MEMBERS of a Wokingham movie club, were delighted to hear that an Oscar winning director would be dialling in to take part in a live Q&A session this week, at the group’s screening of his latest animated film, The Peasants.
Now excitement levels have risen to new levels, because film-maker Hugh Welchman has agreed to attend the event in person.
The Bracknell director won an Oscar in 2008 for his animated short, Peter and the Wolf, and was nominated in 2018 for his hand-painted animated feature, Loving Vincent, screened by Wokingham Film Society that same year.
His latest film, also from the Loving Vincent team, is The Peasants, an adaptation of a Pulitzer prize-winning novel about a young woman whose determination to forge her own path puts her on a collision course with her rural community.
Wokingham Film Society member, Stephen Graves, said: “It’s fantastic news that he’s actually going to come along – we only found out today.”
To make the film, joint directors Hugh Welchman and his wife DK Welchman shot reference scenes with real actors.
In a Kyiv painting studio the film footage was then painted over in oils, frame by frame, by artists from Poland, Serbia, Lithuania and Ukraine.
The project overcame major hurdles, including the pandemic, war in Ukraine, and electricity failures that left the artists working by candle light for hours while they waited for the power source to return.
But Hugh Welchman will no doubt reveal more when he answers questions following the Wokingham screening this week.
Wokingham Film Society chair Rob Atkins, said: “We love to celebrate firsts here at the film society, and to have our first Oscar winning director attending is a real coup.”
The Peasants can be seen at The Whitty Theatre, Luckley Road, on Thursday, September 5.
Doors open from 6:45pm with drinks available in the foyer or patio.
The film begins at 7.30pm, with questions immediately afterwards.
Tickets cost £6.50 for non members, or £4 for members.
For tickets and information, visit: www.wokinghamfilmsociety.com
