Description
Under Stalin’s rule, composer Dmitri Shostakovich lived with the constant threat of denunciation, imprisonment and death. Tony Palmer’s extraordinary Testimony, starring Ben Kingsley, explores the life of an artist navigating fear, censorship and survival.
Inspired by Solomon Volkov’s controversial book, presented as Shostakovich’s memoirs, the film interweaves stark black-and-white drama with the composer’s powerful music.
Following this special screening, acclaimed director Tony Palmer, whose films include portraits of Leonard Cohen, Benjamin Britten and Maria Callas, discusses making Testimony, its disputed source material, and Shostakovich’s enduring legacy.
Screening from a 35mm print
Runtime: 157 minutes
Related Book
About the Speaker
Tony Palmer
Tony Palmer is an internationally acclaimed director of films about performers. He has won over forty international prizes for his work, including and especially television’s most coveted award, the Prix d’Italia; indeed, he is the only person to have won this prize three times, and has been honoured by the Italia Prize with a gala screening of his work.
About the Chair
Bill Lawrence
Bill Lawrence was Head of Film at the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford (formerly National Museum of Photography, Film & Television). He set up three of the city’s film festivals
Bradford International Film Festival, Bite the Mango Film Festival and Bradford Animation Festival. Bill was part of the team who set up the prestigious partnership board of Bradford: City of Film and was involved in
achieving the UNESCO designation in 2009. Subsequently he became Creative Director at Showroom Cinema, Sheffield, one of the UK’s leading independent cinemas. Bill is the founder of Reel Solutions and was part of the research team who helped set up the original film offer for Square Chapel Arts Centre.Bill is now on the board of the Cultured Squared/Bradford Literature.
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