Finding Vivian Maier screens on Sunday 12 October

PHOTOHASTINGS entices Martin Parr to visit

As part of the PHOTOHASTINGS Festival 2014, the Electric Palace will be hosting a range of special events, including a Q&A with photographer Martin Parr, a screening of Finding Vivian Maier, plus a short film about Robert’s a well-loved rummage shop in Hastings Old Town, writes Annie Waite.

Turkey and Tinsel with Martin Parr

Acclaimed photographer Martin Parr will be staying on for a Q&A after the screening of Turkey and Tinsel at the Electric Palace cinema on 11 December. It’s a wickedly funny documentary about a group of Black Country pensioners on a five-day pre-Christmas coach trip from Walsall to Weston-super-Mare. Parr provides a characteristically quirky portrayal of ‘Britishness’ and a heart-warming insight into aging camaraderie and a refusal to give up.

Nanny with a talent for photography

Finding Vivian Maier is a documentary that uncovers the life and times of a mysterious nanny who secretly took 100,000 stunning photographs of her charges, and also the magical city of Chicago. The photos were only found after her death, by one of the film’s directors, who decided Maier’s story should be told. In probing this elusive street photographer the filmmakers highlight a moral quandary about invasion of privacy in photography and beyond.

Profile of Robert’s in Old Town

Two of the PHOTOHASTINGS events at the Electric Palace will also include  a screening of a short film about Robert’s – the legendary rummage shop in Hastings Old Town High Street. The short film coincides with the exhibition Postcards from Robert’s, curated by Professor Angus Carlyle, Director of CriSAP, UAL Centre for Research into Sonic Arts Practice, London College of Communication. He will host a talk after the screening of Finding Vivian Maier on 12 October.

From Brixton to Hastings

On 22 October, the cinema will be hosting a cutting-edge selection from the first STILL /MOVING DSLR Film Festival. On display as part of  Brixton to Hastings night will be new work focusing on the convergence of digital photography, video and contemporary moving image. Animation, documentary, fiction and experimental film explore the freedoms opened up by the development of HD video-capable DSLR cameras.

At-a-glance calendar of PHOTOHASTINGS events at the Electric Palace, 39a High Street  TN34 3ER:

• 12 October: Finding Vivian Maier – plus short film Robert’s
• 22 October: Brixton to Hastings
• 11 December: Turkey and Tinsel – with guest appearance from Martin Parr, plus short film Robert’s

Visit the Electric Palace website to book for the special PHOTOHASTINGS screenings.

Find out about other PHOTOHASTINGS events around the town.

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