Writer & Director – Short Fiction & Art Films
2016 – Current: Writer & Director – The Fallen Circus – Chapter 2 & 3 – (30 mins)Parts 2 and 3 of a short fiction, commissioned by National Centre For Circus Arts, funded by Arts Council England, (currently in post-production,pilot for television/on-line series).
2015: Writer & Director – The Fallen Circus – Chapter 1 – (8 min 45 sec)
Part One of a short fiction commissioned by National Centre For Circus Arts, funded by Arts Council England, Nomination at Underwire Festival and screened at LSFF 2016.
2015: Director – Al Hees – (24 mins)
A children’s short film written by Issam Bu Khaled, produced by Serious Pictures for Al Rayyan Television for broadcast on Qatar National Day 2015.
2011: Writer & Director – Strange Gold Shoes – (14 mins)
A short fiction made for the NIKE78 exhibition, produced by 2AM Films, nominated for ‘The British Arrows Television and Advertising Craft Awards’.
2009: Director – Betwixt and Between
A moving portrait commissioned by Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Moves Festival and BBC Big Screens. Premiered at Sadler’s Wells Theatre & screened on BBC Big Screens in cities throughout the UK. (looped installation).
2008: Writer & Director – The Forgotten Circus – (22mins 33 sec)
A short film commissioned by National Centre For Circus Arts, funded by Arts Council England, produced by MJW Productions. Featured on the EP/DVD Release ‘From The Circus to The Sea’ – A collaboration with The Irrepressibles, screened at over 100 film and arts festivals world wide with over 2,500,000 hits on youtube.
2006: Director – Film – (6 mins)
A Channel 4 Commission for ‘4Dance’, produced by MJW Productions, screened at numerous festivals worldwide, featured on the British Council’s DVD compilation ‘Forward motion’-‘The Best of British Screen Dance’, nominated for the ‘IMZ Best Choreography on Screen Award’.
2005: Director – Shelly Love Films – (4 x 3 mins)
A Channel 4 acquisition, 4 x 3 minute reworks of ‘POD’, ‘Delia and George’ and ‘Scratch’, produced by MJW productions.
2004: Director – POD – (8 mins)
Funded by Arts Council England; screened at numerous festivals worldwide, broadcast on Channel 4 and Brooklyn Access T.V ‘Move the Frame’ – New York.
2004: Director – Delia and George – (7mins 49 sec)
The Place Dance Film Commission; broadcast on Channel 4’s programme ‘4Dance’; and on Channel 4’s 3 minute wonder slot, screened at numerous festivals worldwide.
2003: Director – Scratch – (6 mins)
A CAPTURE – Arts Council England commission; broadcast on Channel 4, screened at numerous festivals worldwide and winner of the ‘IMZ Best Choreography on Screen Award’.
2002: Director – Little White Bird – (6 mins)
Funded by South East Arts, broadcast on Channel 4’s programme ‘4Dance’ and screened at numerous festivals worldwide.
2001: Director – Red Dolly – (4 mins)
A dance film, broadcast on Channel 4’s programme ‘4Dance’ and winner of the ‘Open Forum Award’ at The Place, Dance on Screen festival.
Director – Commercials
2013: Director – The Artist – (1min 26 sec)
A video portrait celebrating Mhudi a Qatari female Artist, produced by Serious Pictures for Qatar National Day.
2013: Director – The Poet – (1min 33 sec)
A video portrait celebrating Mariam a Qatari female poet, produced by Serious Pictures for Qatar National Day.
2013: Director – The Runner – (1min 22 sec)
A video portrait celebrating Noor a Qatari female sprinter, produced by Serious Pictures for Qatar National Day.
2013: Director – The Footballer – (1 min)
A video portrait celebrating Dana, a Qatari female footballer , produced by Serious Pictures for Qatar National Day.
2010: Director: BBC I PLAYER – (4 x 40 seconds)
4 x promotional films for broadcast on BBC and iplayer – produced by Red Bee Media.
Director – Music Promos
2009: Director – Tommy Sparks – ‘Miracle’ – Island Records – Crossroads Films.
2009: Director – Ladyhawke -‘Magic’ – Universal Records – Crossroads Films.
2008: Director – The Irrepressibles – ‘In This Shirt’ – Universal Records.
2007: Director -Turin Brakes – ‘Dark on Fire’ – Virgin Records – Drawpictures.
