Aesthetica Short Film Festival: ten of the best film screenings and events in York

A dynamic line-up of film screenings, masterclasses, panel discussions and networking opportunities will be taking place across York from today until Sunday night.

Transforming 15 of the city’s iconic locations through cinema, the festival invites audiences to "create their own unique viewing experience".

Here, Alexandra Beresford, from the Aesthetica team, highlights her Ten To See screenings and events at ASFF.

Fifth Anniversary Screening and Panel

Friday and Saturday, 6pm to 8pm, National Railway Museum; Sunday, 1.30pm to 3pm, Friargate Theatre; free with valid festival pass.

Celebrate ASFF’s fifth anniversary with this stimulating compendium of short film from previous years. Since its inception, the festival has championed independent filmmaking from around the world, and in 2015, ASFF proudly welcomes back a plethora of past winners from years one to four. This programme will be accompanied by a panel discussion.

Robbie Gibbon: Big Screen and Television Storytelling – The Craft and Technology of Film Editing

Saturday, Session 2, 12 noon to 1pm, York St John University, £8.50.

With credits that include Doctor Who, My Mad Fat Diary and The Reckoning and feature films such as The Trip To Italy and Wasteland, Robbie Gibbon has extensive experience in the art of editing, assistant editing and directing. He will look at the theory behind the practice and demonstrate pre and post-production processes.

Guest Country Screening: Cuba

See programme for screening times. Free entry with a festival pass.

Muestra Joven brings a collection of innovative and haunting works to ASFF, with five character studies of contemporary Cuba. An elderly English teacher and a retiree miner consider their modern livelihoods, while two young musicians tentatively meet as competitors. Casting an eye over themes of isolation and interpersonal relationship, these shorts are portraits of individuals seeking meaning.

La Despeidida, from Cuba

Creative England: iShorts

Saturday, 3pm to 5pm, Bootham School. Drinks reception at Barley Hall from 5.30pm. Free with valid festival pass.

iShorts is Creative England’s entry level short film initiative. Supporting filmmakers whose work has not yet attracted financial support from within the industry, iShorts helps a diverse group of talent to take their first professional steps. ASFF welcome back the iShorts team, along with a fresh party of filmmakers to discuss their work and screen a select collection of new film.

Meet the Filmmakers

Saturday, 8pm to 9.30pm, Yorkshire Museum, £7.

Get to know the creative talents at the heart of ASFF 2015 at the Yorkshire Museum on Saturday night. Sponsored by Creative England, this event invites filmmakers and guests to network with artists from the Official Selection. Meet the Filmmakers is your chance to expand your contacts list and liaise with industry professionals, fellow filmmakers and a vast array of creatives. This social event is the ideal place to network and is accompanied by music and a bar.

Awards Ceremony and After Party

Sunday, 7pm to 10pm, National Centre for Early Music, Walmgate, £8.50.

The NCEM plays host to the festival’s closing ceremony, offering an elevated and historic finish to ASFF’s four-day run. Best of Fest, category winners and the People’s Choice will all be announced and congratulated for their exemplary work in short film within the setting of NCEM’s renovated medieval interior. An ideal way to wrap up a memorable weekend; tickets will include a free drink on arrival. Book your tickets early.

Fashion Film Screening 1

Friday, 10.30am to 11.30am, National Railway Museum Stay on trend and explore how fashion film is establishing itself as a new genre; growing, developing and crossing filmic and stylistic boundaries. Returning for its second year at ASFF, fashion film takes the creations of today’s leading designers as a starting point for imaginative leaps into scenarios that draw freely from the surreal to the grittily urban, from the spy thriller to the art house. This screening features works by White Lodge for Ted Baker and for the Jane Bowler brand.

Videotheque

Explore York. Opening times, Friday, 10am to 5pm; Saturday, 10am to 4pm; Sunday, 11am to 3pm. Free access for YorkCard holders between 1pm and 2pm. Spaces are limited.

In partnership with Explore York, ASFF’s very first Videotheque will give festival-goers the opportunity to experience the entire programme in one location. Held within the recently refurbished Explore York, this new festival resource invites ASFF pass holders to delve into the Official Selection catalogue plus special line-ups. If you missed a film? See it at the Videotheque.

Trekanter Af Lykke, comedy screening at ASFF

Comedy Screening 4

Today, York St John University, 5pm to 6.30pm; Saturday, St Peter's School, 2pm to 3.30pm.

Whether smartly self-assured or intensely bizarre, comedy opens the floodgates to an irresistible stock of contemporary humour. Experience a sharper side to life with eddy wit and absurd performances in tales from around the world, which reveal many dialects of the universal language of humour. The screening begins with How I didn’t Become a Piano Player by Tommaso Pitta (National Film and Television School). Ted, aged nine, is the clumsiest boy in the world. Desperately searching for his vocation, he cannot find anything he is good at. Then his father comes home with an old monstrous piano.

Shooting People: Branded Content: Keeping the Creative in the Corporate

Saturday, 1.30pm to 2.30pm, York St John University, £8.50.

Presented by Shooting People, this panel discussion will demystify the world of branded content and provide an insight into how it can help you make a living in the corporate film industry, without sacrificing your creative goals. Panellists include filmmakers who have worked for brands such as the Guardian, The New York Times, Samsung, Microsoft and Dunlop, as well as the global video production manager for Lush.

For full booking details, contact asff.co.uk