Film Festivals | Interviews

Sci-Fi Marathon

1 Feb , 2007  

Written by Kathleen McKenzie | Posted by:

For the 32nd year, the Boston Science Fiction Film Festival, known to regulars as SF32, features 24 straight hours of new and old sci-fi films.

The Boston Science Fiction Film Festival (SF32) will run all 24 hours from Feb 18-19 at noon for non-stop sci-fi film madness. There will be between 12 and 14 feature films, some cartoons, older movie trailers, and film shorts. This year’s festival marks its 32nd incarnation.

The line up this year includes Dark Star, Forbidden Planet, Monster House, Slither, Metoroporisu/Metropolis among others.

SF32 organizer Garen Daly took some time to answer a few questions for New England Film:

Kathleen McKenzie: How did the Boston Science Fiction Film Festival come to be?

Garen Daly: It was started in 1976 and Larry Jackson was the first programmer.  It began at the late lamented Orson Welles Cinemas, before DVDs and before VHS, when seeing older films could only happen in theaters or late night TV. Back then Boston supported about 10 screens devoted to older films. The Festival grew out of an attempt to capture some of the Boston Science Fiction Convention (BosCon) which ends the day before and at the same time trying to draw Harvard students to the theater.

KM: How did you get involved?

Daly: When the Welles burned down in 1986, I took over the event and held it at the place I was operating at the time — the Somerville Theatre.

KM: What is your favorite film?

Daly: I love film. As I tell folks, it is my drug of choice. If I don’t see a couple of films a week, I start going through withdrawal. So picking my favorite, well, it’s just too tough. 

KM: What do you see happening with the festival 10 years from now?

Daly: Some years back as digital was emerging for filmmakers, I envisioned a time when the means of production would fall into the hands of the people. That time is now and it will only grow. YouTube is not an aberration. This year we will be holding a short film competition. This is a direct result of the new filmmakers. I see the Festival being a repository for classic films seen in a classic environment, but at the same time highlighting independent science fiction features and shorts. You don’t have to be much of a cinema buff to recall when science fiction filmmaking, especially in the ’50s and early ’60s, was a training ground for budding artists. I see us being a part of that, but for the 21st century.

KM: Have any Boston SF Film Festival producers/directors seen national acclaim?

Daly: We’ve had a bunch of folks attend who were either emerging filmmakers or established ones. WD Richter and Stuart Gordon are just two. But our favorite story is about a young Harvard student who came to the festival. He saw one of our indie offerings and decided he could do better. He made his very first film with the expressed interest of showing it with us. His name is Darren Aronovsky and that film was PI. (We hope to have him next year, pending his schedule)

KM: About how many people attend the festival?

Daly: Attendance varies somewhat form year to year, but usually it is around 600 (a sell out). This year we expect more. We have a larger theater.

KM: Do you present awards, have panel discussions, or feature guests of honor? 

Daly: We have a Hall of Fame and a Hall of Infamy. We also present a special award as dictated by guests and the quality of films shown. This year Director James Bai, Puzzlehead, will be bringing his film. He will be doing a Q&A after the film. There is also a very good chance that some of the short film directors will be in attendance. And if so, there will be some discussion with them. There will be awards for the shorts.

KM: What makes the Boston SF Film Festival different from other festivals?

Daly: First we are the oldest such event in the country, maybe the world. I am unaware of any other science fiction film festival that is older. There is none that shows all of its films in 24 straight hours. It is sort of a science fiction film ‘slam’. By what makes this event truly unique is the time of year and the people who attend. New England is a dreary place in February, so having an event where folks can snuggle up in a darkened theater and share their love for this genre is special. People have been coming since the beginning. They travel from all over the country. It is ‘Brigadoon’. A very small town popping up for a little over one day a year and enjoying a film genre where anything is possible. Our festival is all about community and hope. It’s a hoot.

The Boston Science Fiction Film Festival (SF32) will run from Sunday, February 18 through noon Monday, February 19. Tickets are $51.00 and can be purchased at the Somerville Theatre box office or at the web site (www.bostonsci-fi.com). All seating is general admission and tickets are good for the entire festival. The line up includes Transgressions by Valerie Weiss who was interviewed in a recent issue of NewEnglandFilm.com: www.NewEnglandFilm.com/news/archives/2006/11/weiss.htm. Kathleen McKenzie lives in Boston and fills her spare time writing science fiction.


The Boston Science Fiction Film Festival (SF32) will run from Sunday, February 18 through noon Monday, February 19. Tickets are $51.00 and can be purchased at the Somerville Theatre box office or at the web site (www.bostonsci-fi.com). All seating is general admission and tickets are good for the entire festival. The line up includes Transgressions by Valerie Weiss who was interviewed in a recent issue of NewEnglandFilm.com: www.NewEnglandFilm.com/news/archives/2006/11/weiss.htm. Kathleen McKenzie lives in Boston and fills her spare time writing science fiction.

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