First Annual Philip K. Dick Film Fest in NYC

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Parent Category: Film Festivals

Category: Previews

Published on Thursday, 08 November 2012 16:08

Written by Renzo Adler

The invocation of coveted authors is an effective method of purporting importance.

Director Francis Ford Coppola didn’t just make Dracula, he made Bram Stoker’s Dracula! Even though Henry Selick was the director, his 1993 stop-motion animated classic was called Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. The same goes for fledgling film festivals.

The inaugural Philip K. Dick Film Festival (December 7 – 9, 2012) at the Williamsburg indieScreen theater (289 Kent Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211) has the broad mission statement of promoting, “original or adapted material inspired by the works of Philip K. Dick, Jorge Luis Borges, Italo Calvino, Robert Anton Wilson, Franz Kafka and others who have explored the metaphysical, the eerie, in all its manifestations. “

The writing of Philip K. Dick has taken sci-fi fans on the proverbial walk on the wild side for generations. While cinematic endevors to adapt his works have yielded results both momentous (Blade Runner) and regretable (most of the movies that are not Blade Runner), he still holds a hallowed place in the sci-fi cultural pantheon.

While still accepting entries, the festival has confirmed screenings of The Last Push, starring Aliens alum Lance Henriksen, and Radio Free Albemuth starring Alanis Morrissette (who also played God in Dogma) and Twilight's Ashley Greene. It is based on the posthumously published Dick novel.

Out-of-competition films being shown include:

• Juan of the Dead
• Sleep Dealer
• The Mist in the Palm Trees
• The Final Equation

The festival also includes extensive selections of panels and discussions.

Dr. Ronald Mallett Ph.D’s talk, "Is Science Fiction the Science of the Future," examines the prophetic nature of sci-fi.

John Alan Simon (director of Radio Free Albemuth) leads a discussion on Philip K. Dick’s writings and their relation to “gnostic phenomena many writers have experience” -- whatever that means.

While clearly an upstart, This festival is looking to fill some mighty big shoes in cinema and literature. Perhaps someday the festival will play host to the next Minority Report or Blade Runner, but until then, there’s Lance Henriksen.

To learn more, go to: http://www.thephilipkdickfilmfestival.com

The Philip K. Dick Film Festival
December 7 – 9, 2012 

indieScreen
289 Kent Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11211

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