Widescreen Weekend film festival returns to the National Science and Media Museum’s Pictureville Cinema for its 28th edition, offering a unique opportunity to experience the immersive magic of the big screen in Bradford, home to one the only remaining public Cinerama screen outside of the US.
Video by James Hardisty
Video by James Hardisty
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00:00This is our annual widescreen weekend. What's special about it is we celebrate all film
00:12formats across history. This year we're going to specialise in VistaVision and celebrate
00:19films on 35mm, 70mm. We're going to have a selection of Hitchcock films. He really
00:26used the VistaVision format. So we're going to have some 35mm screenings, some 70mm screenings
00:33and our opening night film will be a UK premiere on 70mm of North by North West.
00:39These must look very different to the normal digital films that you see generally. The
00:43quality must be, what's the quality like?
00:45The quality is amazing. You're going to really notice the difference on film, the
00:49traditional format. The colours really stand out. You're going to really enjoy the experience
00:57of sitting in the cinema, knowing you're watching print. Some of the films we're going to show
01:02on changeovers, so we're going to run the reels between two projectors, going back to
01:08the days of when film really began in cinemas. So yeah, I hope you enjoy it.
01:14Obviously we've seen people here today busy working on the projections and splicing the
01:18films and things. There's a lot of work going on planning on this.
01:22There really is. All the films are starting to come in, so we check them through by hand.
01:27We've got the team here repairing, checking. We've got all the projectors getting ready,
01:33being maintained, making sure they're in tip-top condition. We're having a brand new screen
01:38put in. We've got our curved screen which we're working with, making sure that's ready
01:43for all the presentations. And of course we're going to be showing Cinerama as well. We're a
01:48unique projection room in that we're the only public cinema in the world that can show Cinerama.
01:55It uses three projectors, all synchronised together to create a deeply curved image,
02:01and people are going to come from all over the world to see us because we're so unique.
02:06What's the opening film?
02:08The opening film is North by North West on 70mm. Our original three-strip Cinerama film
02:14that we're going to run from a 1962 print is How the West Was Won.
02:18I'm looking forward to lots of things. I'm especially looking forward to Cinerama, but
02:22one of the unique things we're doing this year is we've got an all-night screening of
02:27the Indiana Jones trilogy. So come and join us on the Saturday night, starting at midnight,
02:32going into Sunday, watch all three films. We're going to be showing them on our deeply
02:38curved screen, which is a really unique experience and way to see these films. So, yeah, come
02:45along and join us for Indiana Jones Trilogy all-nighter.
02:48How long does this, is it a long weekend? How long does the festival run?
02:52We call it a weekend, but as it's got more and more popular and we want to see more and
02:56more films and we've got the opportunity to show more and more films, it starts on Thursday
03:01and it runs all the way through to Monday morning, because a lot of the customers that
03:06come to see us have booked flights from all over the world. So they like to join us on
03:10Monday morning for breakfast, watch a couple of screenings and then they get their flights
03:14home. Yeah, so it lasts Thursday all the way to Monday morning.
03:18What are the dates? The dates are Thursday the 26th of September
03:24all the way through to Monday the 30th of September.
03:28What about booking? If you want to book for tickets for any of
03:31our films in the widescreen weekend, go to the Science and Media Museum website and you
03:37can book online or just drop by the cinema and you can book in person up at the bar.