Londoners are invited to come together to celebrate the city’s cultural diversity as part of a new monthly film festival in Brixton.
Each month ‘South Social meets the World’ chooses a different country to explore in a night of film, food and music at Brixton East 1871 on Barrington Road.
The event, which is a spin-off of the South Social Film Festival, kicked-off last month with a celebration of Brazilian culture featuring a premiere of Sandra Kogut’s latest film, Campo Grande, and Bossa Nova music from Andre Luz.
Founder Paola Melli said: “South Social is all about celebrating cultural diversity and showing Londoners the different possibilities and cultures our foreign communities have to offer.”
Paola, who moved to Brixton from Italy about three years ago, said the creation of the festival was a culmination of a lifelong passion for promoting diversity.
She said: “I live in south London and I really felt like this was something I needed to do to give back to the community by getting people interested in other cultures.”
Paola said she aims to host a mini-festival each month, with celebrations of Middle Eastern, Latin American and Turkish cultures planned before the start of September.
She also hopes to organise another full version of the South Social Film Festival for November after last year’s seminal event was a success.
Paola believes the positive reception the event has received so far is proof the concept can go from strength to strength.
She said: “What we are doing right now is creating a new cinema community – one that has got people interested and engaged with diversity.
“We’re also helping people to be more understanding of different cultures and that’s proof that our formula works.”
For more details visit www.southsocialfilmfestival.co.uk
Images courtesy of South Social meets the World, with thanks
