Newsletter
Details of the club can be obtained from Angela Angus telephone 01793 813028 or email secretary@www.devizesvideoclub.org.uk
On the 23rd July members of the Devizes Video Club visited the home of Mike and Lorraine Hollister.
This has now become an annual event and a pleasant evening was spent with them in their lovely home and garden. The club has a new project in hand but the real work will be spent on it during the Autumn and Winter months. After an especially warm and dry Summer, attendance at the club has been sporadic but only to be expected at holiday time. Nevertheless the club has been fulfilling a weekly programme thanks to our Chairman David Angus and our Vice-Chairman Kenneth May, not forgetting our President John Sykes
who is unfailingly on hand with the technical requirements.
We had an evening viewing IAC ( Institute of Amateur Cinematography) films and although amateur they were of an exceedingly high standard.
The films were entered from all over Europe and provided an entertaining evening with something for everyone.
An evening was spent in discussing a film to be entered into the Chippenham Theme Competition for October and the following evening was
spent viewing member's holiday films.
Details of the club can be obtained from our secretary Angela Angus tel.no.01793813028
The club has been busy compiling the summer programme. We have had an evening of special memories,and member's videos. On the 4th June the club hosted the annual Tri-Battle competition between Frome, Devizes and Chippenham. Six films were entered, two for each club comprising individual entries and club project entries. Frome Video Club won the competition with their film of the Tour of Britain Cycle race. The individual entry was won by John Rixon of the Devizes Club for his film Home Guard. John's film was comprised of animated drawings,archive film material and featured the Barford Home Guard all put together in his own inimitable style.
The following week, members took their cameras and went on a canal walk in Devizes. The annual barbecue was held on the 25th June at Gate Farm. Our hosts Madge and Andrew Bell made sure that we had a wonderful evening,and the weather for once was warm and sunny. Andrew took the members for a ride on the hay wagon up to the edge of Cherhill downs. This has become a regular feature of our evenings at Gate Farm.
On the 2nd July we had an evening with Luke Burchell. Luke has for years researched UFO,s and he presented his subject with video clips and interesting observation, and afterwards answered questions from his audience.
On a sad note the death has occurred of Mrs Betty Francis. Betty was the widow of Peter Francis the founder member of our video club which was known in the early years as The Devizes and District Cine and Video Club. Betty was born in 1916 and died on the 19th June. She always attended our annual dinners until ill health intervened, and our sympathy in extended to her family.
Next Friday, the 9th July the evening will be devoted to our late and lamented member Eric Powell. ''Remembering Eric' will be used to view his archive film and will be presented by John Sykes.
Details of the club can be obtained from Angela Angus tel.no. 01793 813028.
The members of Frome Video Club and winners of the 2010 annual quiz held in Devizes. From left to right, Ed Brooks, Ernie Mckenna and Frank Clegg being presented with the winners trophy by quizmaster Paul Moran.
On the 26th March Devizes Video Club held the annual inter-club quiz presided over by Paul Moran. There were only three teams competing this year, Devizes, Frome and West Wilts. The winners of a very tight contest was Frome who carried away the honours and a bottle of wine for each member of the team.
On the 16th April the club held its annual dinner which took place in Devizes, at the Black Swan arranged by Jim Moger.
On the 23d April John Sykes presented an evening on High Definition. He was assisted by Peter Stedman of Chippenham Movie Club. John bought along his HD Camera and large projection screen and proceeded to demonstrate the astonishing clarity and depth of field of film he had shot around Bath and Chippenham. He also showed a film made of a flight he took in a hot air balloon on the occasion of his 70th birthday. It was an entertaining evening. Although John's first love is cine film, he has kept up with all the advanced technology and has a wealth of knowledge about modern cinema and film making.
The club has also been busy filming from a script by the late Eric Powell. It is now being edited by Paul Moran and will be shown very soon.
