Tech to Host Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival

Three days dedicated to science fiction are on the horizon for Tech’s campus.

The Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival will take place Sept. 29 through Oct. 1. Hosted by the Multicultural Sci-Fi Organization in partnership with Georgia Tech’s School of Literature, Media, and Communication, School of Modern Languages, and Georgia Tech Library, the event will feature films with diverse storylines and characters, short film competitions, special screenings, and cinematic music from popular sci-fi movies and TV shows.

Lisa Yaszek, professor in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, specializes in science fiction studies at Tech. She helped organize the first Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival last year and is involved in the upcoming festival.

“Last year, the director of the festival reached out to Georgia Tech with interest to put together a sci-fi film festival,” Yaszek said. “The festival became an opportunity to show the connection between science fiction and technology.”

The mission of the Atlanta Sci-fi Film Festival is to “provide screens for the finest independent sci-fi films locally and internationally.” To do this, the festival hosts several short film competitions with categories ranging from Best CGI to Best Live Action. The featured films include Alekto, The Fisherman, Helio, Lost Boy, The Signal, The Surface, Tears in the Rain, and Darkwave: Edge of the Storm.

The theme of this year’s festival is “world building,” demonstrating the global language of sci-fi.

“Sci-fi is one of the few ways we can talk to one another through cultures, centuries, and languages,” Yaszek said. “This year’s festival has a strong showing of international films — it’s exciting to see how artists are representing sci-fi around the globe.”

Yaszek encourages Tech students to attend the festival to experience art in a new and “mind-blowing” way. “Students can choose to come during a specific block of the festival. Then they can judge the best films from that block. This gives students the chance to be exposed to different films and have the opportunity to make their voices heard.”

The 2017 festival is better than ever, according to Yaszek. It will feature two short films from Neill Blomkamp, director of District 9 and Elysium. The Beyond, winner of the best sci-fi feature film, will also be shown.

The festival includes a VIP opening reception at Google Fiber on Friday, Sept. 29, from 7 to 9 p.m. open to the first 50 registrants. The festival closes with a surprise advance screening at the Regal Atlantic Station Stadium 16 IMAX on Sunday, Oct. 1, from 6 to 9 p.m.

The festival is free with registration and will be held mainly at the Georgia Tech Student Center Theater on Saturday, Sept. 30, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Students interested in attending the festival should register here. View the full schedule below.