2007: Director – Charlotte Hatherley – ‘Siberia’ – Little Sister Records – Drawpictures.
2006: Director – Skin – ‘Purple’ – V2 Records – Drawpictures.
2006: Director – Betty Curse – ‘God This Hurts’ – Island Records – Drawpictures.
2006: Director – Fionn Regan -‘Penny in the Slot’ – Bella Union Records – Drawpictures.
2006: Director – Thirteen Senses – ‘All The Love In your Hands’ – Mercury Records – Drawpictures.
Television Directing Credits
2015: Director – Al Hees – Al Rayan
A children’s short film (24mins) broadcast on Qatar National Television during the Qatar National Day celebrations, produced by Serious Pictures.
2010: Director – BBC iplayer
4 x promotional films for broadcast on BBC and BBC iplayer, produced by Red Bee Media.
2006: Director – Film – Channel 4
A Channel 4 Commission for ‘4 Dance’- Produced by MJW Productions.
2005: Director – Delia and George – Channel 4
A Channel 4 acquisition of a 3 minute rework of the original film, produced by MJW Productions.
2005: Director – POD – Channel 4
A Channel 4 acquisition of a 3 minute rework of the original film, produced by MJW Productions.
2005: Director – Scratch – Channel 4
A Channel 4 acquisition of a 3 minute rework of the original film, produced by MJW Productions.
2005: Director – POD – Channel 4
A Channel 4 acquisition of a 3 minute rework of the original film, produced by MJW Productions.
2004: Director – Little White Bird – Channel 4
A Channel 4 acquisition for the programme ‘4Dance’ produced by MJW Productions.
2002: Director – Red Dolly – Channel 4
A Channel 4 acquisition for the programme ‘4Dance’ produced MJW Productions.
FILM FESTIVALS / DANCE / CIRCUS / MUSIC / ARTS FESTIVALS / GROUP EXHIBITIONS / ARTS INSTITUTIONS
Made Festival of Dramatic Arts – Norrlandsoperan – Umea – Sweden
Coreana Museum of Art – Exhibition Dance and Contemporary Art – Seoul – Korea
Singapore Arts Festival – Shelly Love Retrospective Programme – Singapore
ReelDance Festival – Shelly Love Retrospective Programme – Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Adelaide, Cairns, Alice Springs – Australia
Clermont – Ferrand International Film Festival – France
London Short Film Festival – ICA – London
Underwire Film Festival – Hackney PIcture House – London
Branchage Film Festival – Official Selection – Jersey
Torino GLBT Film Festival – Gorilla Perfume’s Scented Cinema – Torino – Italy
ICA – Birds Eye View – Bird Watching – Female Director Showcase – London
William Morris Gallery – WMG Late Event – ‘Childs Play’ – London
The Rich Mix Cinema – Bethnal Green – London
Danish Film Institute
Flimmer Film Festival – Norrkoping, Sweden
Short and Sweet – Short film Screening – Café 1001 – London
The Devils Theatre – Short Film Summer Series – Missoula – USA
Brighton Festival – Lighthouse – Retrospective Programme – South East Dance – Brighton
Sadler’s Wells Theatre – Dance Programme – London
Sadler’s Wells Theatre – Moves 09 Screening – London
Roundhouse – Turning Point International Circus Festival – London
Zircus – Brief Permenance – Barrows International Outdoor Circus Festival – Cumbria
Neoburlesque Festival – Performance & media arts – Copenhagen, Denmark.
