The 17th Borderlines Film Festival starts this Friday March, screening on its opening night at nine separate venues, large and small.

Local venues taking part include Bromyard's Conquest Theatre; The Lady Emily Community Hall, Tarrington; Ledbury's Market Theatre and Malvern Theatres and The Courtyard in Hereford.

Festival Director, Naomi Vera-Sanso added: “Borderlines has always taken the issue of bringing quality and variety in terms of cinema to people who might not otherwise have access to it.

"It is one of the main reasons why the Festival was set up back in 2003."

At Malvern on March 1 the opening offering will be the Shakespeare biopic, All Is True, starring Kenneth Branagh, Judy Dench and Ian McKellen.

A critic for the Times said of this film: "It dodges the pitfalls of luvviedom and period camp to produce a fiercely intelligent and poignant drama about family, grief and the tyranny of genius”.

In 1613 Shakespeare is acknowledged as the greatest writer of his age. But when his renowned Globe Theatre burns to the ground, devastated, Shakespeare returns to Stratford where he must face a troubled past and a neglected family.

At the Conquest Theatre, the opening film on March 1 will be A Star is Born.

At the Lady Emily Community Hall, the opening movie, on March 2, will be Shoplifters.

There are subtitled screenings for the hard of hearing for the following films at The Courtyard Hereford: Colette, Vice, Beautiful Boy, All Is True, If Beale St Could Talk, and for Green Book and All Is True at Malvern Theatres. Again, please check the Borderlines and the venue websites for details.

Further details: www.borderlinesfilmfestival.org and from the venues themselves.