Enjoy short films on Duxford village trail

A leisurely stroll through the picturesque village of Duxford can now be enjoyed with accompanying short films – accessed by QR codes – courtesy of Duxford-based filmmaker Tristan Marshall.

The unique Duxford Film Trail has been organised in collaboration with – and was funded by – the parish council, as part of its art fund.

It comprises four QR code signs placed around the village, each linking to a short film set and shot in that location.

Each film ends with a set of walking instructions to the next film in the trail so people can scan each code and follow them around the village.

The videos can also be viewed on Duxford Parish Council’s YouTube channel, although Tristan believes the best way to enjoy the films is to visit the village and scan the QR codes on your phone.

“That way you see a lot of the village,” he noted, “the trail leads you past some nice cafés, for example, so you can see a bit of the village and turn it into quite a nice day trip.”

Tristan, who wrote and directed all of the films, continued: “Duxford Parish Council had an art fund and they spent some of it on a local art project in the village.

“They advertised that the remaining money was still up for grabs. They encouraged local artists to send them their ideas, do a bit of a pitch, and I had this idea of a trail.”

It starts at St John’s Church and at the end of each film, those following the trail will be directed along a roughly circular route around the village.

The entire route, including the watching of the films, takes around 30 to 40 minutes, and the final film is about one of the books inside the Duxford phone box.

“It was a really fun project. It was a nice opportunity to work with some fellow local creatives,” said Tristan, who recently finished a master’s course in directing. He primarily shoots corporate and promotional films and has worked for Cambridge TV as a volunteer.

All of the films were shot in Duxford. “We wanted to leave the airfield out of it, because when most people think of Duxford they think of the Imperial War Museum,” explained Tristan, who said he was very grateful for all the help he received.

“This project was very much geared towards getting a bit more publicity for the village itself – because there’s a lot of great history here as well, some really nice old churches and some lovely architecture.

“There are some really nice green spaces as well, so when we were making the films I chose locations that I felt showed off the village, and then I would come up with a bit of a story.”

The trail, which has received a lot of positive feedback, is running now.