On a sad note the death of one of our committed members has been announced. Mr Ron Smith of Devizes. He had been a member of the club for many years but had not been able to attend recently through ill health. He was an affable and courteous man and our sympathy is extended to his family.
The Annual General Meeting will be held next Friday the 30th April at 7.30pm.
Details of the club can be obtained from Angela Angus tel no.01793-813028
In February the Devizes Video Club spent two weeks on a club project from an idea of Paul Moran. All club members were involved in a spoof meeting of film producers,crew,actors and staff engaged in a new production of Gone with the Wind 2 which had hit severe financial strain.Everyone took part and the atmosphere became extremely agitated as the meeting wore on. Paul Moran and John Sykes filmed the proceedings and an edited version of the evening will be shown in the near future.
The following evening was one for films and discussion and on the 26 February John Sykes showed the rest of the IAC films. Mr Peter Stedman from Chippenham Movie Club hosted an evening and presented some of his earlier work as a still photographer. On the 12th March Paul Moran will be presenting Past Glories, a continuation of a previous evening when the films of the early years of the club were shown.
On a sad not, I have to report the death of Mr Eric Powell. Eric died on 20th February. Although he had been ill, he had returned to the club and was thought to be on the road to recovery. It was a shock to everyone. Eric had been a valued member of the club for a very long time. His great love was film and he had brought many of his own films for us to enjoy. He also edited versions of classic films that he had loved in his youth. Eric was interested in everything we did at the club and had given us many ideas and scripts for films. The club is at this moment preparing to shoot a film from a script that he had provided, written in his fine hand with notes of camera positions etc. He will be sadly missed by everyone for his quiet humour and his never failing helpfulness .
Details of the club can be obtained from Angela Angus tel no 01793-813028
After a break of nearly a month, due to Christmas holidays and bad weather, the club eventually met on the 22 January for holiday videos. We saw a film brought in by Carol and Eddie Meyer of their holiday in India. It featured the island of Kerula and was a fascinating view of the island people's way of life and their music and dance. John Rixon showed us a film of the repair of the statue of Queen Victoria who had lost her head. John put the film together in his own humourously inimitable way. After the break clips from various sources were shown and arrangements made for the following week which was the Four of Clubs Competition. There was a good attendance for the night of the competition which comprises four clubs competing for the trophy shield. One film from each of the clubs concerned, Mid Wilts Film Club, Devizes Video Club, Chippenham Movie Club and Frome Film Club. The winner of the competition was Devizes, with "Deja Vu". The story of a tramp who has a nightmare of the first world war after buying a pair of old boots in a charity shop. The film starred John Rixon as the tramp and post production was by Ken May, Clive George and David Angus. The four films shown were of very different form and subject but the judges gave their final verdict to Devizes.The next meeting will be on the 5th February and will be a club project to be held at the Crown Centre with Paul Moran in charge of proceedings.
The winners of the Four of Clubs competition. The competition between Devizes,Chippenham,Frome and Mid Wilts was won by Devizes with their film "The Tramp". Reading from left to right are Pheobe Jeary{Judge} John Rixon {Leading role} Bob Riches{Judge] and David Angus, Chairman of Devizes Video Club
Details of the club can be obtained from Bernice May tel.no.01249813440
In October the Devizes Video Club welcomed Mr Chris Wannell from Wootton Bassett who for many years a councillor and former mayor of the town, has been involved in the repatriation of soldiers to Lyneham airbase. He gave us an interesting insight into how the people of Wootton Bassett became involuntarily caught up with the funeral cortege that regularly passed through their town on the way to Oxford. He described what has happened since the early days when the townsfolk stopped their daily tasks to stand in silent respect for the fallen heroes.
In November Paul Moran gave us an evening of "Past Glories". Paul had made an inventory of all film and videos made by the club from their earliest days. It was fascinating to see how the new technology has transformed our films.
