Lockdown films screened by Women of Words

Two films by Hull-based spoken-word collective Women of Words will be screened online on Wednesday.

Lost and Found is a new short film featuring Cassandra Parkin, Louise Beech, Lynda Harrison and Michelle Dee, and was made on location at Little Wold Plantation in the East Riding.

It is a reaction to the isolating effects of the restrictions to movement and social gathering felt by the collective during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Taking a pre-arranged creative writing prompt the four writers reimagine what is possible within the six-minute free-write framework, then share their responses with each other. “A prompt is only a starting point, it should never be a barrier”, Cassandra said.

Lost and Found, being screened for the first time on Wednesday, was funded through the Grants to Arts initiative via City Arts at Hull City Council, and was shot by Mollusc Films.

The collective is inviting other writers to respond to the theme and share their words online using the hashtag #lostandfound2020.

The second film, Streets Apart, features nine spoken word pieces written and performed by the same four Women of Words writers.

Working remotely with visual artist Anna Bean, the collective have created a series of performances inspired by their experiences of lockdown. Edited by Anna and with original music by Ben Parkin, each performer appears within a frame designed by the artist to reflect character and content.

Streets Apart was created during the first lockdown and was previously screened as part of She Fest Digital 2020.

To watch the films, register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/lost-foundstreets-apart-double-bill-tickets-129720699103.