Festival "showcasing 60 films made in Hastings, the region and beyond"

Spokesman James Rowlins said: “This year’s festival puts documentary firmly in the spotlight with a series of films charting aspects of life in Hastings. King Putt is an entertaining account of the 2024 World Crazy Golf Championships held in Hastings where reigning champion Marc Chapman’s no-holds-barred approach to the sport is no laughing matter. A documentary by Adam Clements digs deep into the legend of Hastings’ America Ground legend – a fascinating story that, whether it be truth or myth, cuts to the core of Hastings’ idiosyncratic nature. It is followed by a fly-on-the-wall portrait of local thespian Patrick Kealey and the travails of keeping the arts alive during the Covid pandemic.

“Hastings also provides the backdrop a number of the festival’s fiction films. Shouting at the Sea sets scenes in Bottle Alley, the funicular railway, the pier, West Hill, the FILO pub and tells the ultimate should-I-leave-or-should-I-stay story. Director Benjamin Verrall describes the film as a ‘love letter to the town’ and is delighted to be screening it in his birth town after its premier at a prominent Hollywood film festival.

“The Saturday feature film, The Devil Makes Work for Idle Hands, directed by Folkestone-based Colin O’Reilly, is a hard-hitting drama that highlights the social ills facing today’s underprivileged in the UK’s coastal towns. The Saturday programme segues from realist dramas – with the majority directed and performed by women this year – to experimental and esoteric film. Late evening audiences can expect zany comedy and dark horror.

“Attendees will have the chance to engage with the festival’s special guest, acclaimed local director Andrew Kötting, who will discuss the challenges facing independent filmmakers and the evolution of his own work towards new media.”

Programme: www.rocksfestivals.com/screening

Tickets: https://filmfreeway.com/HastingsRocks/tickets

Venue: The Printworks: 14 Claremont, Hastings, TN34 1HA