Shetland’s HomeMade Festival Celebrates Young Filmmakers’ Creativity

Shetland’s annual film festival, HomeMade, showcased the creative talents of young filmmakers on Saturday, featuring an impressive total of 33 short films, each lasting four minutes or less. This year marked the festival’s 17th iteration, held at Mareel, which is Shetland’s largest screen. The event continues to grow, celebrating innovative storytelling through various mediums, including claymation and stop-motion animation.

In a vibrant atmosphere, festival organizers Cara McDiarmid, Logan Nicolson, and Kathy Hubbard kicked off the festivities by sharing their excitement about the event’s expansion and the high caliber of submissions. The audience voted for their favorite films, while the charity Shetland ForWirds recognized those that effectively incorporated the Shetland dialect.

A new judges’ award was introduced this year, selected by Robert Thomson. He humorously recounted his initial reluctance to judge but acknowledged Hubbard’s persuasive efforts. Thomson faced a challenging task in determining the winners, ultimately awarding two runners-up. The claymation film, Rocky and Flooer, created by young filmmaker Tove Matthew, earned praise for its creativity, drawing comparisons to the works of Aardman’s Nick Park. Another runner-up was Christie Lewis Tulloch‘s engaging stop-motion film featuring Lego zombies, which had the audience laughing at the unconventional zombie apocalypse cure involving cups of tea and Jaffa Cakes.

The top prize in the judges’ category went to Josiah Naquin for his film, A Matter of Faith, inspired by Christian themes. Interestingly, the audience learned that Naquin was unable to attend the festival as he had just commenced film school in Los Angeles.

The Shetland ForWirds categories also saw notable entries. Tulloch’s film about Lego zombies won the under-18s award, while Stuart Hannay received recognition in the adult section for his film, which creatively intertwined the work of poet Seamus Heaney with a narrative about Elvis and the birds. The top award in this category was awarded to the Islesburgh Photographic Club for their film, Da Boat Biggir’s Nefjoo, a black-and-white adaptation of a poem by Robert Alan Jamieson.

In a display of strong community engagement, the audience also voted on their favorites. Tulloch returned to the stage to accept the audience prize for her film, Zombies – A Lego Stop-Motion, further solidifying her status as a rising talent in the Shetland film community.

HomeMade continues to be a platform for young filmmakers to express their creativity and connect with audiences, demonstrating the vibrant artistic spirit present in Shetland. As the festival grows, it remains committed to fostering emerging talents and showcasing the unique stories that resonate within the community.