Northwest Film Event Highlights – June 2016

Nicolas Winding Refn Q&A

This month’s movie fun starts in Manchester, as HOME invites director Nicolas Winding Refn down for a very special preview and post-screening Q&A of his new one, The Neon Demon (2 Jun). Cool, right?

Studio Ghibli Forever

Next you should head to Liverpool, as FACT bring the sunny disposition of summer indoors with a Studio Ghibli season. Witchy tale Kiki’s Delivery Service (1 Jun) gets the ball rolling, followed by rural drama Only Yesterday (8 Jun), the powerful Princess Mononoke (22 Jun) and the studio’s quintessential fantasy epic Spirited Away (29 Jun). Plonked right in the middle of the season is Ghibli’s latest, the emotional When Marnie Was There (10 Jun). Here’s hoping it’s not their last, as has been reported.

Michael Moore Q&A

Shock-doc filmmaker and outspoken talent Michael Moore returns to screens this month too with Where to Invade Next, a film that asks the US to look to other nations for some home-improvement tips. Head to FACT and HOME and you’ll get more Moore with a post-screening satellite Q&A (10 Jun) beamed straight from the director’s appearance at the Sheffield Doc/Fest.

Bertrand Tavernier’s Death Watch

Liverpool’s Small Cinema has a trio of events worth putting in your diary this June as well. The animated films of Austrian artist Maria Lassnig get the big-screen treatment in their original 16mm format and with a post-screening Q&A inspecting female representation and the body’s relationship with machines (8 Jun) thrown on top. Next up, Bertrand Tavernier’s Death Watch (9 Jun) predicts a dystopian future that’s eerily reminiscent of the one we actually live in, while From Liverpool with Love: Love Story celebrates the music of local musician Arthur Lee and the band Love (25 Jun).

Whit Weekender

HOME, meanwhile, celebrate the release of Whit Stillman’s new one, Love & Friendship, with their Whit Weekender (3-5 Jun), showcasing a selection of the director’s back catalogue. Expect cuts like The Last Days of Disco (3 Jun), Damsels in Distress (4 Jun) and Barcelona (5 Jun).

Shakespeare on Film

You’ll also find HOME commemorating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death with some modern-day reimaginings of the Bard’s best, including Polanski’s Macbeth (14 Jun) and Gus Van Sant’s lose take on Henry IV, My Own Private Idaho (17 Jun). Thou art spoiled for choice.

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