Sudbury's Indie Cinema has launched a line-up of several film-related special events happening in the city in the coming days and weeks.
Indie Cinema executive director Beth Mairs said the venue at 162 Mackenzie Street is an ideal location not only for art-house style films but also as a multi-disciplinary arts and entertainment space.
Mairs said this was evident just before the pandemic hit two and a half years ago, when the Indie Cinema hosted events that were not specifically film related.
With that in mind, several new events are planned, said theatre manager Miranda MacLeod.
This includes the Sudbury Indie Creature Konvention (SICK) which is running this Friday and Saturday, Sept. 16 and 17.
Along with some horror films, this event will include a screening of the feature film “Two Witches”, with a live in-person introduction by actress Rebekah Kennedy, said MacLeod.
She said there are is also a family themed event taking place on the Saturday.
"We actually have a Mario Kart tournament that we're doing because we wanted to do something that was fun for the whole family."
The Mario Kart Tournament will be presented on the big screen and the eventual tournament winner will enjoy a $100 cash prize, MacLeod said. Attendees at the SICK event will also be invited to sit in with a voice actors panel as well as meet a creature actor, who was one of the zombies in the Resident Evil production that was filmed in Sudbury. Saturday night will also feature a horror flick called Fried Barry.
Also taking place in September is a return of the popular improvisational event which is scheduled for Friday September 23.
Scott Florence, one of the leads in the Oddhawks Improv Show, spoke at Thursday's news conference. Florence joked that the improv event called Live After Lockdown doesn't need any planning because it will be up to the audience to determine the direction of that show. Florence said the audience is in for a treat.
"And dramatically, it's going to be all about being cooped up, getting free, the digital world, all of the ridiculous stuff that we've discovered all of that time. And I but I can't say more about it, because it's also going to depend on what the audience tells us we should do with that kind of material," Florence said.
The Oddhawks Improv show will be the 8 p.m. feature on Sept. 23, which will also have a 6 p.m. film offering called Flux Gourmet. On the Saturday film fans can also check out Sudbury's Tiny Underground Film Festival. The full schedule is online.
Mairs said the tiny festival is all about short films made with low budget, or no budget, that "push the boundaries of film". Mairs said it will include some of the best in Canadian experimental films.
