Who said geeks don’t have social lives? This year’s ICON TLV festival was attended by hundreds of science fiction and fantasy enthusiasts, all of whom were eager to watch movies, hear lectures and participate in events organized by the festival’s management. The foyer of the Tel Aviv Cinematheque suddenly filled with geeks of all ages, and those who want to be geeks. Festival-goers browsed at comic and merchandise stands, buying books and figurines of favorite characters. Makeup artists turned several brave souls into works of art, painting them from head to toe with intricate designs. A larger-than-life painting of Yoda watched over the proceedings benevolently. There was a feeling of community, creation, learning and most of all, fun – and all of these come together every year at ICON.
This year, the festival hosted several world-renowned guest artists. Well-beloved author Christopher Priest answered questions from the audience after a screening of The Prestige, the 2006 film based on his 1995 novel of the same name. The Prestige tells the story of two rival magicians in 19th century London. He spoke about the importance of research in writing fiction: “I wanted to know how magicians thought, not just what they did.” Research helped him learn about the psychology of magic: curiosity and obsession. Before the film screening, Guest speaker Nimrod Harel, a mentalist and perception artist, gave a demonstration of how “magic” works, calling on the audience’s participation. He and Christopher Priest discussed the magician’s work and mentality.
The discussion with Mr. Priest revealed another layer of meaning in The Prestige: writers and magicians, he explained, both use misdirection. The Prestige is about magic, but it is also about writing – and that morning, tucked away in the conference room of the Cinematheque, about a dozen writers of all ages gathered for a writing workshop with Mr. Priest. He spoke about his first forays into science fiction writing, the process of getting published, and the writer’s struggle with periods of doubt and the fear of rejection. Writers may be interested in reading Priest’s book, Ersatz Wines (available for Kindle on Amazon), a collection of 12 short stories he wrote before becoming a published author. Priest began the workshop by reading a passage from the introduction to the book, which deals with the beginning of the author’s journey. His quiet voice and genteel manner created a relaxed atmosphere, and he addressed each of the attendees personally, asking and answering questions and giving advice. Speaking about his writing process, Priest said, “I imagine a little bloke standing behind the computer, laughing at the jokes and hiding whenever things get scary.”
Horror and humor come together perfectly in the Spanish film Lobos de Arga, which at certain points references some of the tropes usually found in werewolf and horror films. The film had the audience in stitches, and the unexpected plot kept us on the edge of our seats. Juan Martínez Moreno, the film’s director, gave a question-and-answer session after the screening of the film, during which he described the process of writing the script, casting and filming. Mr. Moreno was inspired by the movies he grew up watching, which had a great impact on him. He explained that the film is a tribute, not a parody, and the viewer will notice that the references to films of the past sometimes contain surprising twists.
Horror movie buffs also enjoyed a screening of the 2011 film The Awakening, starring Rebecca Hall (who also appeared in The Prestige). This well-crafted film, which is set in a 19th-century English mansion, deals not with werewolves but with ghosts, and is also an exploration of the human psyche. The film Sound of My Voice also delves into psychology – in this case, the psychology of cults and their members. It is a chilling portrayal of the power of cults: the cult that follows a mysterious woman who claims she is from the future.
Two of the films screened at ICON this year deal with time travel: Sound of my Voice and Safety Not Guaranteed. To help illustrate this theme, guest lecturer Nir Lahav (who blogs here in Hebrew) gave a lecture on the subject. He explained how, theoretically, time travel is possible, and discussed Einstein’s theory of relativity. The lecture quickly turned into a lively discussion as the audience joined in, asking questions and presenting their own theories and opinions. Later, the Cinematheque filled up for a screening of Safety Not Guaranteed, which was also followed by a chat with the director, Colin Trevorrow. He explained that the film’s theme is that you can’t go back – but, he added, the characters do go back, and the film contradicts its theme.
