Best of Deaffest: The End (directed by Ted Evans)

During the week running up to Deaffest 2012, the UK’s Deaf film and TV festival which takes place this weekend in Wolverhampton, we’re showing you some of the festival’s greatest hits from previous years – the award-winning films that blew the audience away and went on to be shown across the world.

Before we get started, we’re very pleased to tell you that during the festival, which kicks off on Friday night, the Limping Chicken will be posting a Deaffest first – a live, film-by-film blog as the festival takes place. So if you can’t make it to Wolverhampton, watch this space on Friday and Saturday!

We’ll kick this week off with The End, by Ted Evans. This film, commissioned as part of the BSLBT‘s Zoom Focus scheme, moved many in the audience at last year’s festival to tears.

When the film came out, my review of the film said:

This film manages to dramatise something in just 24 minutes which is very hard to explain through words alone – what would be lost, in a world where deafness no longer exists.

The End builds up to a compelling and emotional conclusion, in particular an amazing final shot which left me stunned, and stayed in my mind long after the final credits rolled. It’s simply outstanding, and original – it fully deserves to win a number of awards. Whatever you do, don’t miss it.

Although it wasn’t in competition at Deaffest last year, the film did go on to pick up award after award, including best film at France’s prestigious Clin d’Oeil, and most recently, best film awards at Seattle’s Deaf Film Festival and Rome’s Cinedeaf Film Festival.

Here’s director Ted Evans in Rome with his award:

To see the film in full at the BSLBT’s website, just click here: http://www.bslbt.co.uk/zoom/films/zoom_focus_2011/the_end/ (and make sure you have a box of tissues handy).

By Charlie Swinbourne, Editor

To read an interview with Ted Evans just click here: http://charlieswinbourne.com/2011/06/16/interview-ted-evans-director-of-the-end/