,000 worth of spending to the city.

The Aesthetica Short Film Festival turned the city into a series of cinemas, in venues including St William’s College and the Barley Hall, that screened over 200 international short films.

It also held masterclasses and guests screenings from industry figures and organisations such as BAFTA, Warp and Channel 4, from November 8 to 11.

An audience of more than 1,000 film lovers, filmmakers and members of the film industry flocked to the city to see screenings and an awards ceremony, which was held at the Yorkshire Museum.

The festival, which Cherie Federico, festival director and founder of York-based art and cultural magazine Aesthetica, started last year to celebrate independent filmmaking, expand choice and offer opportunities for engagement with industry professionals.

It recognised The Sugar Bowl, a Canadian documentary focusing on the rise and fall of the sugarcane industry in Negros, Philippines, as overall festival winner, and Hollow, a sensitive British drama about the nature of drug addiction as the People’s Choice.

Delegates travelled to the festival from Spain, Serbia and the USA, and the four-day festival is estimated to have brought in £205,517.55 to businesses across the city.

Visitors were estimated to have spent an average of £32.95 during the day and £80.36 for an overnight stay.

Sonja Crisp, cabinet member for leisure, culture and tourism at City of York Council, said: “I’m delighted 2012’s festival was so successful, and I hope next year’s brings as much inspiration, enrichment – and revenue– to the city.”

Stuart Page, head of programme for Media & Film Studies at York St John University, which was lead sponsor, said: “It’s fantastic that this international event is being held annually in York, and York St John University is proud to be part of it.”