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York St John University partners with the UK’s most dynamic screen event

Published: 29 October 2024

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Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2024 poster

The Aesthetica Short Film Festival, one of the UK’s most renowned film festivals, is set to return to the historic city of York from Wednesday 6 to Sunday 10 November 2024.  

York St John University has been a partner and sponsor of the event since its inception in 2011. Now in its 14th year, the BAFTA-qualifying festival is a beacon of creativity, bringing together filmmakers, industry leaders and audiences from around the world.

Screenings and events take place across 15 unique venues, including the York St John campus, as the city transforms into a global stage for screen culture, attracting thousands of attendees and participants from over 60 countries. 
 
The festival will present an expansive programme, including more than 300 films across 12 genres. Attendees can explore everything from animation and comedy to drama, features, and more. In addition to the diverse film offerings, this year’s programme will also showcase cutting-edge technologies with Virtual Reality (VR) and Gaming Labs, providing immersive experiences for both the curious and the tech-savvy.  

Throughout the festival, audiences will have the opportunity to learn from top professionals in the screen industries. Guests from renowned organisations such as The New York Times, Tribeca Film Festival, Aardman, BBC Film and Ridley Scott Associates will share their expertise in over 60 panels, workshops, and discussions. Aspiring filmmakers and creatives can also engage in practical workshops, including sessions on stop-motion animation, filmmaking, and games development for children. 

A large number of events will take place on the University campus, highlights being:

  • video game giants Ubisoft  explaining the considerations and storytelling adaptations they made when creating Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR  
  • the screening of the feature length Hamlet Within, a modern-day interpretation of the Shakespearean tragedy, staring Ian McKellan
  • Abubakar Salim, actor and voice talent from Raised by Wolves and Assassin’s Creed: Origins, who will offer a deep dive into character development and voice acting
  • a ‘Scriptwriting in Focus: How to Engage Your Audience’ panel discussion hosted by Madison Egan, film programmer with the Tribeca Film Festival 
  • ‘Adapting a Short Film: Directors in Conversation’, with filmmakers Ng Choon Ping and Sam H. Freeman, on collaborating as co-writers and co-directors, and the transition from short film to feature film 
  • a weekend of children’s workshops focused on filmmaking, game development and stop-motion animation. 

Dr Jack Denham, Associate Professor of Social Sciences at York St John University – and one of Aesthetica’s games programmers – helps oversee the festival’s Games Lab, now in its second year, which has grown in size and moved to a larger venue (the Hospitium, Museum Gardens). 
 
“With the collaboration of the investigate.games research group at York St John University, Games Lab 2024 will showcase more games across more platforms, in our continued mission to promote social justice in gaming,” said Jack.  
 
“Games Lab is an opportunity to endorse games creators who produce socially important and responsible games – ones which prompt introspection, reflection on our place in the world, or offer new ways of seeing. We are excited to continue the mission of broadening arts and culture in this UNESCO Media Arts City with our partners at Aesthetica.” 
 
Cherie Federico, Director of the Aesthetica Short Film Festival, and a York St John alumna, said: 
 
“I'm incredibly excited to open the 14th edition of the BAFTA-qualifying Aesthetica Film Festival in York, a city rich in history and culture. It is a celebration of film, new technologies, art and creativity, operating on both national and international levels.  
 
“Aesthetica is an inclusive experience that invites everyone to participate, reinforcing York's standing as a global hub for culture and media arts." 
 
For more details and to access the full festival programme please visit the festival’s website.   

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