In December the club welcomed Mr Colin Henderson who has been a guest previously. Colin works for the Badminton estate and was most helpful to the club when they filmed the Four-in-Hand Carriage Drive held by the Duke of Beaufort in the summer. For this visit he talked about his work with television and film companies for whom he supplied horses and carriages. The productions included Pride and Prejudice and Far From the Madding Crowd and many others. He was a most entertaining and amusing raconteur.
The following week John Sykes presented an evening of Cine film which was very well received by a large audience of fans.
On the 18th December the club will be holding its annual Christmas Dinner and will not be meeting again until the 8th January 2010 when there will be a New Year party at the Crown Centre.
Details of the club can be obtained from Bernice May tel.no.01249813440
The Devizes Video Club is now settling into the Winter programme. In September we had a busy time with members filming various projects on location in Devizes. On the the 25th Mr Julian Baldwin came down from Bristol where he does a lot of work in conjunction with the Bristol Film Society. Working with the BBC for many years he has a wealth of experience with sound. He gave us an excellent presentation and all his information will be an aid to the club when making films, documentaries or interviewing.
We also had an evening viewing IAC films and will be reviewing some more later in the year.
On the 1st October the Crown Centre held an open evening to raise funds, as most of the work there is voluntary. It was a successful evening. Cheese and wine was provided and the Devizes Video Club showed some of our films which were viewed with great appreciation.
Last Friday we had a brain-storming evening and have come up with ideas for new film projects on which work will be starting right away.
Details of the club can be obtained from Bernice May tel.no. 01249-813440
This film will be our latest film project in production at the present time and has yet to be named, but provisionally called "The Tramp"
In July the Devizes Video Club had a very pleasant evening at home with Michael and Lorraine Hollister. The weather was not good but we were still able to enjoy their lovely garden. Lorraine and Mike had laid on a buffet and drinks for everyone and it was a wonderful social evening for the club members. The visit to Home covert was cancelled because of inclement weather.
On 31st July, Paul Moran gave a talk about the merits of the storyboard as an aid to
filming. He illustrated his talk with clips from films the club has produced and showed some of his own storyboards.
In August we had an open evening which was used to discuss the latest project and have had a members video evening. Ken May showed an excellent film about the old threshing machine used for cutting wheat straw for roof thatching. Nothing was wasted, the straw for the thatching,the chaff bound into bales for bedding and the wheat ears for food. Paul Moran showed a film of the out-takes shot on location last Wednesday.
The next meeting will be a general evening devoted to cameras and setting the scene for the club's project which will be using some
chroma-key for various scenes.
On the 5th June the Devizes Video Club showed members videos past and recent. The following week was devoted to discussion on a film to be entered for the Chippenham theme competition. On the 19th June we set up the recently purchased Chroma Key equipment and tested it for the first time.
On Friday the 26th June we held the annual club barbecue at Gate Farm. For a change we had wonderful weather and Andrew and Madge Bell who host this event welcomed us with their never failing hospitality. All members helped to provide the food but special mention and thanks must be extended to Bernice May and Angela Angus, not forgetting the chefs for the evening, Ken May and John Bowery. Tonight we well be planning our next project and next week the 16th July we will be spending the evening at home with the Hollisters.
Last Friday the Devizes Video Club held the annual tri-battle competition between Frome, Chippenham and Devizes.
The competition allows for one club entry and one individual entry. Devizes Video Club was a convincing winner with its club entry "Witness to Murder" which was from an idea by Bill Summers and directed by him. Club members had roles as actors and camera crew. The individual entries were of very varied themes and excellently presented. The winner was Alan Campbell from Frome video club and was filmed on the Somerset levels, capturing the beauty of the place and the "murmuration" of starlings swooping in the skies and coming down to rest. The judges were Anne Spurr from Mid Wilts, Peter George and Eric Pearce who gave us an excellent summing-up of the films.
On Friday the 29th June, the Devizes Club met at Avebury to walk among the stones and visit the local inn. The weather for a change was warm and sunny.
