Winter Gardens Film Festival 2016 preview

With less than a week to go until the first Winter Gardens Film Festival, altblackpool takes a look at the hot tickets at this new weekend event.

The Winter Gardens Film Festival is a new event that brings the best of modern and classic black and white film to the spectacular historical setting of the Blackpool Winter Gardens.

The main screenings will take place in the magnificent Opera House, which was opened by Jessie Matthews and Sonny Hale in 1939 as one of the most luxurious and sophisticated combination theatres and super cinemas of the pre-war period. There will also be screenings in the Grand Foyer, Derham Room as well as a fringe screening at the Grundy Art Gallery.

The programme for 2016 is varied, taking in a range of genres from classic musical, comic horror, silent classics and contemporary comedy, along with a range of event cinema.  It all starts with an evening of glamour, a screening of the new 4K restoration of the 1933 classic 42nd Street.  This will be preceded by a cocktail party in the art deco foyer of the Opera House and followed by a launch party in the Grand Foyer Bar with live music.

Another event to note is Cinema in the Dark: Carnival of Souls, a truly spine chilling experience which will be followed by a full screening of the film by candlelight. This takes place on Saturday evening from 6:30pm.  If that’s a bit too scary, on Saturday afternoon there’ll be a chance to play your ukulele along with George Formby in a screening of Keep Your Seats Please! (1935) 

Other highlights include:

• The breathtakingly beautiful, Oscar-winning Polish language film Ida (2014) by acclaimed director Pawel Pawlikowski. This film will screen at the Grundy Art Gallery and has been selected to compliment the current exhibition Companions.
• Man with a Movie Camera (1929) which is the best-known work of experimental documentary pioneer Dziga Vertov and is considered one the most influential films in cinema history. This silent film will be accompanied live on the restored Opera House Wurlitzer organ.
• Mel Brooks’ brilliant Young Frankenstein (1974), a nostalgic, hilarious spoof-tribute to classic horror films, and in particular, of Mary Shelley’s classic novel.

Most tickets have been priced at £5.00 for individual screenings (£7.50 for event screenings) to keep them accessible and if you want to see everything, a wrist band for the whole festival is only £30.00.  This allows you to see as many films as you want and gives you free tickets to the special events, including the launch party.

You can find more information on the festival website www.wintergardensfilmfestival.co.uk or their Facebook page.