Hello, here we are once again, and welcome to the glitziest most star studded edition of the Pilton Palais Film Festival, ever. Because of the popularity of the Q&A’s last year, this year we have more films than ever before with personal appearances, Intros and Q&A’s.
Helen O’Hara (Empire Magazine) is back with us this year to moderate all our Q&A’s and host all star guest appearances. We also have a Vampire theme running through our night time films so don’t forget the garlic and holy water to protect you on your trek back to your tents. More on the films we selected as part of this theme below. We have four Pre-release screenings for you this year Despicable Me 4, Unicorns, Kneecap and Problemista. All scheduled for later in July and August. Before the teaser below, here’s a quick reminder that:
- All films are free admission and no booking is required
- No folded chairs are permitted, only wheelchairs in designated areas
- Where no BBFC classification is given yet, please check back here nearer the festival
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Check out our programme highlights video below, with Ali and Helen joined by our wonderful Pilton Palais patron and supporter Dan Smith from Bastille.
MUSIC
VAMPIRE THEMED FILMS
FAMILY FILMS
ACTION AND ADVENTURE
Q&A’s & GUEST APPEARANCES
SYNOPSISES
GUEST APPEARANCES
Our first star guest appearance is Tilda Swinton introducing her latest pre-release film the quirky comedy Problemista. Next up Florance Pugh will be talking about her experiences on the set of the epic Dune: part 2. Followed by a screening of heartfelt drama All Of Us Strangers with Director Andrew Haigh, and stars Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott. Finally, our late film is Baby Driver and Q&A with director Edgar Wright.
The next day we’re celebrating the 20th anniversary of cult favourite Shaun Of The Dead with Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright. Our Saturday night film is also part of our Vampire series with a Q&A from Tilda Swinton talking about Jim Jarmusch’s insanely cool vampire film Only Lovers left Alive. Fun fact: Tilda’s part in this film qualified her for her cameo in the hit TV series What We do in the Shadows. Finally, on Sunday, we kick off with I’m not There, a rumination on the life of Bob Dylan, where six characters embody different aspect of the musician’s life and work. Cate Blanchett is one of those six, and the two-time Oscor winner will be with us for the Q&A. After that is Unicorns and a Q&A with Ben Hardy (X-Men: Apocalypse, Bohemian Rhapsody), Jason Patel and the directors: Sally El-Hosaini and James Krishna Floyd. Its followed by a screening of Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922) with an Intro by Dan Smith (Bastille) and live score by Chris Green.
MUSIC
For those of you into your music (Isn’t that everyone at Glastonbury?) we have a totally unique and never to be repeated screening of the experimental Documentary Eno that sold out the Barbican earlier this year along with Q&A with director Gary Hustwit. We also have the 25th anniversary screening of PYNC: Portishead – Roseland New York, introduced by the band’s Adrian Utley. On a lighter note, we have a first look at the new film Kneecap featuring the Irish band of the same name, who will be present for a Q&A straight after they finish their gig at Woodsies, finally for those of you into Sing-A-Longs we have The Greatest Showman, back by popular demand.
HORROR
Most of our late films have a Vampire theme, because everyone loves a blood sucker, we kick off with a rare chance to see the 80’s classic The Lost Boys on the big screen. It combines sexy with scary and funny, with very snazzy quotes that lived on for decades, a perfect festival Wednesday night movie. Then on Thursday we come bang up to date with Abigail, a film made by Radio Silence Productions who are known for the horror films Ready or Not, Scream and Scream VI, a mix of gore and crowd-pleasing horror. On Saturday we are blessed with having the star of the film Tilda Swinton, before the screening of Only Lovers Left Alive, a wonderful noir comedy film, filled with some breath-taking night-time scenery, superb acting a charismatic script, an experience that simply cannot be missed. Sunday late afternoon we are screening Murnau’s 1922 silent movie Nosferatu which is arguably the film that gave birth to the horror genre. Introduced by Ali Plumb and enthusiast of the genre, Dan Smith from the band Bastille. The film will be brought alive by a modern live re-score played by live by Chris Green. The mini season wraps up with, our closing film this year on Sunday night with the 2014 film A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. A beautiful genre-busting movie filmed in Persian language on location in the Californian desert, written and directed by Ana Lily Amirpour. The film is described as “The first Iranian vampire Western”, a perfect vampire flick with a killer soundtrack. From the western stylings of Oregon band Federale, whose compositions are meant to evoke memories of Ennio Morricone-scored westerns, to Iranian rock bands Radio Tehran and Kiosk. This eclectic mix of rock, electro-pop and Middle Eastern fusion is bound to put everyone in the best mood as they wind down after a full and rich Glasto experience.
