Feel the Fear at the 9th Fantastic Films Weekend

The weather has been sunshiny and bright here in Bradford this week, but next weekend at the National Media Museum, things are about to get a little darker…

From Friday 4 June – Sunday 6 June 2010, we open our doors to the world of horror, sci-fi and fantasy cinema in all its gory-ous detail for the ninth year running.

The Fantastic Films Weekend began in 2002 and has evolved into “the cult cinema festival to go to” (The Box of Obfuscation), showcasing a line-up of classic chillers, sci-fi shockers, fantasy epics, vintage TV shows and rarely seen gems from the vaults.

Highlights include a midnight screening of Birdemic, which will be attended by the film’s director, James Nguyen – described as the new Ed Wood – I hear this is a real shocker! We will also be welcoming David Gregory, a familiar name in horror circles who has produced countless documentaries on the genre. Gregory is in town to present his first feature, Plague Town.

Don’t miss an appearance by the multi-talented but elusive Jeremy (The League of Gentlemen) Dyson, who will be joined by other guest speakers at Fantasma, a one-day symposium created in partnership with Timecode – Bradford University’s media seminar series.

We will be taking a look at the horror ‘ones to watch’ in the FFW2010 Shorts selection, alongside rarely seen classics such as The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue, Lizard in a Woman’s Skin and Screamtime, and perennial favourites Psycho, Horror Express and Videodrome.

We will be blogging and tweeting in the run-up to and throughout FFW2010, and would love to hear from you. Add your comments to this blog or tweet using the hashtag #FFW2010.

You can also check out our FFW2010 Facebook page for updates, watch film clips and footage from the event on the National Media Museum’s YouTube page, and view pictures from this year and festivals past, by visiting the National Media Museum on Flickr.

For further details and to buy tickets, come on in and explore the Fantastic Films Weekend 2010 website. I dare you…

Google Celebrates Pac-Man's 30th Anniversary

If you have performed a search on Google today, you can’t have failed to notice a familiar dot-munching yellow blob and his arch enemies, the coloured ghosties, patiently awaiting your click on the ‘Insert Coin’ button.

One click and you’re hooked. I hope you have some time to spare, or Pac-Man worthy keyboard dexterity, as this is a fully playable 226 level game -- including the kill screen that was included in the original -- 226 levels!

This is the first interactive doodle (their term for anniversary and event-specific logos) that Google have produced since its inception in 1999, and was created by Senior User Experience Designer, Marcin Wichary and professional Google Doodler, Ryan Germick, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the game’s Japanese release.

If playing Google’s Pac-Man logo has brought out the retro gamer in you, come along to the new Games Lounge at the National Media Museum, where you can play arcade classics such as Pong, Space Invaders, Donkey Kong and of course, Pac-Man to your heart’s content; all on original arcade machines; all at the price you would have paid when they were first released!

Find out more about it on our Games Lounge minisite, or visit the National Media Museum website.