From Page To Screen 2025 | Meet the Curator
We are delighted to introduce you to Andrew Chater, the curator of our From Page to Screen, film festival for 2025.
Andrew is a Professor in the Faculty of English at the University of Southern California and a passionate enthusiast for the American novel.
Andrew describes himself as “a contemporary educator who creates inspiring journeys through past and present cultures”. At USC, Andrew has pioneered a series of immersive learning experiences for students, based on the idea of exploring literature on location – an experience he calls ‘bookpacking’.
Andrew is also distinguished writer, producer, director and presenter of historical documentaries, and the winner of six BAFTA awards.
So what can we expect from the 2025 festival?
Andrew says, “I was initially drawn to From Page to Screen because of its unique focus on adaptation and want to firmly root this year’s festival in the adaptation of books into films. It feels like a great way to combine my deep interest in the American novel and enduring love of all things film.”
Andrew continues, “at this moment in time, it also feels particularly vital to explore American culture and writing and examine how these have been expressed in cinematic form. To what extent has the way that America portrays itself on film become the America that we see today? Does fiction express reality, or have fictional tropes expressed in American books and films evolved into a kind of ‘fictional’ version of America, but now playing out in real life?
American Fictions is therefore my theme for From Page to Screen 2025.
It will be a journey that takes in stories of rugged individuals, of the American dream and corporate dystopia, of politics and power, but also of alternative narratives, gentler and more subtle. We might not fully get to the bottom of things, but let’s unpack the box and throw things around a little and of course, watch some great films adapted from great American writing.”