Shapeshifters Cinema hosting experimental film series for Halloween

That's a little creepy, haunting experimental films that just might be too eerie to watch by yourself. They are all part of a Halloween-themed program being presented tomorrow night at an event at Shapeshifters Cinema. The movie theater, tucked away in Oakland's Jack London Square, is a very intimate 40-seat venue that provides an outlet for contemporary filmmakers. All right, here with us now to talk more about this event is Kathleen Quillian, co-founder and programming director of Shapeshifters Cinema, and Gilbert Guerrero, who's the director of operations and brewing at Shapeshifters Cinema, because you have a brewery and a cafe right there in-house. We'll talk about that in a moment, but Kathleen, let me start with you on this lineup of films. What can fans who come out here for this Halloween event expect? Well, the program is... It's six films that are made by artists who really kind of embrace and work with the medium of film to kind of explore the shadowy sides of our subconscious and psyches. Thank you. And then we're also going to have a live music element with the final piece is going to be A condensed version of a film that came out in 1922 called Hakusan, which is supposed to be, or it's essentially... We're looking at the history of witchcraft through the ages, and it's a feature-length film, but we're going to show a condensed version, and then we have three musicians who will be doing live sound along with it. Doing the score live, wow. So that'll really add to that experience. Gilbert, tell us a little bit about this venue, because as I mentioned, it is intimate, just 40 seats. How does that make the sort of, when people come in to watch a film different from what you would typically get in a movie? much larger space. So one thing is that we're located in a Victorian building. It's over 150 years old. We love that because the architecture really gives you this feeling of being inside of a place that's been there for a long time. There's a lot of history in that part of Oakland. And the building is on something called the Bret Hart Boardwalk. It was created to save those old Victorian buildings that were all being demolished. area, you know, as the railroads came in, then the Nimitz Freeway, all this. So the theater is very intimate, 40 seats. Kathleen and I are always there. We also have a co-director, Ellie Vanderlip, who helps with our educational programs. And this can be, you know, a full sort of night out for folks who want to be a part of this event, right? Because you have a cafe, you can get some food, you can get some drinks right there in-house. Yeah, that's always been part of our mission, to make the film viewing experience, or actually live performances and video art, we're introducing all these things to people in an environment where they can be comfortable, have a drink, bring their friends next time. Yeah, yeah. But Kathleen, the idea of watching a scary film in such an intimate setting like that, I mean, the audience is really immersed. Yeah. Yeah, I wouldn't call these films that we're showing scary films. They're more looking at sort of like dreamy, sort of like slightly spooky parts of our mind and other realms. Subtitles by the Amara.org community you know that can only there that are really best highlighted through the film medium Mm-hmm. specifically the analog 16 millimeter film so so they were all created on film and we'll be showing four of them on film itself and we really like to show films in their native format as much as we can and so these filmmakers in particular They really sort of, yeah, like lean into the medium itself and work with the sort of spooky, mystical things that are embedded in the film. Thank you, Tom. Why is it so important that these films be shown on 16mm? I mean, how does that change the experience for the audience, you think? Especially with these particular films and the themes that they deal with. Yeah. It's just, it's a different experience, it's sort of the same thing, you know, the people talk about the difference between CDs and records, vinyl records, there's just sort of like a soul embedded in analog material that really kind of is more tangible, more visceral when you're in the same room with it. Thank you. Yeah. And Gilbert, tell folks at home about how they can take part in what you have planned for Halloween. Hmm. Well, be it Shapeshifter Cinema, it's at 567 5th Street in Oakland. Do you need tickets? You can buy tickets online if you want to buy them ahead, which we would recommend doing. The show's probably going to sell out and we're a tiny venue, so. But, yeah, or you can buy tickets at the door, too. Okay. $15, and then bring some extra money for a bite to eat and a drink. Yeah. And you have a fun Halloween experience. Well, appreciate you both being here. Kathleen, Gilbert, thank you for the time. Yeah. Thank you. Just right around the corner from the KTBU studios. Yeah. Nice of you to be here. We appreciate it. Yeah. I know you said they're not scary, but just that little clip we showed, it is creepy to me. It's really eerie, but perfect for Halloween. So thank you so much. Appreciate it. I appreciate it.