The Swansea Bay Film Festival was a film festival that took place in Swansea, Wales. It was criticised for being poorly run, and participants said that they felt "duped" or "scammed".
This is a festival that promises to "honour the individual voice". Its goal is to provide a worldwide public forum for independent and experimental film makers and to offer educational outreach. The Swansea Bay Film Festival is a qualifying festival for the British Independent Film Awards. The Academy of Media, Recording, Interactive, Television and Stage Arts (AMRITSA) are organising the event and the festival's "Special Selection Committee" will comprise seasoned filmmakers, representatives from The City and County of Swansea, The Dylan Thomas Centre, and The Department of Adult and Continuing Education at Swansea University.
Director Michael Attardi says, "The Swansea Film Festival is better than Cannes."* On the other hand, the festival has been described by previous participants as "a sham" and "the worst film festival.". In June 2011 The Guardian headlined the Swansea Bay film festival as a 'disaster'. Catherine Zeta-Jones has resigned as patron of the Swansea Bay Film Festival and Michael Sheen has resigned as vice president following criticism of the festival.Festival organiser Binda Singh has been singled out for the most criticism.2010 - main categories
Best International Documentary:From Ararat to Zion (Armenia)- Edgar Baghdasaryan and Fr Mesrop AramianBest International Feature Film: Carmilla Hyde (Australia) - Dave De VriesBest International Environment and Ecological Film: Poison Wind (USA) - Jenny PondBest in the Festival: Shooter (UK) - Ronnie Goodwin2009 - main categories
Best Documentary: War of the Gods (USA) - Jennifer AbbottBest International Feature Film: Blue Bus (USA) - Phil ScarpaciBest Feature Film: Gods of Circumstance (USA ) - Justin GoldingBest in Festival: Jackson (USA) - JF Lawton2008 - main categories
Best International Short Film: Appassionata (Germany) - Mirko Echghi-Ghamsari2006 - main categories
Best Feature Film: Footsteps (UK) - Gareth EvansBest Feature Film Under 75 Minutes - Teenage Wasteland (UK) - Andrew Jones (filmmaker)Best Short Film (Under 20 Mins) : Tomorrow Never Dais (UK) - Anthony JamesBest Noir: The Girl the Gun & the Desert (UK) - Alun D Pughe