24-hour screenings, ‘Doctor Who’ ball at Sci-Fi Film Festival & Marathon
Do you like immersing yourself in time travel, aliens, and fictional realms on the screen that transport you to new, otherworldly places? If so, mark your calendars for the Boston Sci-Fi Film Festival returning to Somerville Theatre this Wednesday with 30 features, 75 short films, and 10 workshops/panels. The annual festival — which also happens to be the longest-running genre fest in the country — is ramping up for its 48th season Feb. 15-20, with both inperson and virtual screenings via Filmocracy.
One of the biggest events of the festival will be a 24-hour movie marathon, referred to by the festival’s website as “The ’Thon,” from noon Feb. 19 to noon Feb. 20. The all-day, all-night screening will feature the classics to the cuttingedge to the admittedly not-so-great. Some of the films include “Total Recall,” “Back to the Future Part II,” and “Future-Kill.”
Festival director Garen Daly said “Future-Kill” is “really, really bad. It’s so bad, it’s going to be absolutely fun.” For Daly, one of the best parts of the festival is when audience members yell at the screen.
After select screenings, audience members are invited to attend Q&As with directors, screenwriters, and editors. One of the opening night films is “Doctor Who Am I” a co-self-directed documentary following Matthew Jacobs, a “Doctor Who” screenwriter, who hesitantly returns back to the “Whoniverse.” It takes a deep look at the fandom of the long-running British television show as Jacobs visits fan conventions across the states. After the film, directors Jacobs and Vanessa Yuille will take audience questions in person.
For more “Doctor Who”-related activities, festivalgoers can purchase $50 tickets to “The Time Traveler’s Ball: A ‘Whovian’ Dance Across Time Celebrating 60 Years of ‘Doctor Who’” in Somerville’s Crystal Ballroom at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, following the “Doctor Who Am I” screening. The ball calls for guests to dress as their favorite “Doctor Who” character for a costume contest, accompanied by show-themed cocktails, music by DJ Sir Richard Wentworth, trivia, and dancing.
Attendees can also add on a Thursday night pass to “Asimov’s ROBOTS: An Experiential Game” for $15. Participants will play an updated version of the mystery game that follows along with a film based on Isaac Asimov’s novel “Caves of Steel.” Perry Persoff — film marathon emcee and WUMB announcer — will host the game, dividing the theater into 12 teams to compete for prizes like T-shirts, movie tickets, and a copy of “Ticket to the Moon.” The detective whodunit game follows a 45-minute video where participants will gather clues to try to unveil an attempted murder at the end.
The festival will also feature the work of New England film professionals. Ric Schnupp — winner of Emmy, MPSE, and CAS awards and re-recording mixer and supervising sound editor known for his work on “Hellraiser” — is an Emerson College alumnus and will be holding a virtual masterclass on sound editing for horror films. The film “UFO Club,” written and directed by Steven Tsapelas from Norwalk, Conn., will also be a part of the festival.