Iris 2015 is now underway! Read here to find out more of what Day 1 has in store...
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Since launching her beautiful new site a couple of months back, Iris has had a countdown clock on her home page, telling us all just how much time is left till this year's festival. This morning, as I type these words (shoveling spoonfuls of cereal into my mouth between sentences), that clock is on "1 hour 24 minutes and 52 seconds", like the nuclear device in a Roger Moore-era Bond film. Iris 2015 is about to begin!
Boy (dir. Lucas Helth Postma)
The first day of Iris has, for the last few years, been the festival's Education Day, in which students from nearby schools can see some of the young-person-friendly films showing at Iris, and discuss not only film-making and films but also some of the issues affecting the LGBT community around the world. This year, however, we're honoured to have a school from North Wales making the trip down to Cardiff to take part. (For those unfamiliar with the topography of Wales, getting from Anglesey to Cardiff on a Wednesday morning is only marginally less challenging than the rescue mission in Ridley Scott's The Martian.)
In my capacity as a freelance writer, I'll be taking part in one of the Education Day sessions, trying hard to convince our young visitors that I knows what I'm talking about, and not just making it all up as I go along, in every single sense. Then, when I've a spare minute, I'll be drawing out my Iris timetable. This year's programme is more jam-packed with goodies than ever before, and unless I can have myself cloned several times over by this time tomorrow, I simply won't have a chance to see everything.
Scrum (dir. Poppy Stockell)
Of course, one thing I certainly will be attending is our opening night film, the Australian documentary Scrum. After last year's vodka-drenched after-party (and the ensuing Thursday morning hangover), I really should make a mental note that starting the festival with a monumental blowout might not be the best strategy.
Right. That about wraps things up for now. Just about enough time to brush my teeth and hotfoot it across town to Chapter!
(PS - If you're on Twitter, you can use #Iris15 to check out all things Iris related, and you can following me personally @TheDaiLlew, to find out what I ate for lunch or - after the festival is over - what I think of X Factor contestants.)
