First up was 'Oh dear' by John Bunce. This one minute short won best joke! A husband's birthday present of a vacuum cleaner dust bag was not appreciated by his wife, who was expecting a handbag!
'Brownies Fete 71' by Colin Jones, the longest serving member of OVFM was a fond reminiscence of the parade and fete in Petts Wood on 26 June 1971.
'Hampden P1344' by James Morton-Robertson told the history of the recovery of the plane in which his father was shot down in Norway during World War II. 32 planes flew from RAF Leuchars on 2 Sep 1942 in Operation Orator to Murmansk. Nine were destroyed by German fire or running out of fuel. Five got through and were successful in their mission. The plane was discovered in 1989 by aircraft restorers (American Jeet Mahal & British Peter Arnold), who bought and had it transported to the UK. Peter Arnold showed the plane on its return and explained the work needed to restore it. Altogether a fascinating story.
'Please' by John Greengrass was his first film. It was a four minute tale of a fox scavenging in a garden. He was confronted by the owner's cats but was determined to get the last scrap from behind a flower pot. He kept being seen off by the two cats but eventually succeeded and scampered away happily.
'Colour my World' by Lee Relph won best film to music. It was in black and white, with colour being added, focusing on green (grass), blue (sky) and yellow-gold (sun). Fittingly the soundtrack was Petula Clark singing 'Colour my World'.
'Remember' by Andy & Marian Watson won the award for best film under 5 mins and was runner up for the best film of the year. It was also in the Top 10 winners and won a cup for animation. Played to 'Memories’, sung by Barbara Streisand, it was a tour of the 911 Memorial in New York - the Freedom Tower and the Dove of Peace
'Orpington in the 1840s' was an enthralling historical film by David Laker. It brought to life the Tithe map of 1840. Orpington’s map was one of only a few which were signed as being accurate. Orpington was a village with a number of large manor houses and wealthy land owners - Crofton Hall still exists as a grade II listed building. East Hall, Poverest farm and others no longer exist. Bark Hart was an old manor house which became Ramsden School for Boys.
Following the convivial break, with tea or coffee and biscuits, the evening's entertainment continued with:
'Night Club', a slightly spooky film, was made in 1981 by Colin Jones & Reg Lancaster. It won an award for best use of sound, best film and a number of awards since. It featured the tale of a tribal club, a souvenir from Africa, which had some strange powers. It glowed in the dark and, when a burglar broke into the house at night, when the husband was away and the wife was alone, he came to a sticky end!
'Newsreel 2017' was compiled by Ian Menage. It included film from the Green Street Green May Queen 2017, iCare centre fundraising day, The Big O Festival, Burnt Ash fete, the unveiling of a plaque at Shoreham Aircraft Museum, to a local airman who crashed near there during World War II, Christmas in the high street and the Santa Dash. It was a year of much activity in Orpington.
'It’s a pug’s life', another short film by Lee Relph won the best use of sound trophy. It was an amusing story of two pugs and their reaction (or non-reaction) to various audio tests, which gradually got louder and louder. Eventually, the son of the household became tired to trying to raise the pugs' interest and opened a packet of crisps, which instantly aroused the attention of the two dogs!
'Come Fly with Me' was the first film of newcomer, Trevor Rogers. It was journey on the Emirates airline cable car in London and showed some marvellous views across the capital.
'A 1940’s Experience' won runner up for the Top 10 award for Barbara Darby. A busy weekend in Norfolk took the audience back to the 1940s. Many of the visitors and residents dressed in the period and enjoyed a steam train ride and browsing round local shops. However, the prices shown were 21st century, not 1940s!
'A Turkey for Christmas' by Colin Jones won best fiction and 4 stars in the British International Amateur Film Festival. It was a twist on Christmas lunch, with the farmer's family inviting the turkey to the table....as a guest! It was a story told with paintings and a narrative.
'Devon from a different perspective' by Jane Oliver won an award for best photography. A drone hovered over the ruins of an old church and showed aerial views of the local landscape.
'It’s the same the whole world over' by Brian Pfeiffer won Best Film under 1 minute. A white street statue stood motionless whilst a lady donated a monetary offering and had her photo taken, but he pinched her bottom as she walked away! (N.B. This action is not condoned by the author, so do not complain to me.)
The evening ended with the raffle draw, with the star prize being a sports camera. The author did not win anything!
John Epton, Tel: 01689 810594. E-mail: [email protected]
You don’t have to make films to join. Other skills are required, such as scene making, acting, teamaking, editing and lots more. Everyone is welcome.
Margot Rohan - Orpington Community