The Oakland Internet Cat Video Festival Schedule Announced

Oakland is preparing for the first ever art, technology and cat extravaganza. Yes, art, tech and cats! On Saturday, May 11th from 3-10pm, thousands of Bay Area cat-lovers and friends will descend upon the Great Wall of Oakland for an extravaganza devoted entirely to cats.

We're talking about the Oakland Internet Cat Video Festival with proceeds benefiting the East Bay SPCA. Taking place at The Great Wall of Oakland located on West Grand between Telegraph and Broadway will be a city space transformed into a kitty-cat wonderland. May 11th will be the Bay Area Premiere of the Walker Art Center's celebrated #catvidfest, a curated 70-min film of the best cat videos from the Internet. It's not just about watching cat videos, but about watching cat videos with thousands of other cat lovers, in real-time on a 100' concrete wall.

Also on that 100' concrete Wall, the internationally-recognized aerial dance troupe, Bandaloop, will perform a kitty cat duet by rappelling off the Wall and delighting the audience with flips and leaps that usually only felines can perform.

If that is not wild enough, the Save A Kitten Stage sponsored by Pet Food Express, emceed by Charly Kayle of KOIT andTom Vacar from KTVU will be in full swing from 3-8pm with performances by Cruel Summer, Subzero5, Caitlin Gill Comedy and Little Miss Hot Mess (doing a reenactment of a scene from Cats, the Musical). The official Cat Man from West Oakland will be spinning cat tunes in between acts, and the Bay Area's own, Dusty the Klepto Kitty will make an appearance. Keep your belongings close by as Dusty has been known to steal just about anything he can get his paws on.

And don't miss the Cativities section of the festival where eight local arts organizations will be offering free art projects for kids and big kids alike. Make a Nyan Cat Wand with MOCHA or a clay cat mask with Brush Strokes. Rock Paper Scissors Collective will offer silk screening (so bring a t-shirt or tote), Visit Oakland will help you make origami cat ears and Pro Arts Gallery will have styrofoam on site for some crazy paw printing.
Get your face painted and get your face photographed in the Cat Snap photo booth sponsored by Traveling Photo Booth and the Furrtographer. Rumor has it that some famous cats will have their mugs there too.
If you don't yet have a cat, there will be many furry friends to steal your heart. From 3-6pm, five local animal shelters will be on-site with cats and kittens for adoption (East Bay SPCA, Hopalong, Feral Cat Foundation, Bitty Orphan Kitty Rescue, Cat Town), and a host of vendors and artisans with all types of cat-related products from cat hats to hand-made kitten treats.
While the Oakland Internet Cat Video Festival is shaping up to be a wild and silly event for the whole family, it is also an opportunity to educate the public on the need for kitten foster parents. During kitten season each year, too many kittens are put to sleep because the shelters are overloaded with tiny kittens that need to be bottle fed around the clock. By fostering a kitten for just a few weeks, you can save the life of a kitten. The East Bay SPCA and Pet Food Express with the Save A Kitten program hopes to register at least 200 new foster families for this year's kitten season.
The City of Oakland, as well as local businesses are coming together to help make this event happen. Local sponsors of the event are Oakland-based Pet Food Express with the Save A Kitten program, Clorox's Fresh Step, the City of Oakland, Oaklandish, Comcast, Whole Foods Market on Harrison, Eventbrite, AdArt, KTVU, KOIT, Animal Planet, KittyFlix. Ecee Productions, Bay Area Entertainment Listings and BAVC are also sponsors.
Follow all the Cool Cats and head to the Oakland Internet Cat Video Festival on May 11 from 3-10pm. The complete schedules for the Save A Kitten Stage and all other Festival activities is attached. Tickets can be purchased here: http://www.oaklandcatvidfest.com/#tickets

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