Dance on Screen Festival – The Place – London
Jumping Frames – Dance Film Festival – Hong Kong & Guangzhou – China
Cinedans Tour – Dance Film Festival – Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Kunming – China
Videodans – Dance on Screen Festival – Athens, Greece
Buenos Aires International Dance festival – Buenos Aires
Scotland Dance Film Festival – Dance House – Glasgow, Scotland
Dance Moments – Dance Film Festival – Krakow – Poland
Cinedans – Dance Film Festival – Amsterdam
Agite y Sirva – Videodanza – On tour 9 cities throughout Mexico
Cinedanse – Screening & live performance by The Irrepressibles – Montreal – Canada
Screen Dance Festival – Bulgaria
FLOTA – film festival – Slovenia
Contemporary Dance Festival – Mexico
Video Dance Project – Athens – Greece
Intervening Domain – Hong-Gah Museum in Taipei – Taiwan
Moves Festival – Manchester – England
Dance On Camera – Film Society of Lincoln Center – New York – USA
Front@ Contemporary Dance Festival – Flota Institute – Slovenia
Shoot – Dance on Screen Festival – Stockholm – Sweden
Shambala Festival – The Lost Picture Show – ‘Myths, Legends and Fairytales’ – England
Brighton Festival – Lighthouse – Shelly Love Retrospective Programme – South East Dance
Brighton Festival – Corn Exchange – Brighton – England
Hackney Wicked – Arts Festival – London
Music is Freedom – Songs for Mindcare – Jeff Liberty Charity Festival – Canada
Shunt Vaults – Transcience – Group Exhibition – London
Roundhouse – From Light To Dust – Group Exhibition – London
Higher Pitch Exhibition – Group Show – Cutting Edge Female Artists – London
Theater op de Markt – From Light to Dust – Belgium
Tsinder Ash Presents – Unritual – Limewharf – Hackney – London
Hackney With A Twist – L’entrepot – London
Lasalle College of The Arts – Singapore
Site – Production Centre For Performing Arts – Stockholm – Sweden
Esat – School of The Arts – Paris – France
National centre For Circus Arts – London
University of Dance & Circus – Stockholm – Sweden
Video Forum – London Contemporary Dance School – Retrospective Programme – London
St Martins in The Fields – screening & performance by The Irrepressibles – London
The Southbank Centre – screening & performance by The Irrepressibles – London
The Vauxhall Tavern – screening and performance by The Irrepressibles – London
Shelly Love originally studied contemporary dance theatre at Laban Trinity and worked as a contemporary dancer and choreographer before she turned her hand to filmmaking.
During her transition into filmmaking she created a number of movement based works for the screen. Her first experimental short film was picked up and broadcast on Channel 4’s programme ‘4Dance’ then two short films followed, ‘Little White Bird’ supported by South East Arts and ‘Scratch’ an Arts Council England commission. Both films were broadcast on Channel 4 and ‘Scratch’ toured as part of the ‘Capture’ international touring programme. In 2005 ‘Scratch’ received the prestigious ‘IMZ Best Choreography on Screen Award’.
In 2002 Shelly was invited to become an Associate Artist at The Place, London Contemporary Dance School, the UK’s premiere centre for contemporary dance. During her residency which spanned from 2002-2004, she developed her artistic practice and established her unique approach to creating screen-based work. Her time as Associate Artist at The Place culminated in the creation of three new works entitled ‘The Backwards Series’.
In this series of films the choreography and narratives were created through a physical devising process involving the creative exploration of inexpensive house hold products such as newspaper, bin bags and clingfilm. These materials then became kinetic soft sculptures and an integral part of the choreographic language and narrative.
The first film in this series, ‘Delia and George’ is a playful love story inspired by the mating rituals of birds and humans. The choreography, a playful to and fro dialogue between the couple, made up of every day gestures and fleeting glances. Shelly performs in the film playing ‘Delia’ alongside Gerard Bell who plays ‘George’. ‘Delia and George’ was funded by ‘The Place Dance Film Commission’, has screened at numerous dance film and arts festivals worldwide and has been broadcast on Channel 4.
‘POD’ is the second film in this series which features four characters waiting in a hospital waiting room. When one of the characters attempts to cover up a hole in the wall, a strange force is suddenly unleashed upon them. ‘POD’ has screened at numerous festivals worldwide, has been broadcast on Channel 4. ‘POD’ was made with support from Arts Council England.
The third in ‘The Backwards Series’ is ‘Film’, a Channel 4 commission for the programme ‘4Dance’. The setting for the film is a factory somewhere far far away where the factory workers test the qualities and properties of cling film, literally. ‘Film’ was nominated for the ‘IMZ Best Screen Choreography Award’ and is included in the British Councils DVD compilation ‘Forward Motion’ – The Best of British Screen Dance’, which has toured extensively worldwide.
In order to further her experience as a filmmaker, Shelly turned her hand to directing music promos, where she garnered much attention and award within the industry as a director, working with artists such as Skin, Ladyhawke, Turin Brakes, The Irrepressibles and Fionn Regan.
In 2008, Shelly was invited to become Artist in Residence at the National Centre For Circus Arts, the premier centre for circus arts in London where she was asked to devise and direct a work for the screen, working with their circus degree students. The result of this unique project is a film called, ‘The Forgotten Circus’, a visually sumptuous poetic feast where forms melt into the world of a lost circus. This project was supported with funding from Arts Council England’s Grants for The Arts Scheme.
