2010 Awardee: Ruth Paxton
I am extremely grateful and indebted to the trust for their generosity and for making it possible for me to pursue this opportunity in London.
Biography
Edinburgh born and bred, Ruth Paxton is an impassioned young Scottish filmmaker.
After gaining a degree from Edinburgh College of Art, Ruth graduated in 2007 from the Screen Academy Scotland with a post-graduate diploma in film. Since then she has developed her skills by writing, directing, producing and designing for an eclectic mix of film projects, including fiction, non-fiction, experimental film and music video.
At heart a writer/director, Ruth’s most successful film to date has been ‘She Wanted To Be Burnt’, which has been exhibited and nominated in competition in festivals across the UK and Europe, including screenings in Australia, India and China. In 2009, Ruth was commissioned by DigiCult with her short film ‘PARIS/SEXY’, which was premiered at the 64th EIFF, where it was nominated for the UK Film Council Best British Short film. The cinematographer was fellow Dewar Award Winner David Liddell.
How the Award Helped
The Dewar Arts Award funded Ruth to attend the Directors’ Series short course at the prestigious NFTS in Beaconsfield.
Since the Award
Ruth writes that the course “not only met with my expectations, but exceeded them….. I have gained knowledge and ‘tools’ with which to approach new projects.” One of her tutors writes that “from the first exercise on camera, Ruth demonstrated she had a strong, individual and unusual cinematic and aesthetic talent … she showed remarkable development of ability and understanding of dramatic narrative.” Shortly after the course, Ruth went to the Toronto Film Festival to participate in a Talent Lab. In 2011, Ruth’s film PARIS/SEXY was winner of the UKFC Best Short Film Award at the 8th London Short Film Festival. Congratulations, Ruth!
I am extremely grateful and indebted to the trust for their generosity and for making it possible for me to pursue this opportunity in London.