| "I really wish I could be with you tonight in Dundee" he grinned through
his beaver-like bearded cheeks. Like hell he did."
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Dundee Mountain Film Festival
Dundee, Scotland Nov 23-24
The Dundee Fest stands in stark contrast to the previous events on several counts. Firstly, it's not a 'competition', in the sense that there are no cash prizes on offer for the best films and those on offer have been 'borrowed', from other fests and are rarely premiering at Dundee. Instead, it's usually a collection of cast-offs from the previous year's Banff Festival which have caught the fancy of the organising committee. Secondly, if the watchword of Banff was 'professional', then Dundee is strictly 'amateur'. But that's not meant in a pejorative sense; it's intended in the very dictionary definition meaning of people doing something because they really love it, rather than being paid for it. The Dundee gang are enthusiasts, and run a fine show which is nevertheless very much 'a local festival for local people'. Main driving force behind Dundee for nearly two decades now has been John Burdin, an unassuming bespectacled man who talks quietly and looks a bit like your old geography teacher. A couple of years ago Burdin opened the Dundee Festival, rather surreally, with a film of a film festival. John had taken his handicam to Banff a month previously and we were treated to his video diary. Surprise, surprise, here was Sir Christian Bonington signing books. He was persuaded to do a piece to camera; "I really wish I could be with you tonight in Dundee," he grinned through his beaver-like bearded cheeks. Like hell he did.
But it was his loss, as the Dundee Fest was a cracker that year, with live performances by Lynne Hill and Stephen Venables. Because, despite their lowly position in the international pecking order of MFFs, Dundee nearly always manage to draw in the international big stars. Perhaps it's the lure of fine Belhaven Ales on offer at the pub round the corner, or the gourmet deep-fried produce on offer at the nearby chipper. Whatever, the shabby glamour of Scotland's former Jute Capital always entices some glamorous world-class climber to attend, ensuring there's icing on Dundee's cake. The roll-call of past speakers reads like the line up for an all-star demonstration mountaineering team: Paul Piana, Stevie Haston, Catherine d'Estivelle, Joe Simpson, Silvo Karo…
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>>Dundee - still cutting it after all these years
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Not so mellow yellow
However, there are a few idiosyncratic aspects to a Dundee Fest which ensure you'll never make the mistake of thinking you're in Trento or Lugano. The Festival stewards all wear yellow Pringle-esque golfing jumpers, as if you were in the hands of mass impersonators of Val Doonican. Some of them get carried away on occasion, giving the impression it's the one chance in the year they get to be important, chivvying the punters around like Butlins Yellow-Coats except without the jolly youthfulness.
The Presbyterian middle-aged instincts of the fest organisers also sometimes get the better of common sense. This was exemplified by the fact that Nick Tarmey's film about Dumbarton Rock, 'Cutting Loose' which was supposed to premiere at Dundee in 2000, was pulled at the last minute because it featured some mild swearing. (So it's doubtful if Ben Pritchard and Richard Heap's latest expletive-rich bouldering film 'Stone Love' will ever make it to Dundee). However, to be fair to Dundee, they had been sandbagged the previous year by unexpected semi-pornographic scenes in a film about Swedish snowmobilers involving massages and erect members. Perhaps understandably, the screening committee were a little sensitive to potential controversy.
| "But despite the fact that the tenor of the Dundee Festival can
sometimes verge on that of a visit for tea with the Minister, it's a great
wee fest."
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But despite the fact that the tenor of the Dundee Festival can sometimes verge on that of a visit for tea with the Minister, it's a great wee fest. Also, don't forget that for 17 years John Burdin and his yellow-coats flew the UK flag for Mountain Film alone, and for that alone he is one of the true unsung heroes of the British climbing scene. It's an achievement to be genuinely proud of, especially as it's all been achieved without big money sponsors and merely by enthusiastic graft. It's a fine tribute to Dundee climber Roy Tait whose untimely death on Lochnagar in 1982 indirectly led to the first Dundee MFF as a means of raising funds for a memorial. Burdin was inspired by a visit to the Kendal fest that year to emulate a similar event north of the border. It's equal testament to the enthusiasm and organisational ability of Burdin and his pals that Dundee not only easily outlasted its role model, but actually made money! No mean feat that, and an achievement rarely attained by its big brother Kendal.
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