The world of the documentary film is a complete unknown to me, but Anny Tubbs, the film director and founder of First Move Productions, clearly enjoys updating me on the recognition our short film ‘Who Speaks for the Butterflies?’ is getting across various film festivals.
I was with Anny and her team when we filmed in May 2022 (pictured here after the wrap, Anny second from left), but Anny then had to edit and finalise the film. I had no idea until I became involved in this film just how many processes and people are involved after the actual filming and how much work and attention to detail goes into such things. She then submitted the end result to a few festivals with a focus on environmental issues.
The story is quite nuanced and relates to a small scale initiative, so we weren’t sure how it would be received. It was a nice surprise to kick off 2023 with news of a “Best Green & Environment Award” from the Berlin Indie Film Festival. It recently received an Honorable Mention from the International Migration and Environmental Film Festival which is run from Toronto.
This also means the film, which continues to be selected by festivals (seven so far), has already been screened in various parts of Europe and North America. Next stops include Brno in the Czech Republic for the 49th edition of the EKOfilm festival, and, closer to home, the Depot Cinema in Lewes for the Women Over Fifty Film Festival (on 23 September). See https://wofff.co.uk