The cast of The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
By David Mackie
From silver foxes to the silver screen, a Leeds film festival is to celebrate ageing.
The festival, set to take place on July 17 and 18, will feature a series of short films created by teams of over-60s.
The festival is entitled CINAGE and marks the culmination of the two-year Active Ageing project. It has been organised by the Northern Film School at Leeds Beckett University.
Project Leader for CINAGE in the UK, Jennifer Granville, said: “The CINAGE Conference and Film Festival for Active Ageing is a film festival that celebrates the richness of later life – either through the subject matter, the inclusion of older actors in significant roles or because the film has been made by an older filmmaker.”
It is hoped that the film festival for active ageing will become a regular event as a result, backing Leeds City’s Council’s bid to become ‘Best Elderly City in the World’.
The project has been spearheaded by the EU as part of their recommendations for healthy, active ageing and to see whether or not the needs and concerns of older people are reflected in contemporary cinema.
On Saturday July 18 from 10am-1pm at the Leeds Everyman Cinema, all 12 short films produced as part of the project will be screened.
From 2-5.30pm at the Carriage Works in Millennium Square, a selection of new international short films, which either address aspects of ageing, feature or were produced by seniors, will be shown.
From 7.30-10.30pm at the Hyde Park Cinema, the 2015 film Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, starring Judi Dench, Maggie Smith and Bill Nighy, will be screened, followed by a Q&A session with one of the cast members.
Tickets will be available to the general public for each event at http://bit.ly/cinagetickets
For more information about the films and the festival, please go to http://cinageproject.eu