Fantasia International Film Festival becomes next virtual event

April 29th 2020, 2:07pm

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

So after the MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 live riffings, the PHANTASM-CON, and the EVIL DEAD 2 escape rooms have all become full virtual experiences, so too has another event decided to go the virtual route: the Fantasia International Film Festival, which is a genre film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996.

Here's the official press release, explaining the decision:

Given the continuing uncertainty related to physical cinema spaces and large gatherings which will likely continue through the remainder of the calendar year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival has announced their decision to mount its highly-anticipated 2020 edition as a cutting edge virtual fest in August.

To deliver this, the acclaimed genre film event will be working with Festival Scope and Shift72 via their newly-launched online festival platform, most recently utilized for CPH:DOX and Visions du réel’s celebrated virtual editions. This platform offers studio-grade DRM and will be MPAA compliant, operating according to Motion Picture Association of America security standards.

A number of Fantasia 2020’s screenings will be presented with real-time access, offering heightened security to the digital programming with attention to recreating the energy and sense of shared experience that make festivals so vital and beloved. This unique opportunity allows Fantasia the opportunity to program top-tier genre films that may not have otherwise considered online launches or premieres.

Fantasia co-director Mitch Davis elaborates further:

While we’re saddened not to be able to put on the larger-than-life physical event that we’d been planning for this year, we’re extremely excited to be working with Festival Scope and Shift72 on an unconventional virtual edition. They’ve enthusiastically embraced every challenge we’ve thrown their way, particularly when it comes to making so many of our screenings be real-time, live events instead of the usual streaming approach. It’s going to make things so much more exciting and will go a long way towards keeping the intensity and engagement of the in-person experience vibrant in an online realm.

Meanwhile, you can join the event, virtually, this August.