The Veiled City
Film
13 mins / 2023 / 16mm
A speculative city symphony inspired by London’s Great Smog of 1952. Merging reality with fiction, The Veiled City invites us to understand the smog in the context of the present-day climate crisis.
"This film brought archival footage to a new life, retelling history in a modern and restorative way. Through thoughtful and vivid editing, the film captures an atmosphere, that speaks volumes about the past, our present, and the future, through the lens of unsustainability and decay." Uppsala Short Film Candidate for the European Film Awards 2024.
"Through meticulously chosen fragments and dreamlike archival footage of this well-known city, a cautionary tale about industrialisation unfolds before us. A timeless voice is taking us on a sci-fi time travel odyssey to an unavoidable future. The eerie and delicate editing mixed with heartfelt narrated letters bewitched us in this poetic yet dark subject matter that is climate change. For this humble and experimental approach to documentary cinema, the award for Best Documentary of the International Competition goes to THE VEILED CITY." Jury for the International Competition, Curtas Vila do Conde.
Official Selections 2023/24:
- 02/23 Berlinale, Shorts Competition, 2023 (World Premiere)
- 06/23 Vienna Shorts, International Competition, Austria
- 07/23 Curtas Vila do Conde, International Competition, Portugal (Winner: Best Documentary)
- 07/23 Sundance London, UK
- 09/23 Festival du Nouveau Cinema Montreal, Nouveaux Alchimistes Competition, Canada
- 10/23 FIDBA, International Shorts Competition, Argentina
- 10/23 Uppsala Short Film Festival, International Competition, Sweden (Winner: Short Film Candidate for European Film Awards 2024)
- 10/23 Archivio Aperto, International Competition, Italy
- 11/23 Aesthetica Short Film Festival, Documentary Competition, UK
- 11/23 Zinebi Bilbao, International Competition, Spain (Winner: Mikeldi for Best Documentary Short Film)
- 11/23 Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur, International Competition, Switzerland
- 11/23 Interfilm Berlin, International Competition, Germany
- 11/23 Short Film Festival Cologne, International Competition, Germany
- 01/24 London Short Film Festival, National Competition, UK
- 01/24 Flickerfest International Short Film Festival, Documentary Competition, Australia
- 01/24 Vilnius Short Film Festival, International Competition, Lithuania
- 03/24 Prague Shorts, Labo Competition, Czech Republic
- 03/24 Tampere Film Festival, International Competition, Finland
- 03/24 Glasgow Short Film Festival, Scotland
- 03/24 Akbank Short Film Festival, International Competition, Turkey
- 04/24 FilmFest Dresden, Special Programme, Germany
- 04/24 Las Palmas, Bande á Part Competition, Spain
- 05/24 Taiwan International Documentary Film Festival, Taiwan
- 05/24 CineGlobe Film Festival at CERN, International Competition, Switzerland
- 06/24 Huesca International Film Festival, International Competition, Spain
Awards:
- Winner: British/Irish Short Film of the Year, London Critics Circle, 2024
- Winner: Best Documentary, Curtas Vila do Conde, 2023
- Winner: Mikeldi for Best Documentary Short Film, Zinebi Bilbao, 2023
- Nominee: Best Short Documentary, IDA Documentary Awards, 2023
- Nominee: Short Film Candidate for the European Film Awards 2024
Credits:
| Writer/Director | Natalie Cubides-Brady | |
| Producer | Jacob Swan Hyam | |
| Executive Producer | Hannah Bush Bailey | |
| Editor | Ona Bartroli | |
| Sound Designer | Ben Goodall | |
| Composer | Athena Varosio | |
| Script Editor | Alfie Spencer | |
| Colourist | Jax Harney | |
| Online Editor | Maria Cecilia Tedemalm |