GSFF: This is Not a Boat: The Improbably Story of the Court 13 Collective

A menace to fire marshals and coast guards from New York to New Orleans, Court 13 is a rule-breaking lo-fi collective producing some of the most visionary images anywhere in the world today. Formed at Wesleyan University, Connecticut, by founders Ray Tintori and Benh Zeitlin, and originally based in Brooklyn, the collective have created a series of fantastical dream-like films, drawing on the support of artists and marginalised communities, whilst running after-school kids’ filmmaking programmes. They also have music video credits for MGMT and The Killers among others. They have won a wealth of awards, and even had the honour of their distinctive soundtracks being adopted for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.

The collective’s crowning achievement is the colossal Glory At Sea, a modern myth filmed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The collective relocated to New Orleans to recruit cast and crew amongst the communities directly affected by the tragedy, and found locations and props in the debris. The production required that they build a boat from scratch; the Louisiana Coast Guard declared it the ‘least seaworthy vessel’ they’d ever seen, but against the odds it floated, and we present the long overdue UK premiere of the resulting film tonight.

Join Ray Tintori (soon to be directing his Spike Jonze-produced feature debut) as he presents a masterclass of Court 13’s unique and dynamic collaborative method, including screenings of some of the collective’s films, after-school projects and music promos. We are delighted to welcome director Ray Tintori to present this masterclass.

Presented by Glasgow Short Film Festival