Kicked off in 1996 by Trainspotting and mainstreamed by the international success of Bean and The Full Monty the following year, New British Cinema emerged at the end of eighteen years of Conservative government and the election of New Labour. In 1997, riding an unmistakable sense of national revival and confidence, a new generation of British filmmakers arrived center stage, drawing energy and momentum from the pervasive cultural ferment of the mid-nineties manifested in such diverse phenomena as Britpop, the Young British Artists scene, and New Lad culture. The key films in this new wave are the stylistic and spiritual progeny of Ken Loach and Mike Leigh, but though the docudrama-naturalist tradition (invariably termed "gritty") is New British Cinema's ground zero, that's not the whole story. Some filmmakers have refracted this style through genre (while others) have reacted against it in the idiosyncratic tradition of stylized personal vision diversely manifested by Jarman (and) Greenaway. Nineties British film has also advanced in several other respects: the emergence of distinctive regional voices, and of a strong cadre of women directors. And the explosion of short filmmaking in Britain in the early nineties has fueled the new talent boom. This series brings you a selection of some of the most vital and distinctive new cinema of the past few years, work that has been overlooked by American distributors looking for the next Four Weddings and a Funeral.-Gavin Smith, curator (condensed from a longer essay)This series was curated by Gavin Smith and Kent Jones of The Film Society of Lincoln Center.Changing the Guard is a copresentation of The Film Society of Lincoln Center and Joy Pereths and John Tilley of ProActive Marketing, with major support from The British Council. The series is sponsored by Interview magazine, Hugo Boss, and Bombay Sapphire Gin. British Airways has provided festival transportation.Thanks to: Paul Howson and Satwant Gill, The British Council (UK); David Blagbrough, The British Council (Washington, DC); Lizzie Francke, John Houlton, The British Film Office; Jeffrey Ling, British Consul General, New York; Shannon Reed, British Airways; Cherryl Brazier, The British Tourist Authority; Andrea Klein, BFI; Mary Davies, New British Expo and the Edinburgh International Film Festival; and Elliot Schneider, Schneider Graphics. Friday February 11, 2000