Disability Arts Online

Colin Hambrook caught two screenings at the jam-packed Oska Bright Film Festival this year. He talks about some of his favorites

It is great to see that Oska Bright is continuing to have an impact during these times of austerity, when cut-backs are making it harder for learning disabled people to get out and about. Oska Bright is an international brand, recognised for the quality of the films and their often refreshing approach to film-making. It is amazing what can be produced on little or no budget. Oska Bright demonstrates the resourcefulness of learning disabled film-makers in knowing what makes a good story, and how to best improvise in telling it in the best way possible.

The key to their success has been twofold. Firstly you see the kinds of film you wouldn't find in mainstream film-making. Secondly, 'Oska Bright On the Road' have developed a democratic approach that has inspired learning disabled film-makers around the world through their film-making workshops. They have hit on a model which has made having your film shown at an Oska Bright event, a sought after and prestigious thing to do. This year the presence of screenings of films from Canada and Australia was a testament to how respected Oska Bright's work is, at a global level.

One of my favorites at this years' 'Films from Everywhere' screenings was Arty Party's 'Let me In'. A surreal story of what can happen when someone comes to your door, the film had some memorable moments such as when an unwelcome policeman interrupts a woman busy ironing a stack of clothes in her living room. There is a lovely touch when he ends up being part of the ironing and gets folded up and laid out on the pile, ready to be put away.

Individuals relationship with authority is a theme which runs through Oska Bright films. This year there were two dramas that stood out as everyday stories of the kind of discrimination that learning disabled people face. Both 'Best Interest' by JUMPcuts and 'Swimming Pool' by Mind the Gap were about how lack of understanding leads to intolerance. I especially liked 'Best Interest' - a cleverly edited film about a learning disabled couple who are kept apart by their families and the authorities who run the services they attend. The story of love blossoming in the face of unreasoning opposition was deftly told and superbly acted, with some touching moments of rebellion.