Illinois State University’s arts technology program will present the 2017 Arts Tech Film Fest: Robots! at the Normal Theater, from Tuesday, April 4, through Friday, April 7. General admission is $7, and student admission is $5. Doors open each night at 6 p.m., and the films begin at 7 p.m.
This year’s festival will feature five films that explore the complexities of a future populated by humans and their robotic counterparts. Multimedia installations and virtual reality demonstrations by arts technology students will be on display in the theater before each film.
Schedule
Forbidden Planet (1956)
Tuesday, April 4, 7 p.m.
A starship crew investigates the silence of a planet’s colony only to find two survivors and a deadly secret in this classic science fiction adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Starring Robby the Robot. Also starring Leslie Nielsen, Anne Francis, and Walter Pidgeon. Featuring the first entirely electronic commercial film score by Bebe and Louis Barron.
Blade Runner: The Final Cut (1982/2007)
Wednesday, April 5, 7 p.m.
In the year 2019, ex-detective Rick Deckard is called out of retirement to track down and eliminate a team of humanoid androids that have escaped from an outer space mining colony and have taken refuge here on Earth. Starring Rutger Hauer, Daryl Hannah, and Harrison Ford. Directed by Ridley Scott. This will be the final theatrical showing of Blade Runner before the release of the sequel, Blade Runner 2049, later this year.
Westworld (1973)
Thursday, April 6, 7 p.m.
A robot malfunction creates havoc and terror for unsuspecting vacationers at a futuristic, adult-themed amusement park. Starring Yul Brynner, James Brolin, and Richard Benjamin. Written and directed by Michael Crichton. This 1973 film is the basis for the current HBO series of the same name.
WALL•E (2008)
Friday, April 7, 7 p.m.
In the distant future, a small waste-collecting robot inadvertently embarks on a space journey that will ultimately decide the fate of mankind. Starring Ben Burtt as the voice of WALL•E. Directed by Andrew Stanton.
RoboCop (1987)
Friday, April 7, 10 p.m.
In a dystopic and crime-ridden Detroit, a terminally wounded cop returns to the force as a powerful cyborg haunted by submerged memories. Starring Peter Weller and directed by Paul Verhoeven. Unrated director’s cut.
The program in arts technology at Illinois State University is an interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate program in the College of Fine Arts that focuses on the fundamentals of visual art, music, theatre and dance in conjunction with the theory and practice of digital and interactive media.
For more information, contact Rick Valentin at rick@valentin.us or (217) 377-8237 or the Normal Theater.
