A London-founded independent film organisation, started by Elliot Grove, that runs the Raindance Film Festival and film training courses.
Raindance is an independent film organisation based on a simple idea: that independent filmmakers deserve a stage. It runs the Raindance Film Festival, which Wikipedia describes as devoted to promoting independent filmmaking, and it runs film school courses for people who want to learn how to make films. A 2013 article says it had grown a community of filmmakers around these two activities. Its founder is also behind the British Independent Film Awards, which he started in 1998, and the Independent Film Trust.
Elliot Grove, a Canadian-born screenwriter and producer, founded Raindance, and Wikipedia gives both 1992 and 1993 as the festival's start date. A 2013 Arts Professional article says he began with £150 of his own money, and promoted the first events with faxed invitations and flyers. The opening-night film, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, sold out, and its producer later asked the festival to host the film's European premiere. Mr Grove has written books on filmmaking, including Raindance Writers Lab and Raindance Producer's Lab. We found no formal mission statement.
Raindance began in London and the 2013 article says it has since opened offices in Toronto, New York, Budapest, Berlin and Brussels. That is a dated claim and we could not confirm those offices today. The same article says festival attendance rose 40% in 2012 compared with 2011, that the festival has worked with directors such as Christopher Nolan and Edgar Wright, and that training course numbers rose 35% year on year. These figures are old and come from the organisation's own account.
On culture, the article stresses community and working with talented people, and describes a scrappy start built on networking rather than marketing budgets. It also describes making film education widely available, with a partnership that sold Saturday classes at a low price and drew more than 10,000 bookings. It names no other staff, so we cannot describe the day-to-day team. A newer festival report not read here suggests Mr Grove remains the public face.
A festival and film school like this employs programmers who select films, festival producers, events and ticketing staff, marketing and press officers, tutors and course organisers, and people who run the online side. It is a good fit if you love film, enjoy organising events or want to help new filmmakers. The organisation's own website lists courses and any current roles.
Website: raindance.org
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