The Arts: Film - Locarno on the cutting edge Forget the glitz of Cannes. Locarno is the film buffs' festival, with a British debut, a brilliant Icelandic sex comedy and a surprise from China. By Laurence Green: [FOREIGN Edition]

THE 53RD Locarno International Film Festival has just ended, with something of a bang. The film which won its top prize - the Golden Leopard - just happens to have been banned in its native China since it was made four years ago.

This "surprise film", discovered at the last minute by enthusiastic festival director Marco Muller - who is relinquishing his post this year - joined the 18 competition entries from countries as diverse as France, Hong Kong, Iceland, Britain, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Japan and the US.

The 11-day event, long regarded as a festival for film buffs, eschews the glitz and glamour of Cannes or Venice in favour of a more personal approach, and places the emphasis on low-budget, independent cinema.

Minimalist would be an apt description for Jamie Thraves's directorial debut The Low Down, the only British entry in the festival. Frank is a restless young man in his late twenties whose life revolves around his friends and his work. He is aware that he needs to move his life into another gear, but unsure how to go about it. An aspiring artist, he makes props for commercial TV shows - he'd like to concentrate on his art, but...