The fabulous Regent’s University Gardens in the heart of Regent’s Park were buzzing from 3.00pm on Monday afternoon as more than 820 guests arrived through the gates for what proved to be the largest Village Fete to date.
Arriving from as far afield as Los Angeles, New York, Glasgow, Bristol and Sheffield were almost 700 business, technical and creative leaders from across production, post, VFX, broadcasters and streamers, making this year’s event one of the largest informal gatherings of the UK screen industry. They were joined by many of the UK’s brightest technologists.
And what a day for it.
After weeks of nervous weather twitching, the production and post community managed to thread the needle perfectly. Temperatures hovered around a very civilised 27°C with a light breeze and just the briefest hint of summer rain as the sun went down. (The thermometer is hovering at 34C as I write.)
As ever, however, the Village Fete was never really about the weather.
It was about conversations, connections and community.
Old friends catching up. New relationships being formed. Clients, suppliers and collaborators all sharing the same lawns, food stalls, bars and games. The Village Fete has always existed to bring together the people who make this industry what it is. This year felt like the best example yet.
Of course, no Village Fete would be complete without documenting the occasion.
Lighting cameraman Craig Harman captured much of the day on Sony’s Z200, a remarkably capable camera whose compact and light form factor proved ideal for a fast-moving event spread across the gardens.
Adrian Bull from Cinelab meanwhile took a rather different approach, shooting 50 feet of film on Super 8 to create a beautiful three-minute spool that captures the nostalgia and spirit of the fete. The camera itself was later raffled off together with film cartridges and processing.
As ever, we also like to push the production envelope.
This year we worked with Sony’s groundbreaking Ocellus markerless camera tracking system alongside a cinematic live AR workflow that brought a cast of retro animated characters to life throughout the film.
My greatest thanks to Elliot Marris and Chris Couzens at Sony for bringing and supporting the Sony Burano and Ocellus, Michael Bennett and the team at Offshoot Operation for bringing the AR animations to life and to Chelsea Fearnley and the team at Motion Impossible for bringing the Agito remote controlled dolly – a product who’s versatility seems to have no boundaries.
And of course to Jonathan Perugia, whose photographs once again captured the energy, humour and spirit of the day.
We were never going to capture everyone on camera, but there are certainly more than a few familiar faces.
Away from the cameras, the Village Fete raffle raised an impressive £3,102 for Médecins Sans Frontières. Few organisations undertake more important humanitarian work, often arriving first in some of the world’s most challenging and distressing situations.
If you attended the fete and would still like to contribute, donations remain open at:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/televisual-village-fete-26
THANK YOU!
None of this would be possible without the extraordinary support of our sponsors, who once again funded the bars, food stalls, games, attractions and prizes that help make the Village Fete such a unique day in the industry calendar.
My sincere thanks to every sponsor who helped bring this year’s event to life.
For the bars
- EditShare – Pimm’s with a Twist
• Elements with ASG – Jägermeister Shots
• FilmLight – Perfect Negronis
• HHB – Champagne Bar
• Jigsaw24 Media with EVS – Ice-Cold Beer
• Seagate – Premium Selection of Gs with T
For the food vans and stalls
- Frei Space – Berlin Sausages
• Medialease – Spanish Paella
• Digital Garage – Old-School Ice Cream Van
• Salon with Avid – Italian Wood-Fired Pizza
• Big Pic Media with Qumulo – Mexican Tacos & Burritos
For the games, tournaments and diversions
- Altered Images – Pool Tournament
• Backlight with Hiscale and Ortana – Inflatable Football Darts
• Elements – Slot Car Racing
• ERA – Air Hockey Tournament
• Escape Technology with HP – Roulette
• LucidLink – Table Tennis Tournament
• Marquis – Giant Wire Buzz
• Sohonet – Table Football Tournament
And for the raffle
- AJA – Magnum of Nyetimber
• AKA – Magnum of Champagne
• ASG – Magnum of Nyetimber
• BMG Sync+ – Signed Kylie Minogue Album with Wine and Fizz
• Catalyst Finance – Vintage Nyetimber Magnum and Glasses Set
• CCK – God of War Ragnarök Limited Edition Game Drive
• Cinelab – Super 8 Camera with Film Cartridges and Processing
• CVP and EIZO – ColorEdge CG2700X Professional Monitor
• DigiBox – Including (of course) a Travel Kettle
• Envy – Exceptionally Rare 18-Year-Old Glenmorangie
• GB Labs – Magnum of Nyetimber
• Leader – Magnum of Champagne
• Pixitmedia by DataCore – Magnum of Nyetimber
• Seagate – Two Cooler Bags with Fizz and Flutes
• Soho Editors – Bottle of Champagne and £500 Training Voucher or Freelance Editor
• tanooki – Kadai BBQ and Firepit
• Tuxera – Two Finnish Cocktail Kit Hampers with Tuxera Honey
My very greatest thanks to every sponsor, partner and our support staff.
And to everyone who joined us on the lawns this year: thank you for helping make the Village Fete what it has become.
We look forward to doing it all again next year on the 24th June 2027.
James Bennett
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