VIFF celebrates reopening of Vancity Theatre with Total Cinema series, August 17 to September 20

Films focused on colour, sound, and spectacle span Amélie, Speed Racer, The Matrix, and dozens more

SPONSORED POST BY VIFF

Amélie.

After upgrades to the Vancity Theatre, VIFF’s year-round venue will reopen on August 17, with state-of-the art 4K laser projection, Dolby Atmos immersive sound, a brand-new screen, and even comfier seats.

VIFF will showcase its upgraded cinema with the new Total Cinema series, a celebration of everything that makes going to the movies special with an eclectic selection of classic films that demand to be seen on the big screen. Films in the series are focused on three exciting aesthetic qualities: colour, sound, and spectacle.

Speed Racer.

Offerings that highlight exceptional use of colour range from the live-action and kaleidoscopic digital effects of Speed Racer on August 24, to the warm reds and greens of whimsical French film Amélie on September 20, to the expressive use of shades in biographical drama The Last Emperor on August 25 and 31.

Sound masterpieces span Joseph Kosinski’s Tron: Legacy on August 24, Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón’s Spanish film Roma on August 18 and 20, and Jonathan Demme’s Talking Heads art-rock concert film Stop Making Sense on August 17.

The Matrix.

In the realm of spectacles, featured films go all out in both scope and scale. David Lean’s sweeping, four-hour desert epic Lawrence of Arabia screens on August 17 and 20, Lilly and Lana Wachowski’s ever-influential action film The Matrix shows August 23, 24, and 27, and Denis Villeneuve’s incredibly immersive sci-fi sequel Blade Runner 2049 makes an appearance on August 22.

Blade Runner 2049.

Over the course of the next month, VIFF will also continue to bring the best in current arthouse releases, from rousing and romantic lesbian musical-comedy Chuck Chuck Baby (opening August 17), to acclaimed residential-school documentary Sugarcane (opening August 23), to powerful displacement drama Green Border (opening August 30).

VIFF Live will pick back up with two new music events. John Coltrane’s Blue World with The Mike Allen Trio and a screening of Le chat dans le sac is on September 21, and the Cowboy Bebop Bebop Band will be paired with a screening of Cowboy Bebop: The Movie on August 26.

Total Cinema will run until September 20. A full lineup of events is available at VIFF.

Post sponsored by VIFF.

Le chat dans le sac.