‘The Forgotten Circus’ is set to a soundtrack, performed by The Irrepressibles and includes their hit single ‘In This Shirt’. Further to this collaboration ‘The Forgotten Circus’ was released as a limited edition EP/DVD box set with The Irrepressibles, entitled ‘From The Circus To The Sea’.
To date ‘The Forgotten Circus’ has screened at over 100 festivals worldwide and has garnered a dedicated following, with over 2 million hits on youtube for the trailer of the film. A number of themed events have sprung up in European Cities, created in response to the film, such a themed parties, performances and fashion shows. In 2014 ‘Gorilla Perfume’ chose to showcase ‘The Forgotten Circus’ in their Scented Cinema at the GLBT Film Festival in Turin, Italy. As the audience arrived at the event they were greeted with flavoured edible tickets, and dancers tumbled forgotten scents throughout the auditorium.
In 2009 Shelly became Artist in Residence at ‘Moves Festival’ in Manchester and she was commissioned by Sadler’s Wells Theatre and BBC Big Screens to deliver a work based on her research. During the residency Shelly worked with the performer Polly Wright, also known as the singer songwriter ‘The Tigers Bride’. The outcome of this residency is a moving portrait inspired by 18th Century portraiture entitled ‘Betwixt and Between’. The work in progress, version of this work was shown at Sadler’s Wells Theatre and screened on the BBC’s Big Screens in a number of cities throughout the UK.
In order to further her work as a director within the industry Shelly then signed to 2AM for commercial representation. Whilst at 2AM she directed 4 promotional films for BBC’s iplayer and wrote and directed a short film entitled ‘Strange Gold Shoes’ for ‘Nike 78’, an exhibition of creative ideas inspired by the Nike trainer. For the exhibition Shelly was given a pair of nike trainers with a waffle style sole to serve as inspiration for her creation. In response she wrote a short film about an old couple, Bella and Bob who live on a slippery slope. Bella is a shoe maker and her mission is invent the ultimate shoe, a shoe that will help them to overcome the perils of the slippery slope. Strange Gold Shoes was nominated for ‘The British Arrows Television and Advertising Craft Awards’.
In 2010, marking Shelly’s contribution to the dance film genre, ReelDance Festival, Australia programmed a retrospective of her work entitled ‘The Imaginings Of Shelly Love’. This retrospective programme toured throughout Australia including Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Cairns, Alice Springs and Brisbane. Shelly was invited to the festival as their international guest and asked to deliver Dance On Screen workshops and talks alongside her screenings in each city. Her visit to Australia was supported by: The British Council and the Australian Arts Council. ‘The Imaginings of Shelly Love’ programme was reviewed in the Sydney herald as ‘The Highlight of the festival..’.
The same year, Singapore Arts Festival also screened a Retrospective programme of Shelly’s work and she was invited to Singapore by the festival to be their international guest. Her visit to Singapore was supported by The British Council. In 2012 Shelly was invited back to Singapore to become Artist in Residence at Lasalle College of The Arts. During her two week residency she collaborated with 20 dance and video arts students to make a dance piece for the screen, the resulting work, ‘Arrow’ was screened at the Esplanade Theatre as part of the Singapore Dance Festival.
In 2013 Shelly was invited back to the National Centre for Circus Arts and asked to create another work for the screen working with their circus artists. This major project was funded by Arts Council England and supported by National Centre For Circus Arts and Roundhouse. The resulting work is ‘The Fallen Circus’, a 45 minute fantasy story starring a young girl Agnes, who falls from the sky and lands at the feet of a friendly mute juggler who tells her the story of The Fallen Circus. The entire film was shot against green screen, and comes to life through art work and special effects created by Zeroh Design. Chapter One of The Fallen Circus has screened at various film festivals worldwide. Post production on Chapter Two of ‘The Fallen Circus’ will be underway soon.
In 2013 Shelly joined Serious Pictures for commercial representation. Whilst at Serious she has directed a number of films for the client: QND, including four video portraits celebrating Qatari women and which feature; a female artist, poet, footballer and sprinter. Recently Shelly directed a children’s short film for QND, working with a cast of children who’s dreams were depicted theatrically through the use of shadow puppetry, black light theatre techniques and theatrical flying.
Shelly is currently working to develop future art and film projects, including a long form fiction.