Next Wave: Independent Film Night

Be part of a live cinema event elevating independent filmmaking.

The third edition of Next Wave is here.

Next Wave is a live cinema event celebrating original storytelling and emerging filmmaking talent.

Join us for a special edition showcasing a selection of outstanding short films exploring memory, time and the ways cinema can illuminate a life. This edition brings together filmmakers working with archival footage, personal histories and fragments of the past, with the filmmakers behind the work in attendance for the screenings and post-show discussion.

At the heart of the programme is the evocative power of archive film. Each short film offers a different perspective on how these fragments can become intimate and atmospheric cinematic experiences capturing the passage of time.

Following the screening, stay for an audience Q&A with the filmmakers and gain insight into the craft of filmmaking, exploring how cinema can transform personal histories and archival material into meaningful stories.

The evening concludes with a relaxed networking event, offering the chance to connect with the aspiring creatives, industry professionals and fellow lovers of independent cinema.

Whether you're a regular cinema-goer, a filmmaker, or simply curious about the ways film can preserve and reinterpret the past, Next Wave offers an engaging, intimate and community-focused night at the movies.

2nd December Shorts Programme:

Talk To Me:

In 1985, Mark Craig bought an answering machine and began saving every message it recorded. Twenty years and thousands of messages later, Talk To Me transforms this extraordinary personal archive into a portrait of a life unfolding. Real answering-machine recordings are interwoven with music, photographs and ephemera, tracing a journey from long-haired graduate to grey-haired middle age through the voices and memories of the people who passed through his life.

The Daily Telegraph praised Talk to Me as a “brilliant collage”, commending its inventive use of photographs and recordings to create a compelling portrait of both the callers and the filmmaker, capturing the dramas and disconnects of everyday life.

Runtime: 23:00

Genre: Comedy

Director: Mark Craig (attending)

The Overlander & Romanian Memories:

The Overlander and Romanian Memories come together as a paired exploration of family history and the memory preserved through archival film.

Delving into her father’s travel diaries, slides and 8mm footage from the 1960s, The Overlander offers an intimate glimpse into an increasingly distant analogue world. Drawing on archival footage from Iran alongside her father’s recordings from his travels around the world, the film explores cultural memory, family history and identity through fragments of a life preserved on film.

Romanian Memories takes a similar journey into the past, blending fact and fiction with 16mm home footage from 1930s Romania to remember a family heritage at risk of disappearing.

Together, the films explore how photographs, home movies and personal archives can preserve fragments of lives and histories that might otherwise be lost, transforming intimate family records into atmospheric and deeply personal cinematic experiences.

The Overlander Runtime: 7:40 minutes

Romanian Memories Runtime: 6:40 minutes

Director: Olivia Neilson

Director Bios

Olivia Neilson is a short filmmaker who works at the BFI-funded educational film charity Into Film. Her work explores themes of cultural memory and the fragility of analogue images, which she weaves into poetic narratives. Her first docu-fiction short, Romanian Memories, used her great-grandfather’s footage from 1930s Romania to gently preserve identity and collective heritage. Her second film, The Overlander, similarly explores the preservation of cultural traditions through anecdotes, analogue film and archival footage.

Mark Craig was born and raised in Singapore and began his career as a motion graphics designer at the BBC and Channel 4 in London. He has since produced a wide range of television and film content, including a trilogy of British motor-racing biographies -Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill and Jim Clark- which received an RTS nomination and a FOCAL Award.

His short documentary Talk to Me won a Grierson Award and Best Short Documentary at the Boulder International Film Festival in 2006. His critically acclaimed feature The Last Man on the Moon was released theatrically in the US and UK, followed by Running for the Revolution, about Cuba’s greatest Olympic track athlete.

