Ann Guedes, a remarkable woman who made remarkable films

Following on the film screenings of Cinema Action’s two films as part of the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders’ 40^th Anniversary Screenings, and a piece on the arts pages of the Morning Star last month, two other journals have published material on the screenings, and a further showing of the longer docunentary film - Class Struggle, film from the Clyde - is planned next week as part of Glasgow’s South Side Film Festival.

Ann Guedes, co-founder of Cinema Action,
who came to Glasgow in March for the UCS
Anniversary screenings of her films.

The prestigious Scottish Review has marked the film screenings with an interview with Ann Guedes here, and Scottish Left Review has a review of the film screenings in its latest here. As both these articles were written by me, albeit from different perspectives, I must apologise for any duplication.

The Showing of Class Struggle as part of the South Side film Festival will be in Govan’s Pearce Institute, appropriately enough, on Saturday 19 May at 3.00pm. The programme for the festival is here. Tickets for this screening are free, and available on the door. They are also available in advance from Young’s Interesting Books.

As Class Struggle hadn’t been seen in Scotland for many years prior to its screening in March, it is well worth  this second opportunity to see.

Work-in films get rare showing in Glasgow

Below is a media release issued last week announcing the screening of two unique films made during the UCS work-in. They are being screened between the 21-23 March, in Glasgow's Mitchell Theatre. Tickets are available from the Glasgow Concert Halls website www.glasgowconcerthalls.com.

Film screening flyers are available digitally
from chrisbartter@btinternet.com

Two contemporary films, shot by the only crew to be allowed into the Upper Clyde Shipyards during the Work-in are to be screened in Glasgow next month. And one of the original filmmakers, Ann Guedes, is flying in from Lisbon to take part in a series of panel discussions around the showings. This is the next event marking the 40 Anniversary of the famous Work-in.

The radical film collective, Cinema Action, formed by Ann, her deceased husband Eduardo Guedes and Gustav Lamche, followed the action around the Work-in as the Stewards took over the yards and prevented their run-down and butchery planned by the then Tory Government. The result was two unique films from the struggle. UCS 1 – a short (23 min) film depicting the workers strategy, how they gained community support for their campaign and took the fight right to the door of the Heath government; and Class Struggle: Film from the Clyde, a longer (83 min) documentary study of the Work-in, concentrating on the workers and shop stewards and their activity, running the yards and highlighting their fight to 'keep what is keepable'.

The films will be shown, along with a short history UCS 40^th Anniversary , produced by Kevin Buchanan of the STUC written by historian John Foster, and narrated by prominent actor and director, David Hayman, over three nights 21-23 March 2012 in Glasgow's Mitchell Theatre. Tickets are available via the Glasgow concert Halls website – www.glasgowconcerthalls.com.

David Hayman will also be taking part in one of the panel discussions (on Friday 23 March) along with Ann Guedes. He said

“These films remind me what an extraordinary time it was. Suddenly a new way was possible in our world due to the courage of a group of hard-working men and women who seized the day with boldness and imagination. People power in action.”

Jimmy Cloughley, was one of the UCS Joint Shop Stewards committee, and had special responsibility for Communications both inside and outside the yard. He said that allowing the film crew in, paid off.

“We wanted to ensure that the viewpoint of the workforce was recorded, and Cinema Action did that job admirably. It was an historic struggle and an historic victory, and these films give a real flavour of the times. They are truly unique.”

Stephen Farmer was an apprentice during the Work-in. He was given the job of taking the crew around and got to know them very well. He says

“Ultimately I was laid off once my apprenticeship finished, but Cinema Action kept me on to continue working with them! Too often with working class history things aren't well recorded, and I'm proud that I did my bit, both in taking part, and in helping to ensure this one was recorded.”

The Work-in lasted 16 months from July 1971-October 1972 and finished when all four of the yards threatened with closure won a future. The 40^th Anniversary celebrations have involved two sell-out concerts, an exhibition, a lecture by Professor John Foster and receptions given both by Glasgow City Council and in the Scottish Parliament. The events have been funded by UNITE, the union, who are one of the main inheritors of the unions involved in the Work-in.

40 years on, UCS continues to inspire the arts

This is the release issued on Wednesday 3 Jan with an update on the next events to mark the UCS@40 celebrations. These are the Celtic Connections Concert on 5 February, and the showing of the Cinema Action films made at the time of the Work-In. It lead to an article on Lothian Health's UNISON News twittersite and a Platform piece in the Scotsman. There was also a mention on the World Music Central website.

The 40^th Anniversary of Clydeside’s important Work-in has inspired more than politicians and trade unionists.  The UCS struggle that started back in 1971 also attracted the attention of many musicians, filmmakers, writers and other artists. Contemporary support came from the well-publicised bunch of roses (and £5,000) from John Lennon and Yoko Ono through to concerts featuring weel-kent local acts like Jimmie Macgregor, Arthur Johnstone and of course Billy Connolly. The inspiration the Work-in provided to artists forms the next theme of the UCS@40 celebrations that continue into the New Year (the final mass meeting of the work-in was in October 1972). 

As part of the Celtic Connections festival, a UCS Work-in 40^th anniversary concert is scheduled for February 5. Concentrating more on the music and artistic side, it will feature a number of stars from last October’s gala concert alongside new artists, and is again being produced by Fair Pley with musical direction by Rab Noakes and Hilary Brooks. Rab said

“Last October a number of musical and theatrical performers came together to a substantial night celebrating the trade unionists who developed and sustained the work in. This year we hope to continue that by celebrating the focus that the UCS work-in contributed, and continues to contribute to the civil and social conscientiousness of musicians, poets and artists.”

The line-up for the Fruitmarket venue, is still being finalised, but it will again feature the new commission for traditional band, brass, saxophone and cello, ‘Work-in at UCS - a celebration suite’ composed by prominent Scottish composer, Eddie McGuire of the Whistlebinkies.

Eddie wrote an original piece for saxophones in 1971, that he presented to Jimmy Reid. Forty years later, this one was presented to Jimmy Cloughley of the Joint Shop Stewards at the Gala Concert. Eddie says

“The spirit of resistance and dignity demonstrated by the workers in the yards inspired me at the time to compose a piece for saxophones which I handed to Jimmy Reid in December 1971. I was really honoured, 40 years on, to be asked by those veterans of the struggle to compose for them once more. I am inspired again - this time to rekindle that spirit so needed again today. We are keeping the links strong, with Maya Burman-Roy again playing the opening cello. Maya is the cello teacher to Jimmy Reid’s granddaughter!” 

Maintaining the link with the inspirations of the time, there will be appearances by Jimmie Macgregor, Arthur Johnstone and Alastair MacDonald. Actor and director, David Hayman is planned to contribute as is well-known poet Tom Leonard.

Later in the year, from the 21-23 March, the Mitchell Theatre plays host to two seminal films of the work-in, with a contribution from one of the filmmakers. During the work-in, the only film or TV crew allowed by the shop stewards to record the struggle as it happened, were the radical filmmakers, Cinema Action. Out of this access that covered press conferences, mass meetings, stewards meetings etc, two films, the short campaign film UCS1, and the longer Class Struggle: Film from the Clyde, were made. Both will be shown over a period of three days, and Ann Guedes, one of the film collective who made the film, will be available to take part in panel discussions.

Stephen Wright of FairPley said

“ We were pleased that the unique access that Cinema Action had to the Work-in is going to be available for people to see.  The innovative nature of the action, meant that both the techniques and the politics were important to document. We hope we have succeeded and we’re looking forward to bringing the films to a whole new audience.”