A Bunch of Amateurs

Bunch of Amateurs, the latest documentary by Kim Hopkins, opens with a quote by Susan Sontag – “If cinephilia is dead, then movies are dead too”. At a time where film viewing is steadily becoming more dispersed and individualised, a small yet keen community of amateur filmmakers known as the Bradford Movie Makers heeded Sontag’s call.

The Bradford Movie Makers have been meeting every single Monday since 1932.
Needless to say, their clubhouse has seen better days. Hopkins’ camera captures their rundown building from every angle: its outside premises have become a fly-tipping hotspot, a dumping ground for waste and vandalism; its insides crumble to the touch. Among dwindling numbers of new members and financial instability due to being five years behind on rent payments, there doesn’t seem to be much room for optimism within Britain’s oldest amateur filmmaking enclave as it teeters on the edge of survival.