you gotta make time to connect and analyse

I’ll be on a number of panels at Worldcon, three of which I’ll be moderating. I got the final details today, and hopefully there won’t be any more changes before I arrive in Glasgow.

I haven’t seen the overall programme yet, but I’m sure each panel I’m on will clash with something amazing that I’d like to attend… because there will be so much going on during the four days.

I’ve no idea where the summer is going. It’s like watching water disappear down a drain.

I’ve booked my flight to London for FrightFest at the end of August. Some of the line-up has been announced: it’s kicking off with Romero’s new zombie flick, Land of the Dead, about which I’ve heard mixed reports. There are rumours that the director may attend… I wouldn’t be surprised as a lot of the directors attend films at FrightFest, which is why it is so useful to go to the festival.

One of the films mentioned in the schedule is the Russian film, Night Watch, which I saw on DVD last October. I thought the sequel would be out already, but according to IMDB it is in post production with a release date for next year. I may watch the film again, because I think this is one that will fare better on the big screen. It’s a flawed film, but has some wonderful visuals.

I’m sure I’ll enjoy FrightFest, I always do. I particularly like seeing foreign films that I wouldn’t normally get to see on the big screen. The best thing about FrightFest is that you end up with a snapshot of what the industry is producing around the world for the year. And, there’s nothing like watching scary films in a theatre packed with fans of the genre. It adds a whole extra layer of enjoyment to the experience… even if the movie is a bit on the crap side; there are always a couple of duff ones.

On top of all of this I purchased a bunch of tickets for next week’s Fleadh. Even though I was trying to be conservative, I ended up with more tickets than I expected. Martin won’t see much of me next week.

I consider going to these festivals, and watching as wide a variety of films as possible, as part of my job. Even if it’s enjoyable it’s an essential part of the business. It’s how you meet people, examine trends in film-making, and analyse techniques that other writers employ in their films. It’s fun and serious at the same time.