Down on the Farm - A North Devon Short Film Commission

Farmers, film makers and local communities are being invited to show their support for a landmark creative heritage project in north Devon. Local community film making organisation North Devon Moving Image CIC (NDMI) is making plans to launch an exciting new film commission which will create a series of short documentary films about farmers and farming in northern Devon.

Creative Director of NDMI, Amanda McCormack says "Down on the Farm will be a unique chance for the farming community to share their stories with the wider world. Our Boat Stories films have been immensely popular and that project demonstrated the value of preserving and sharing local heritage on film. We now want to do for farming what Boat Stories did for fishing and Down on the Farm is set to do that."

Amanda adds "Part of our remit at NDMI is to support film makers, both in North Devon and the wider creative community throughout the UK. This commission will provide an exciting opportunity (and the money - £1,000 per film) for six emerging or experienced film makers to develop and exhibit their individual artistic and narrative skills."

Before NDMI can apply for funding they are seeking written support for the project. Amanda says she would like to hear from: 

• farming families who would like to be the subject of a film
• volunteers interested in local agricultural heritage who will support the film makers with research and contact with farmers
• film makers who would like to apply for a commission
• film tutors who believe this is a great opportunity for film production students
• members of the local community who would love to see the films made.

To find out more visit http://www.northdevonmovingimage.org.uk/down-on-the-farm.html and if you would like to show your support you can email Amanda at northdevonmovingimage@outlook.com, write to North Devon Moving Image, 2 Cullamartin, Instow, Bideford, Devon EX39 4LU or visit the NDMI website and complete the contact form.

 

In the Gallery: Dave Clinch and The Ballad of Richie Havens 20th October

Step back in time with Dave Clinch when he performs his Gallery Gig: The Ballad of Richie Havens" at the Plough Arts Centre in Great Torrington on the 20th October.

Richie Havens rocketed to world fame following his stellar opening performance in front of half a million people at Max Yasgur’s farm at  Woodstock in the August of 1969. Freedom became his signature song.

Dave says “I was mesmerised by the way Richie Havens played when I saw the film Woodstock in 1970. Forty years later I took up a Guild D40, like Richie’s, and began learning to play his method.

The evening will be my acknowledgement to the memory of Richie Havens and his songs. It will include some of my own songs and other favourites.”

Dave Clinch is a singer and multi-instrumentalist, who has been playing on the North Devon open mic scene for nearly two decades. He also plays the uilleann pipes and low whistle in the tribute band Nightwished.

Gallery Gig
The Ballad of Richie Havens
with
Dave Clinch
Friday 20 October 8.15pm to 10.00pm
👀👀
Tickets from The Plough Arts Centre  

Box Office Tel: 01805 624624
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Proceeds to the Hebron International Resources Network education projects
For More Information
Website: www.thepipercallsproject.co.uk
Facebook: thepipercallsproject Clinch
Email: dpclinch@gmail.com - Tel: 07887 650671

Devon residents go batty for science this summer

Hundreds of people in Devon have surveyed their gardens for bats this summer as part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project.

The 2017 Devon Bat Survey has been the biggest yet with 600 unique locations surveyed, from Seaton to Plymouth and Salcombe to Combe Martin. Participants in the survey - which this year runs until the end of October - collect their bat detector and ultrasonic microphone from one of 20 monitoring centres across Devon, including shops, garden centres and community hubs.

Each survey takes place over three nights - so there have been a total of 1,800 nights of bat detecting in Devon gardens this summer. So far that has required more than 2,700 hours of volunteer time in collecting and deploying the bat detectors.

And this survey effort has resulted in more than half a million sound files recording the nocturnal noises - including those of echo-locating bats in flight - in Devon gardens since April.

These files are being analysed to produce a report for each garden showing which of Devon's sixteen bat species has been recorded. Bat surveyors from early in the season have already had their reports, which take around a month for project staff and volunteers to complete.

Devon's landscapes supported thriving bat populations for centuries until some species suffered serious declines in the last few decades. Monitoring bat activity is an important tool in bat conservation, but there are still many gaps in our knowledge of what species are present in different parts of Devon.

Ruth Testa, manager of the Devon Wildlife Trust-led Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project said: "The Devon Bat Survey is so important in helping to increase our understanding of how all bats, not just the greater horseshoe, are using our landscape. By doing it in a way that involves members of the general public, it means that more people become aware of bats around them, raising the profile of these fascinating mammals".

Taking part in the Devon Bat Survey has proved a hit with wildlife lovers in Devon. After receiving the report from their garden, one participant at Goodrington, near Paignton, said: "We are most excited to hear that we have so many different bats in the area. We will most definitely be keeping an eye out for them!"

And receiving survey results has even inspired a little friendly competition among the volunteer surveyors, keen to see whether they can match the number of bat species recorded in their neighbours' gardens. Jill Turner, owner of holiday cottages near Bideford, commented on Facebook: "Really easy to set up the equipment, now eagerly awaiting the report from our August survey. Others in Littleham have discovered 10+ species flying by so we are excited to discover more about our bat population."

There are still opportunities to take part in this year's survey by booking a bat detector online at www.devonbatproject.org. The 2017 survey runs until the end of October. The Devon Bat Survey will return next spring and continue as part of the Devon Greater Horseshoe Bat Project for another three years.

A report on the full results from all bat surveys across Devon in 2017 is scheduled to be available online in January.

 Greater Horseshoe Bat in flight - Photo copyright Frank Greenaway (All Rights Reserved)

Collecting Devon Bat Survey materials at Chudleigh Town Hall

Bat detector, microphone and other kit