LIAF 2019: Opening Night Gala feat. Female Figures – To Boldly Go + Q&A

Join us in this very special opening event at LIAF 2019 celebrating Female Figures and women making science fiction inspired, animated shorts. As accessible as the genre is, Sci-Fi is still viewed to be a ‘male’ genre. There are however many women artists who are as equally excited by the potential of scientific and technological innovation, and moreover, as artists excel at using technology in the creation of their work.

With this remarkable film programme, these animators imagine brave new worlds whilst placing women at the heart of their speculative stories. Our contributors, from across the planet choose to take their protagonist on interstellar travel, imagine the impact of an alien presence on our world or merge parallel universes, as a way in which to reflect on the way in which we navigate our own world. Given the tumultuous times we find ourselves in, where we are witnessing women’s rights being eroded, it is no surprise that in several fantastical and satirical works we’re presented with future scenarios where the more sinister side of authority, political ideology and surveillance are being challenged. Linked with this is the role that artificial intelligence, smart technology and synthetic biology might play in our futures, as considered in some of the perceptive and playful shorts you will find here.

Nevertheless, pioneer Mary Shelley wrote the sensational ‘Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus’ back in 1818, and this year the phenomenal Margaret Atwood launched her latest dystopian novel ‘The Testaments’. Women creating Sci-Fi is not a new phenomenon, but one we should revere.

The programme is curated by Abigail Addison at Animate Projects, who will lead a post-screening conversation with featured animators Katerina Athanasopoulou, Flóra Anna Buda, and Chiara Sgatti, plus experimental animation academic Lilly Husbands.

The LIAF Gala Screening has become a festival favourite!

Source： LIAF