FAMILY FILMS
Highlights for our family films include: – first up a pre-release screening of Despicable Me 4 on Saturday morning, and there’s chance to see Pixar’s 2204 hit Inside Out 2, along with Monday – hating Garfield and the ever loveable Po in Kung fu Panda 4. There’s also Migration. And an exciting chance to see the first two episodes of Acolyte, the brand-new Star Wars TV show on the big screen in the tent and if you are a Star Wars enthusiast you are encouraged to dress up for the occasion in Comic-Con style. On Sunday afternoon, for our Marval fans we have Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
ACTION AND ADVENTURE
For the action and adventure fans we have the madcap stunts of The Fall Guy, jaw dropping car chases and awesome music in Baby driver (you can join the Q&A with director Edgar Wright for that one too). Oh and did we mention possibly the most anticipated film of the summer? We also have Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga in all its full-throttle glory.
We hope to see as many of you there as possible! Have a great festival.
SCROLL BELOW FOR OUR DAY-BY-DAY LISTINGS AND SYNOPSES
Wednesday
13:00 | Kung fu Panda 4 PG
Po is gearing up to become the spiritual leader of his Valley of Peace, but also needs someone to take his place as Dragon Warrior. As such, he will train a new kung fu practitioner for the spot and will encounter a villain called the Chameleon who conjures villains from the past.
14:45 | Barbie 12
Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans.
16:45 | The Fall Guy 12A
He’s a stuntman, and like everyone in the stunt community, he gets blown up, shot, crashed, thrown through windows, and dropped from the highest of heights, all for our entertainment. And now, fresh off an almost career-ending accident, this working-class hero has to track down a missing movie star, solve a conspiracy, and try to win back the love of his life while still doing his day job. What could possibly go right?
19:00 | Migration U
Mack is an adventure-loathing duck who does not intend to leave his New England pond anytime soon. However, he is convinced by his more adventurous wife, Pam, to head south for the winter. The two ducks, along with their two kids Dax and Gwen and Mack’s Uncle Dan, do just that. However, things do not go as planned, but that doesn’t stop them from having the time of their lives
20:45 | Big Banana Feet 12A
Capturing ‘The Big Yin’ on and off stage during his 1975 tour of Ireland, Big Banana Feet is a captivating record of Billy Connolly on the cusp of international stardom.
Inspired by the fly-on-the-wall style of DA Pennebaker’s Bob Dylan documentary Dont Look Back, director Murray Grigor and cinematographer David Peat present Connolly at his beguiling best, using humour and charm to successfully navigate the political tensions of 1970s Dublin and Belfast.
Featuring iconic stand-up material alongside fascinating behind-the-scenes glimpses, this previously elusive milestone of British comedy is now newly restored in 2K from rare 16mm materials.
22:15 | The Lost Boys 15
A mother and her two sons move to a small coast town in California. The town is plagued by bikers and some mysterious deaths. The younger boy makes friends with two other boys who claim to be vampire hunters while the older boy is drawn into the gang of bikers by a beautiful girl. The older boy starts sleeping days and staying out all night while the younger boy starts getting into trouble because of his friends’ obsession.
Thursday
13:00 | The Garfield Movie U
Garfield (voiced by Chris Pratt), the world-famous, Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure. After an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father – scruffy street cat Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) – Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high-stakes heist
14:45 | The Acolyte Eps 1,2 12A
An investigation into a shocking crime spree pits a respected Jedi Master against a dangerous warrior from his past. As more clues emerge, they travel down a dark path where sinister forces reveal all is not what it seems…
16:45 | PNYC: Portishead – Roseland New York PG
Intro with Adrian Utley Portishead concert in the Roseland Ballroom, New York City, on the 24th July 1997 with tracks from the albums “Dummy” and “Portishead” played by the band and a 30 piece orchestra.
18:30 | National Theatre Live: Vanya 15
Andrew Scott brings multiple characters to life in Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya, filmed live in West End, London. Hopes, dreams, and regrets are thrust into sharp focus in this one-man adaptation which explores the complexities of human emotions.
21:00 | Problemista + Intro with Tilda Swinton 12A
Alejandro is an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in NY. As time runs out on his work visa, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast becomes his only hope to stay in the country.
23:00 | This Is Spinal Tap 40th Anniversary + video intro With Rob Reiner 15
In 1982, the legendary English heavy metal band Spinal Tap attempt an American comeback tour accompanied by a fan who is also a film-maker. The resulting documentary, interspersed with powerful performances of Tap’s pivotal music and profound lyrics, candidly follows a rock group heading towards crisis, culminating in the infamous affair of the eighteen-inch-high Stonehenge stage prop.
00:30 | Abigail 18
After a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they’re locked inside with no normal little girl
Friday
11:00 | Inside Out 2 PG
Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who’ve long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And it looks like she’s not alone. Directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen, “Inside Out 2” is coming to cinemas soon.
13:00 | PG The Greatest Showman Sing-A-Long PG
An original musical inspired by the life of P.T. Barnum, starring Hugh Jackman. Barnum was a visionary who rose from nothing to create the “Greatest Show on Earth”, a spectacle and celebration of his larger-than-life imagination that captivated audiences around the globe.
15:00 | Dune: Part 2 + Q&A With Florence Pugh 12A
Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Freemen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavours to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee
18:30 | All Of Us Strangers + Q&A With Director Andrew Haigh, Paul Mescal & Andrew Scott 15
One night in his near-empty tower block in contemporary London, Adam (Andrew Scott) has a chance encounter with a mysterious neighbour Harry (Paul Mescal), which punctures the rhythm of his everyday life. As a relationship develops between them, Adam is preoccupied with memories of the past and finds himself drawn back to the suburban town where he grew up, and the childhood home where his parents (Claire Foy and Jamie Bell), appear to be living, just as they were on the day they died, 30 years before.
