IF: Making Ithaca Fantastik since 2010
Ithaca Fantastik is a film, art, and music festival that takes place every November in Ithaca, NY.
Our mission is to bring the best of fantastic culture to upstate New York by presenting a selection of the most anticipated international films, community organized concerts, and diverse art exhibitions. Beginning as a three day film festival in 2012, the cinema component of Ithaca Fantastik is built around four primary axes of programming: (i) An international competition (ii) a retrospective of classic films, selected around an annually changing theme (iii) several off-competition series including a documentary showcase, midnight features and additional mini series with unique focus; and (iiii) a Cinema concert performed with an original live score commissioned specifically for the festival.
Fantastic film is a term used in the European film festival circuit, and derived from Todorov’s description of the Fantastic in literature- Embracing the general concept of the Uncanny, where supernatural phenomenon can often have a rational explanation, and can then be viewed as real. The Fantastic genre includes films with elements of sci-fi, fantasy, thriller, horror, or the absurd. Ithaca Fantastik seeks to bring a distinctively curated selection of films for our audience to appreciate while actively seeking to expand their horizons. Because of this, our selections are often composed of a variety of films ranging from foreign or experimental to comedies and black & white, as well as everything and anything in between.
Operating simultaneously and in conjunction with Ithaca Fantastik is our three nights of concerts, presented by Ithaca Underground, as well as our Fantastic Art Exhibition curated by internationally renowned local artist Steve Ellis. We thrive to form interrelations between the three fractions, so that audiences may travel between our events and interact with the festival through very different yet complimentary experiences. The Ithaca Fantastik festival is seeking to establish a creative environment where artists and audiences can come together from all backgrounds and abilities to cultivate a long-term cultural hub in the upstate NY college town that will continue to grow and inspire.
IF brings and celebrates the best of the Fantastic culture.
Full description of the festival, previous years program and marketing material: www.ithacafilmfestival.com