Members at the ancient stone circle site of Avebury in Wiltshire
On the 1st of May, Devizes Video Club held their annual quiz. The quiz was hosted by Paul Moran and the competition is between four local video clubs. The first teams to take part were from Chippenham Movie Club and Frome Video Club. Next to face the quiz-master were Mid Wilts Video Club and Devizes Video Club. The winners of these two heats faced each other after the break. The final was between Frome and Mid Wilts.
There was a break before the final where everyone enjoyed some refreshment and social chat. The quiz night is an annual event which enables local film and video clubs to discuss their projects and enjoy meeting their friends.
The final was a very exciting end to the evening with the two teams, Frome and Mid-Wilts evenly matched for the greater part of the round. However, due to a run of questions towards the end of the round, Frome raced away when Mr Frank Lake showed his knowledge and hit the buzzer to answer correctly and quickly.
The questions are set by Paul Moran and he has been doing this for the last ten years. He has set hundreds of questions during that time. It is an evening which everyone looks forward to not least because of the social interaction. The audience also enjoy the tension and have to be restrained from shouting out the answers to question. The buzzer system devised by Paul makes everything fair and he is supported by Julie Moran who keeps a beady eye on the scores. The winning team were, Ed Brooks, Frank Lake and Jim Thompson of Frome Video Club and they were presented with the George Melies trophy and a bottle of wine each. The score they recorded was one of the highest in the history of the quiz, so, well done.
The winners of the 2009 annual Devizes quiz
The Devizes Video Club held the annual dinner at The Four Seasons restaurant in Devizes. The food was excellent and will certainly warrant a further visit. The evening was arranged by Jim Moger and appreciated by all. After the Easter break there was an open evening and members brought along various films, new and old.
On the 9th April, members who had been responsible for our film of the Royal Air Force tribute to Wootton Bassett, attended a Presentation Evening at Marsh Farm Hotel. The evening was hosted by the Mayor of Wootton Bassett, Councillor Mike Leighfield. Also attending were the Town Clerk, Jonathan Bourne and Group Captain Mike Neville. The Mayor presented a cheque for £4,500 for the Help The Heroes Fund which was donations from the public and included proceeds from the sales of our DVD of the event. The DVD has sold 500 copies, mostly local, but some have been sent across the world.
Last week we held our AGM. Mr David Angus is Chairman for the next year, Mr Clive George remains as treasurer and Angela Angus remains as secretary. David thanked everyone for their tireless efforts for the club giving special thanks to Mr Ken May, without whom the film for Help The Heroes would not have been made, nor the film of the Badminton Four in Hand.
On Friday, the 1st May, the club will hold the annual quiz which will be between Frome Film Club, Mid Wilts Video Club,Chippenham Movie Club and of course, Devizes Video Club. The quiz will be hosted by Paul Moran.
Here are some pics of the DVC team in action.The first one shows John Sykes and Clive George setting up the camera for a shoot. The second one includes Ken May and the last one is a rehearsal for a shoot of a Sherlock Holmes spoof
On the 13th February the club held a romantic evening in recognition of Valentine's Day. Club members brought along film of weddings and other romantic occasions.
The following week the club project "The Will Reading " took place. This was a fun evening devised by Angela Angus and Paul Moran. All members took part in a loosely scripted idea for a film in which everyone was given a part but which they interpreted it in their own way. The camera men were Paul Moran and John Sykes. The editing was undertaken by David Angus and the final edit was shown two weeks later amid much hilarity. The evening was such a success that it is proposed that another similar project will be programmed at a later date.On the 13th March Angela Angus hosted a Face to Face evening and interviewed Ken May and David Rowlands and the results filmed and shown two weeks later.On the 20th March an Open Competition was held and was won by John Rixon with a short film in which he starred as a presenter of an art programme using all his own material.The inter Club Quiz was postponed and will be re-scheduled for the 1st May. The clubs takingpart will be Devizes, Mid Wilts, Chippenham and Devizes.On a sad note we heard of the death of Norman Reynolds at the age of 92. Norman had lived in Corsham for many years. He was known by all members of the local film clubs and had retained his abiding interest in film all his life. He was an engineer by profession and he was able to make and design gadgets for cameras and projectors. He did in fact design and make his own cine projector, and was able to repair cameras and give anyone helpful advice. His unfailing courtesy and quiet charm was always evident especially when he acted as judge at film and video competitions. He will be sadly missed and we extend our sympathy to his wife and family.The annual dinner will be held on 3rd April.