00:30 | Baby Driver + Q&A with Director Edgar Wright 15
Baby is a young and partially hearing impaired getaway driver who can make any wild move while in motion with the right track playing. It’s a critical talent he needs to survive his indentured servitude to the crime boss, Doc, who values his role in his meticulously planned robberies. However, just when Baby thinks he is finally free and clear to have his own life with his new girlfriend, Debora, Doc coerces him back for another job. Now saddled with a crew of thugs too violently unstable to keep to Doc’s plans, Baby finds himself and everything he cares for in terrible danger. To survive and escape the coming maelstrom, it will take all of Baby’s skill, wits and daring, but even on the best track, can he make it when life is forcing him to face the music?
Saturday
11:00 | Despicable Me 4 U
Gru, Lucy, Margo, Edith, and Agnes welcome a new member to the family, Gru Jr., who is intent on tormenting his dad. Gru faces a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal and his girlfriend Valentina, and the family is forced to go on the run.
12:30 | Live Q&A with Andrew Scott
13:00 | Shaun Of The Dead 20th Anniversary + Intro with Simon Pegg & Edgar Wright 15
Shaun (Simon Pegg) doesn’t have a very good day, so he decides to turn his life around by getting his ex to take him back, but he times it for right in the middle of what may be a zombie apocalypse. But for him, it’s an opportunity to show everyone he knows how useful he is by saving them all. All he has to do is survive, and get his ex back.
15:00 | kneecap + Q&AWith Band & Director 18
When fate brings Belfast teacher JJ into the orbit of self-confessed ‘low life scum’ Naoise and Liam Og, the needle drops on a hip hop act like no other. Rapping in their native Irish, they lead a movement to save their mother tongue.
17:15 | Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga 15
As the world falls, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers into the hands of a great biker horde led by the warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the wasteland, they encounter the citadel presided over by Immortan Joe. The two tyrants wage war for dominance, and Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home.
19:45 | Eno + Q&A With Director Gary Hustwit 12A
Visionary musician and artist Brian Eno – known for producing David Bowie, U2, Talking Heads, among many others; pioneering the genre of ambient music; and releasing over 40 solo and collaboration albums – reveals his creative processes in this groundbreaking generative documentary: a film that’s different every time it’s shown.
00:30 | Only Lovers left Alive + Q&A with Tilda Swinton 15
Set against the romantic desolation of Detroit and Tangiers, an underground musician, deeply depressed by the direction of human activities, reunites with his resilient and enigmatic lover. Their love story has already endured several centuries at least, but their debauched idyll is soon disrupted by her wild and uncontrollable younger sister. Can these wise but fragile outsiders continue to survive as the modern world collapses around them?
Sunday
11:00 | I’m not there + Q&A With Cate Blanchett 15
Six incarnations of Bob Dylan: an actor, a folk singer, an electrified troubadour, Rimbaud, Billy the Kid, and Woody Guthrie. Put Dylan’s music behind their adventures, soliloquies, interviews, marriage, and infidelity. Recreate 1960s documentaries in black and white. Put each at a crossroads, the artist becoming someone else. Jack, the son of Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, finds Jesus; handsome Robbie falls in love then abandons Claire. Woody, a lad escaped from foster care, hobos the U.S. singing; Billy awakes in a valley threatened by a six-lane highway; Rimbaud talks. Jude, booed at Newport when he goes electric, fences with reporters, pundits, and fans. He won’t be classified.
14:00 | Unicorns + Q&A with Ben Hardy, Jason Patel and Directors 15
UNICORNS is a drama film directed by Sally El Hosaini and James Krishna Floyd. It’s a cross-cultural romance between Luke (Ben Hardy) a single father from Essex who works as a mechanic and a British Asian drag queen, Aysha (Jason Patel) living a double life. When their paths collide, an emotional search for identity is sparked.
16:30 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 12
Marvel Studios “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” our beloved band of misfits are looking a bit different these days. Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.
19:00 | Nosferatu (1922) + Intro with Dan Smith and Live score by Chris Green PG
In this highly influential silent horror film, the mysterious Count Orlok (Max Schreck) summons Thomas Hutter (Gustav von Wangenheim) to his remote Transylvanian castle in the mountains. The eerie Orlok seeks to buy a house near Hutter and his wife, Ellen (Greta Schroeder). After Orlok reveals his vampire nature, Hutter struggles to escape the castle, knowing that Ellen is in grave danger. Meanwhile Orlok’s servant, Knock (Alexander Granach), prepares for his master to arrive at his new home.
00:30 | A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night 15
An Iranian Vampire Western, shot in black & white and with a killer soundtrack… it’s a love story about two tortured souls in a desolate Iranian Ghost-town called ‘Bad City’, where a lonely vampire is stalking the towns most depraved denizens