Meet 2 young London filmmakers competing at the city’s film festival

The young filmmakers hope to make their mark at this year’s Forest City Youth Film Festival (FCYFF), which begins in October.

Organizers say this is the most competitive selection process to date, with 75 entries submitted across seven categories that include narrative, experimental and the new ‘music video’ category.

CBC London caught up with two finalists from London who are hoping their storytelling will make an impact.

Mason Cline

Mason Cline, a grade 12 student at Sir Frederick Banting High School, is a finalist in the storytelling category for his short film The angel in the alley.

“He’s a homeless drug addict in central London and he’s wandering the streets and looking for something he needs. Once he finds what he needs things start. to get a little weird, ”Cline said.

The teenage filmmaker says his inspiration for the story came from his daily walks in central London.

“With downtown London there’s usually a pretty big drug problem. I wanted to make a film about it, but in a more joyful and less serious way.”

Cline says he knew he wanted to get into the movies after watching Wes Anderson Moonrise Kingdom in his early teens.

Jocelyne Deng

Jocelyn Deng, a Londoner currently studying at Carleton University, is a finalist in the experimental category for her 90-second film A field of acne beans.

Her film shows footage that she says highlights the negative associations people have with acne.

Deng says she has had acne since childhood and wants to change the way people think about her. She was inspired by her Asian culture to help her set up this project.

“It comes from a homophone in Mandarin, that is, the word button and the word bean sound the same, which I find very humorous. So it was a pun I heard. my mom say it all the time, ”Deng said.

“Honestly my movie is basically a bunch of anything that reminds me of acne, and I’m trying to point out the similarities between acne and beans, like how bumpy they both are and imply both dirt, water, and growth. “

Deng has loved the art of storytelling for as long as she can remember.

“Most of all, I love to tell stories, read and perceive stories. For example, when I was a kid, I watched the same movies over and over again, like 101 Dalmatians,” she said.

Where to look

FCYFF started in 2019 with the aim of educating and supporting high school students interested in cinema.

The festival takes place on October 21 at Wolf Performance Hall and can be streamed.