Space travel is the subject of the science fiction art film The Last Push (2012), which describes the daily life of a man traveling solo through space. Like The Prestige, the film touches on the psychological aspects of the astronaut’s experience: his daily routine, his frustration over failed attempts to repair the spaceship, his grief over his colleague, and finally, his determination to complete his mission. There are few special effects, few gadgets and few characters, but the subtle, candid presentation of plot and character engrosses the viewer entirely.
The discussion of space at ICON didn’t end with the film. Immediately following the screening, a motley audience gathered for a presentation by Kfir Damari, founder of SpaceIL, a non-profit organization that aims to educate Israeli children about science – and land a spacecraft on the moon. The organization is competing for the Google Lunar X Prize, which challenges private-funded teams to land a spacecraft on the moon and send back images, videos and other data. Mr. Damari demonstrated the inspiring effect the 1969 lunar landing had on the scientists of today, who remembered watching the landing on television as children. SpaceIL wants to do the same for Israeli children by making Israel the third country to land a spacecraft on the moon. The organization’s staff talks to thousands of schoolchildren all over the country, and run several outreach programs for scientific education. The presentation itself was an outreach in every sense: the school-age listeners (geeklets?), making their own yearly ICON pilgrimage, showed quite a bit of enthusiasm at Mr. Damari’s words, and punctuated the lecture with “woahs” and “cools”. A model of the spacecraft held court in the foyer of the Cinematheque, but the ICON festival is not a place of “look, don’t touch”: festival-goers were invited to stand next to the model and pose for photographs – which will be sent to the moon aboard the spacecraft.
The ICON festival is not simply an opportunity for entertainment. It hosts a series of films competitions that provide young filmmakers with a sum for starting out. Among judges were leading members of the Israeli creative community – director and screenwriter Michal Vinik, Lior Zalmanson, director of Print Screen, director and illustrator Mysh, and last year’s winner Shir Comay – as well as guest judges Christopher Priest and Chris Orgelt. The films encompassed several genres – horror, surreal fantasy, and science fiction. In the short Israeli film competition, Karon, a heartrending, complex film by Erez Avni and Itay Edry won first place. The clever and skillfully-made film Sight won second place, and Bunny Love, an inventive film that is at once poignant and humorous, got an honorable mention from the judges. In collaboration with the Israeli Film Fund, two development grants were given to Matti Harari & Yoav Katz for the development of their film Natbag (Airport) and to Idan Alterman & Nadav Hollander for Careful, Spoiler. In collaboration with the Rabinovich Fund, a production grant was also given to Dan Sachar and Kai Mark for the creation of a short film, Nostalgia, which will premiere at next year’s festival. The international competition winner was Safety Not Guaranteed, with an honorable mention going to Sound of my Voice.
ICON is a venue for serious discussions among serious fans, but it is not without humor. The festival hosted an evening with the comic groups Hippopotam and Tzadik Sofit, both of which are hugely popular in Israel, as well as LOLz night, a geek stand-up show, which offered comics of all levels of experience a chance to make their audience laugh. The references spanned all genres of geekdom: from Doctor Who and pirates to Lord of the Rings and Star Trek (one comic suggested a comparison between Spock and Shimon Peres) and they were greeted with enthusiastic applause. Several audience members spontaneously yelled out one-liners of their own. Then, on a sunny Friday afternoon, ICON hosted a wedding – seven couples were joined together in matrimony under the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. A pirate minister officiated, and guests were welcome to indulge in a pasta feast at the reception. The brides and grooms wore necklaces and hats adorned with pasta, and the ceremony included being baptized into the religion – using a choice between several pasta sauces. Guests were invited to make a donation to the Church and get a “pirate kit” – hat, eye-patch and bumper sticker – in return.
Any geek, self-proclaimed or otherwise, should try to make it to the next ICON. The festival plays an important part in supporting creative communities and individuals all over the country, and helps make their ideas come to life. It is a meeting place for people of all walks of life with similar interests, a place to meet with and be inspired by artists from all over the world, and overall an insanely fun and funny experience.