The Devizes Video Club ended 2008 with their annual club dinner at the Black Swan in Devizes. After Christmas and New Year it was back to business with the new programme. The New Year was opened with an evening showing festive videos. The following week was an open evening which was taken up with ideas for a new film project and deciding on what to enter for the various competitions coming up.
The DVD which was made by the club last year of the Armed Services honouring the town of Wootton Bassett for their support of the repatriation of men killed in action has been well received ,and the proceeds of the film is donated to the Help the Heroes charity fund.
Last week the Club held the Four of Clubs competition. This was a new competition between the Chippenham Movie Club, Devizes Video Film Club, Mid Wilts club and Frome Film Club. It was a good evening and it is always a pleasure to welcome members of other local clubs. The winner of the evening was Frome Film Club with its entry of "Car For Sale". The drama was a worthy winner and made and directed by Ernie McKenna.
Next Friday the Club will be rehearsing for the "Will Reading" from an idea by Angela Angus.
Details of the club can be obtained from Angela Angus telephone 01793 813028 or email secretary@www.devizesvideoclub.org.ukOn the 18th October Devizes Video Club showed a film made by the television presenter and writer Jeremy Clarkson. The subject was the ramming of the St Nazaire dock by the obsolete destroyer HMS Campbeltown in 1942. Jeremy Clarkson called it the greatest raid of all time. A model of the destroyer was built and with effective use of Chroma Key the drama of the event was replicated. Club members had been discussing for some time the purchase of chroma key equipment and have now decided to invest in this piece of technology so that our future films can be taken a step further.
The following week members of the club took along their cameras for discussion of their relative merits and performance. The club camera was connected to the projector and members were shown just how many features there were and what could be done with them.
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On he 31st October the theme of the meeting was "As We Were". John Rixon brought in some of his old film showing life in the Home Guard with various cartoons and caricatures. It was extremely well received. Other old family films were shown by David and Angela Angus and Mike Hollister.
While this has been going on some club members went to the town of Wootton Bassett on the 12th October. to film the tribute to Wootton Bassett by the Services for their support and respect which they have shown over the years for our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq who have been killed or injured. Over the months of repatriation of our troops the people of Wootton Bassett have been lining the strrets to show their silent and deepest respect. This film is now being edited by our club member Clive George.
We have also been busy filming our new drama which is being directed by Bill Summers. There are only one or two more outdoor scenes and the project will be ready for the final edit.
The club has been busy with brainstorming ideas for new films. We have had evenings of films starting with IAC films which were shown on 5th September. This gives us a view of the opposition that we face in competitions. `On the 12th September Members of the club split into groups to make a commercial. The idea for the Bar of Soap commercial
came from Angela Angus and was to be executed in the one evening.
David Angus took home the rushes and edited them and the results of the team efforts were shown the following week. A lot of fun was had during the evening and there was one clear winner, sadly no prizes.
On the 19th September Mr Phil Marshman from Frome Video Club came to Devizes to give us an evening of his own films made over a period of
years. It as an excellent evening and everyone enjoyed his films.
Phil has his own unique style and his choice of subject is always
interesting and extremely watchable.
The following week we had an open evening and we used it to discuss locations and props for a film which will be directed By Mr Bill Summers from his own script. Actors were allocated their parts and dates and times decided.
Next week the evening will be devoted to My Favourite Clips.