Film Archives - Blackpool Social Club

08 Mar

Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival returns to Blackpool on its 20th Anniversary tour

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsFilmAunty Social, Blackpool Film Festival, Film, Iris Prize, LGBTQ

The 20th anniversary celebrations of the Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival will honour lesbian-focused films in this year's tour of 25 towns, including Blackpool.From forbidden kisses to real-life revolution, Blackpool Film Festival and Aunty Social will be welcoming Iris on Tour to Arc Cinema, Blackpool on Wednesday 11 March 2026 for an evening of fabulous LGBTQ+ film from the Cardiff-based film festival. The evening’s screenings will include the 2025 Iris Prize winner, One Day This Kid, directed by Alexander Farah and Best British winner Chris Urch, for his film Blackout, giving audiences outside Cardiff the chance to see award-winning queer…

06 Dec

It’s time to get CAMP AT THE CINEMA with Blackpool Film Festival

Catherine Mugonyi0 CommentsFilm, Guidecinema, Film, performance

Blackpool Film Festival heads to the ARC Cinema (formerly Backlot) on Thursday 11 December for an evening of high drama and huge emotions at a special screening of Paul Verhoeven’s SHOWGIRLS (1995). Harry Clayton-Wright. Photo by Lee Baxter Using the much loved sensibility of camp, Harry Clayton-Wright and Catherine Mugonyi created Camp at the Cinema , a live cinema event that highlights iconic over the top moments on the silver screen. Audiences will be treated to a funny, engaging and insightful cinema talk that explores the idea of camp and shares examples of its presence in the world of film…

27 Sep

BFI Film Academy back to support Young Filmmakers

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsFilm, OpportunitiesBFI, Blackpool, Film, filmmaking, young people

Aunty Social is looking for 10 young people aged 16-19 from the Blackpool area to take part in the BFI Film Academy programme and kickstart their film careers. This autumn community arts organisation Aunty Social is helping to train and inspire the next generation of UK filmmakers and production crew. The British Film Institute’s Film Academy programme will start in October and is designed to support participants to develop the skills and industry knowledge needed to kickstart a successful career in the screen industries. This filmmaking opportunity helps young people to take a film from ‘script to screen’. From taking…

09 Jul

Exhibition review: Donkey Work – Grundy Art Gallery

David Simper0 CommentsGuide, Visual Arts & ExhibitionsArt, art exhibition, donkeys, Film, grundy art gallery, horses, painting, sculp

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=""] The Grundy Art Gallery's new summer show is now open. Donkey Work and Horse Power are two exhibitions that examine artists' representations of the humble donkey and horse, inviting visitors to see our equine companions in a new light. David Simper caught the service 61 bus to Talbot Road to explore the exhibitions. [/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=""]These exhibitions set out to show how artists have used donkeys and horses as symbols of labour, leisure, value and wealth. It features a number of renowned contemporary artists, including Sir Peter Blake and Marina Abramovic on loan from regional and national institutions, supported…

07 Apr

Connect & Collaborate: Blackpool Filmmaker Social

Kelsey Draper0 CommentsFilm, Guide, OpportunitiesFilm, film festival, filmmaking

Following the popularity of their previous networking event, Blackpool Film Festival is hosting another exciting filmmaker mixer, this time at the Rhythm & Brew Room. Networking is a vital element in building a successful career in independent filmmaking. Whether it’s forging new connections, learning from industry professionals or assembling a team of creatives to bring a project to life, attending industry events offers invaluable opportunities to develop a filmmakers career and unlock new career possibilities. However, breaking into these circles can often feel like a challenge. While film festivals and networking events are growing in number across the UK, they…

19 Jan

Short Film: Queers in Blackpool

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsFilmFilm, film festival, filmmaking

Blackpool’s newest multi-artform festival, Queer Amusements, lit up the North-West from April to September in 2024. To mark its culmination, a new short film from James Barnett (best known for his viral videos of parents Michael and Teresa on his channel @makemeaoffer) shines a light on the people who were involved, the town it took place in, and what happens next. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsadGEc4HbA&list=TLGGgNrWpRLYaJoxOTAxMjAyNQ&t=30s Drawing on interviews with participating artists and collaborators, performance footage, photography and playfully camp glances at Blackpool’s long histories of entertaining, Queers in Blackpool acts as a snapshot of a festival which looks to bring new art and…

26 Oct

Preview: Blackpool Film Festival – Scarred for Life

Louise Ashcroft0 CommentsFilm, Theatre, Dance & PerformanceBacklot, Blackpool, Film, film festival, filmmaking

An evening that celebrates the terrifying popular culture of the 1970s and 1980s comes to Blackpool Film Festival at The Backlot Cinema on Sunday 3rd November at 7pm. Scarred For Life sees writers Stephen Brotherstone and Dave Lawrence taking to the stage to discuss the TV, films, music, comics, books, adverts – and even sweets – that blighted their childhoods. So be prepared for a no-holds-barred examination of Worzel Gummidge, Doctor Who, Noseybonk, the Usborne Book of Ghosts, Horror Top Trumps, and the bovver boy skinheads from the 1980s Weetabix adverts! It's an evening inspired by their three hit books.…

21 Oct

Preview: Blackpool Film Festival

Louise Ashcroft0 CommentsFilm, GuideBacklot, Blackpool, festival, Film, film festival, filmmaking

Capturing young and local talent, premiering leading ladies, and showcasing Blackpool’s heritage, art and queer culture, Blackpool Film Festival announces its full programme for 2024. Leading ladies are called to the front this autumn with a series of femme-focussed films, events and workshops as a major strand of Blackpool Film Festival's 2024 programme. Warming up to the main weekend of events, the festival kicks off quite literally at 2.30pm at Blackpool Sixth Form College on Thursday 24th October. Sugar, Spice and Getting in Fights is a stunt workshop for women and non binary people. Led by an experienced stunt performer,…

25 Apr

Blackpool Film Festival evolves for 2024

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsFilm, GuideFilm, film festival, filmmaking

An established film festival in Blackpool has had a name change. Blackpool Film Festival sets out its plans to bring diverse cinema to wider audiences and provide opportunities for locals with ambitions to work in film exhibition. To celebrate its 10th anniversary, the former Winter Gardens Film Festival has been renamed Blackpool Film Festival (BFF) to reflect its ambitions to become a town-wide celebration of independent and diverse cinema. It is already offering a rare career opportunity while a preview weekend on 27th-28th April will feature inaugural events championing young and queer filmmakers. Founded in 2014, the Winter Gardens Film…

30 Sep

Film Review: Broker at Fylde Film Society

Mully0 CommentsFilmfamilies, Film, the island

How do you create sympathy for characters who sell babies on the black market? That’s the central question at the heart of Broker. Fylde Film Society continues on its mission to bring world cinema to our coast with South Korean drama Broker. Written and directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, who people are most likely to know from his award-winning film Shoplifters, this movie tells the story of two men who illegally sell babies on the adoption black market. Seems a grim premise when laid out like that without any context, but the film and its characters carry more benevolence then you…