His latest film, Apollo 1, exploring a defining tragedy in human spaceflight, premiered at the Boulder International Film Festival in 2025. Mark is based in London and the North East of England and regularly guest lectures at the University of Roehampton.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3147562/

https://www.facebook.com/markcraig.stopwatchproductions/

Next Wave: Independent Film Night Be part of a live cinema event elevating independent filmmaking. The third edition of Next Wave is here.Next Wave is a live cinema event celebrating original storytelling and emerging filmmaking talent.Join us for a special edition showcasing a selection of outstanding short films exploring memory, time and the ways cinema can illuminate a life. This edition brings together filmmakers working with archival footage, personal histories and fragments of the past, with the filmmakers behind the work in attendance for the screenings and post-show discussion.At the heart of the programme is the evocative power of archive film. Each short film offers a different perspective on how these fragments can become intimate and atmospheric cinematic experiences capturing the passage of time.Following the screening, stay for an audience Q&A with the filmmakers and gain insight into the craft of filmmaking, exploring how cinema can transform personal histories and archival material into meaningful stories.The evening concludes with a relaxed networking event, offering the chance to connect with the aspiring creatives, industry professionals and fellow lovers of independent cinema.Whether you're a regular cinema-goer, a filmmaker, or simply curious about the ways film can preserve and reinterpret the past, Next Wave offers an engaging, intimate and community-focused night at the movies. 2nd December Shorts Programme:Talk To Me:In 1985, Mark Craig bought an answering machine and began saving every message it recorded. Twenty years and thousands of messages later, Talk To Me transforms this extraordinary personal archive into a portrait of a life unfolding. Real answering-machine recordings are interwoven with music, photographs and ephemera, tracing a journey from long-haired graduate to grey-haired middle age through the voices and memories of the people who passed through his life.The Daily Telegraph praised Talk to Me as a “brilliant collage”, commending its inventive use of photographs and recordings to create a compelling portrait of both the callers and the filmmaker, capturing the dramas and disconnects of everyday life.Runtime: 23:00Genre: ComedyDirector: Mark Craig (attending) The Overlander & Romanian Memories:The Overlander and Romanian Memories come together as a paired exploration of family history and the memory preserved through archival film. Delving into her father’s travel diaries, slides and 8mm footage from the 1960s, The Overlander offers an intimate glimpse into an increasingly distant analogue world. Drawing on archival footage from Iran alongside her father’s recordings from his travels around the world, the film explores cultural memory, family history and identity through fragments of a life preserved on film.Romanian Memories takes a similar journey into the past, blending fact and fiction with 16mm home footage from 1930s Romania to remember a family heritage at risk of disappearing.Together, the films explore how photographs, home movies and personal archives can preserve fragments of lives and histories that might otherwise be lost, transforming intimate family records into atmospheric and deeply personal cinematic experiences.The Overlander Runtime: 7:40 minutesRomanian Memories Runtime: 6:40 minutesDirector: Olivia Neilson Director BiosOlivia Neilson is a short filmmaker who works at the BFI-funded educational film charity Into Film. Her work explores themes of cultural memory and the fragility of analogue images, which she weaves into poetic narratives. Her first docu-fiction short, Romanian Memories, used her great-grandfather’s footage from 1930s Romania to gently preserve identity and collective heritage. Her second film, The Overlander, similarly explores the preservation of cultural traditions through anecdotes, analogue film and archival footage. Mark Craig was born and raised in Singapore and began his career as a motion graphics designer at the BBC and Channel 4 in London. He has since produced a wide range of television and film content, including a trilogy of British motor-racing biographies -Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill and Jim Clark- which received an RTS nomination and a FOCAL Award.His short documentary Talk to Me won a Grierson Award and Best Short Documentary at the Boulder International Film Festival in 2006. His critically acclaimed feature The Last Man on the Moon was released theatrically in the US and UK, followed by Running for the Revolution, about Cuba’s greatest Olympic track athlete.His latest film, Apollo 1, exploring a defining tragedy in human spaceflight, premiered at the Boulder International Film Festival in 2025. Mark is based in London and the North East of England and regularly guest lectures at the University of Roehampton.https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3147562/https://www.facebook.com/markcraig.stopwatchproductions/ 18 Cinema