Sundance London 2021: In Conversation With UK Filmmakers
Julia Pott, Akinola Davies Jr., and Ellen Evans
Here, we speak with three breakout short filmmakers about the creative process, what drives them to the short film format, and developing a distinctive, artistic voice.
These British filmmakers were selected for their work at Sundance Film Festival.
AKINOLA DAVIES
Jr Akinola Davies Jr. is the filmmaker behind the short film LIZARD, which won him the Short Film Grand Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival 2020. Davies Jr became the first Nigerian filmmaker to achieve this distinction.
Akinola Davies Jr. is a UK-Nigerian filmmaker known for his exploration of race and gender in the context of colonial and imperial tradition. He ultimately aims to create art that advocates a return to indigenous narrative, with a focus on Nigeria and Nollywood.
Akinola is also a radio host, DJ, and nightclub co-founder who has collaborated with French luxury brand Kenzo, Berlinale Talents and opened his first solo show at Art Basel in Switzerland. He is also a prolific music video director, shooting visuals for Larry B and Mischa Mafia.
JULIA POTT
Julia Pott’s animated short, SUMMER CAMP ISLAND, earned its fame at Sundance Film Festival in 2016.
Julia Pott is a British animator and illustrator based out of Los Angeles.
She graduated with an MA in animation from the Royal College of Art in 2011. Her animations have screened at festivals worldwide, including the Sundance Film Festival, SXSW, Clermont Ferrand, and Annecy International Animation Film Festival.
Julia has also enjoyed a considerable amount of commercial success with clients such as Hermes, Toyota, Sainsbury’s, Channel 4, MTV, and musical artist Bat for Lashes, Etsy, indie band The Decemberists, plus many more.
She was named one of the “25 New Faces of Film” by Filmmaker magazine, one of Variety’s Top Ten Animators to Watch in 2017, one of Indiewire’s 37 Indie Films
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ELLEN EVANS
Ellen Evans is a London-based, award-winning filmmaker whose documentary short film LIFE IN MINIATURE screened at Sundance Film Festival 2018. Her recent short MOTHERLAND will be screening at this year’s Sundance London.Her work has been featured at international festivals including Sundance, AFI, Docs, SXSW, and on public broadcast channels PBS and the BBC. Evans received the Grand Jury Prize for Best Short Short at the Aspen ShortsFest and the IMDB New Filmmaker Award – Film Bath.
She was chosen as Film Roundhouse’s 2017 “Emerging Filmmaker” and was also selected for the Indie Training Fund’s “Rising Directors” scheme in 2018.
Her latest work was a documentary film forTHE UNCERTAIN KINGDOM, a ground-breaking anthology of twenty short films by twenty filmmakers, which together offer an alternative snapshot of the UK in the year 2020.
We’d like to thank Sundance London, XRM Media, and Picturehouse for the chance to speak to these breakout filmmakers. We could not be more excited to see what’s next for them.
GET YOUR TICKETS FOR SUNDANCE 2021 (JULY 29 – AUGUST 1). VIP and Festival Passes, and tickets for the 2021 London event are available via picturehouses.com/sundance.
