A trip through time and views of Vietnam
Showroom Cinema is travelling through time and space this July, with a season of Vietnamese films; foraging trips from Palestine to Sheffield and a night celebrating Virginia Woolf’s queer history story Orlando.
Orlando: A Biography is a 1928 novel by English writer Virginia Woolf. It tells of an immortal poet, who we meet in Elizabeth I’s court. Through a mysterious change of sex and across 300 years, their journey stretches from stately homes to Constantinople.
Orlando: My Political Biography is a new documentary by gender theorist Paul B. Preciado, told through the lens of Woolf's novel. Preciado claims that ‘fiction has become reality’, and through a myriad of voices, we see how Orlando's story lies at the root of contemporary trans and non-binary life.
On Friday 19 July, Showroom Cinema celebrates these stories with partners from Sheffield including a selection of LGBTQ+ short films from EDEN Film Productions and a pop-up stall with Juno Books.
Audiences can see Sally Potter’s 1992 adaptation of Orlando (starring Tilda Swinton) at 6pm, before a screening of Orlando: My Political Biography and EDEN’s shorts from 8:15pm. Both films continue to screen from 19 July.
We welcome another local collaboration on Saturday 20 July with a screening of Cinema Palestino’s choice Foragers, which includes a foraging excursion lead by Social Pickle.
Finally, Showroom brings a collection of Vietnamese cinematic treasures to UK audiences for the first time, with the season Star Nhà Ease: Vietnamese Cinema.
Dust
& Metal is a
documentary celebrating the nation’s ubiquitous mode of transport: the
motorbike. Director Esther Johnson weaves an enticing narrative around the
machine. Is it a symbol of freedom? A symphony of horns and engines? A ticket
to rich views of stunning landscapes? You can ask her during a virtual Q&A
on Friday 26 July.
On Sunday 28 July is 1974’s The
Little Girl of Hanoi. While American films have ‘set the record’ on the
Vietnam War, contemporaneous accounts of the Vietnamese perspective are harder
to come by. This is a brilliant chance to change that, with Hải Ninh’s
haunting drama, filmed just two years after the US bombing campaign.
Showroom rounds out with Finding
Phong, directed by Swann Dubus and Phương Thảo Trần. Part documentary, part
intimate video journal, it details more than a year in the life of
twentysomething Phong. Embattled with gender dysmorphia, they are determined to
become a “complete girl.” Screening 30 July.
Keep up with our special
screenings at: www.showroomworkstation.org.uk/special-screenings
