The Film Society of Lincoln Center announces the complete details for the Convergence section of the 55th New York Film Festival, which will take place September 29 - October 1. The sixth edition of the highly anticipated annual program delves into the world of immersive storytelling via interactive experiences, featuring virtual reality, augmented reality, live labs and demos, and more.
"Our hope each year is to provide a forum for creators to show off their work to audiences who are ready and willing to play, explore, imagine, and experience," said NYFF Convergence programmer Matt Bolish. "Whether world premiering virtual reality pieces, or acting as the launching pad for new technologies, Convergence strives to bring NYFF audiences projects at the forefront of innovation."
Over the course of the first weekend of the festival, audiences can explore a multitude of non-traditional film experiences, including three Virtual Reality horror experiences from Dark Corner Studios, highlighted by the World Premiere of their terrifying project Night Night; Sanctuaries of Silence, which takes viewers virtually through Olympic National Park in search of the quietest place in North America; Reality Jockeys, where audience members collaborate with the creators to form their own immersive, surreal virtual worlds; Virtual Virtual Reality, which imagines the purpose of humans in a future run by machines; and Look But With Love, Academy Award-winning filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's VR documentary series exploring the lives of Pakistani citizens.
Complementing these experiential works is an exciting partnership with Lucasfilm to publicly present never-before-seen technology showcasing the future of Virtual Production, which harnesses the power of VR as a tool for filmmakers to compose shots, create virtual storyboards, and more. Its uses within the film community could be boundless, and creators of the technology will be on hand to participate in a conversation about its potential applications, followed by a demonstration allowing audiences to experience the system firsthand. As part of this, Convergence will also host a special workshop with handpicked industry creators, filmmakers, and cinematographers, allowing them to test out how it could be applied to their daily work.
Other highlights of Convergence include the return of Gamescape, an exploration of narrative games and the artists who make them-which this year focuses on
THE COMEBACK of Full Motion Video with a selection of new, playable work from a number of creators; and De-Escalation Room, a live lab with Columbia University's Digital Storytelling Lab, where audiences will be allowed to take a peek into their process and actively participate in creating the group's latest project, which tackles the negative behavior of social media.
Convergence will take place Friday, September 29, 3-6pm, and Saturday and Sunday, September 30 and October 1, from 12-6pm in the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center.
NYFF55 Special Events, as well as filmmaker talks and panels-including conversations with featured Convergence storytellers-will be announced in the coming weeks. As previously announced, the NYFF55 Opening Night is Richard Linklater's Last Flag Flying, Todd Haynes's Wonderstruck is Centerpiece, Woody Allen's Wonder Wheel is Closing Night, and the Retrospective honors Robert Mitchum's centenary. The complete lineup for the Main Slate can be found here, for Projections here, for Revivals here, and Spotlight on Documentary here.
The 18-day New York Film Festival highlights the best in world cinema, featuring works from celebrated filmmakers as well as fresh new talent. Convergence is programmed by Matt Bolish. The selection committee, chaired by Kent Jones, also includes Dennis Lim, FSLC Director of Programming; Florence Almozini, FSLC Associate Director of Programming; and Amy Taubin, contributing editor for Film Comment and Artforum.
All Convergence events are free and open to the public! Admittance for installations and experiences is available on a walk-up basis. Free tickets for talks will be distributed at the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center box office (144 West 65th Street, between Broadway and Amsterdam) on a first-come, first-served basis starting one hour prior to the event. Limit one ticket per person, subject to availability.
Tickets for the 55th New York Film Festival will go on sale September 10 at noon. Becoming a Film Society Member at the Film Buff Level or above provides attendees with the exclusive member ticket discount and brand new member benefits throughout NYFF. Learn more at filmlinc.org/membership.
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