FILMS made by two major new directors with strong Herefordshire connections promise to be among the highlights of an autumn mini festival from Borderlines in association with Hello Digital, the brand new festival for Birmingham and the West Midlands.

Joshua Dugdale, whose children attend the Waldorf School at Much Birch, is a regular visitor to the county.

He’s been making a name for himself for his startlingly intimate portrait of the Dalai Lama in the recently released The Unwinking Gaze, the result of the documentary film maker’s three-year sojourn with the 72-year-old spiritual leader of Tibet.

On its release in May this year, The Unwinking Gaze attracted significant attention and a raft of great reviews, with critics unanimous in their verdict that Dugdale had made a unique and important film.

“A very impartial film – a fascinating insight into the court of the Dalai Lama,” said the BBC’s Mark Kermode Show, with Paul Arendt on Channel 4 agreeing that The Unwinking Gaze is “A startlingly intimate portrait – impressively even-handed”.

Thirty-four year old Joshua will talk about the making of The Unwinking Gaze and the unprecedented access he was given to the world’s most celebrated, and enigmatic, spiritual leader.

Joshua’s film-making career began with the award-winning Pepe and His Cuban Heels, a film that helped him secure a job as a BBC Foreign and Current Affairs producer at the early age of 21, and he is now looking forward to encouraging local film makers.

“When you’re starting out it’s relatively easy to make a film, to work out the shots and that sort of thing. But it’s important to be serious about what you’re doing. Basically, young film makers need to go for it and follow their dream.”

Meanwhile former Hereford College of Arts’ Price James, recently voted one of the world’s 10 best new directors and now working for Ridley Scott, of Blade Runner and Thelma and Louise fame, will be sharing the secrets of his success with local film makers.

Price James also sees Borderlines’ Hello Digital as a way of encouraging new, local talent. James himself left Hereford Art College some 10 years ago.

“I studied graphic design under Mark Jackson, the best tutor I ever had and, after getting in to St Martin’s School of Art in London, concentrated on making low-budget videos.”

Instead of making a show reel to hawk around studios, Price took a strictly digital route, posted his work on social network sites like MySpace, and waited. His film style, as striking as his appearance (he likes plus fours, bright socks and patent shoes), paid off.

As well as being voted into the top 10 list of new directors worldwide by Boards Magazine and winning the Channel 4 New Talent Award in 2007, James has made a directorial name for himself with Flowers, the quirky new advertisement for Mr Kipling cakes.

“I took a different route with my work and I’m convinced this is the way ahead for a lot of young film makers: the creative future lies in anything that’s watchable on-line whether it’s advertising or a funny, two minute, mini narrative,” said Price.

The two-and-half day Hello Digital @ Hereford festival, which starts on Thursday, October 23, and runs through to Saturday, October 25, will screen some of the latest films, such as the much talked about British film A Complete History of My Sexual Failures, and the rocking Heavy Metal in Baghdad.

Local artists Dan Brown and Chris White, of MASH Cinema, will light up the Old House in High Town on Thursday, October 23, as a spectacular free opening to the festival.

“Hello Digital will be a dazzling array of creativity, including some of the latest and best digital movies, inspirational workshops on VJing, digital photography and animation, as well as talks from Joshua Dugdale and Price James,” says festival director Naomi Vera-Sanso.

“Hello Digital is a new festival for the West Midlands and the event we are staging, Hello Digital@Hereford, is the only part of the festival taking place outside of Birmingham, so it’s a feather in the cap for Herefordshire.”

For full programme details, go to Borderlines website borderlinesfilmfestival.co.uk