Festival of the Imagination 1996 – April 1995 Newsletter, a few more details (1 of 2)

Some months back, we did a partial post about the April 1995 newsletter for the 1996 Festival of the Imagination (see here). This post transcribes the fifth page of that newsletter, a later post will cover page six, and then we will call it *done*.


The Philosophy

The Festival of the Imagination is conceived as interactive. Everyone has an opinion, every person at the festival is a valued contributor to the continuous and lively debate. We aim to explore the length and breadth of science fiction and fantasy discourse in every medium, from hard science to high fantasy, from pulp to cult to classic, from the informed to the insane, from the sublime to the ridiculous, from the academic to the alcoholic. The program will comprise authoritative presentations, open discussions and participatory entertainments. The intended structure is of a casual, discursive approach in the mornings, giving way to a more intense interaction over the course of the afternoon and early evening, then ceremonies and formal celebrations in the later evening, before sliding into an informal, social atmosphere well into the night (remember to book that hotel room early!).

An integral part of the program will be celebrating one hundred years of science fiction cinema. Being the centenary of film SF – plus horror and fantasy – it is ideal that the Festival explore the history and attributes of cinema fantastique and its relationship to the literature and other mediums. Keep an eye on this aspect of the Festival as it develops. More than fifty items have already been proposed for the Festival, and several of these are currently in preparation in the form of debates, presentations, impromptus and performances, but you can read more about those in future newsletters.

Gaming will be treated as an off-shoot of the general program rather than as an exclusive set of items. Gaming is largely considered entertainment (even by ardent players) and it will be taken in this light for the program philosophy. Gaming for spectators, as well as for participants, will be emphasised as this aspect of the program develops. To date, there are several formal events proposed, but of course the festival is most amenable to offers of further gaming excess. And on top of all that, you can check out the video program, as it peruses the new, the rare, the novel, the bizarre, the original and the down-right inexplicable, as it endeavours to support the program content, as well as being a vestibule of enlightenment in its own right.

The Hotel and Perth

The Kings Perth Hotel is a three star establishment located in the city centre only 200 metres from the Hay Street Mall and only minutes walking distance to the Swan River and the cycle walkway to Perth’s scenic Kings Park. Facilities in the Hotel include a roof-top pool, restaurant, coffee shop, bar, self service laundry, newsagent and gift shop. The Kings has ample undercover parking and seeks to provide the best value for money in Perth.

With an ideal climate, Perth is a very modern but relaxed city. You will find it has few of the pressures of modern city living, and its compact commercial heart is bordered by parks and the Swan river. Convenient to the hotel is the central shopping district, open for both Saturday and Sunday trading; with several major department stores and a huge range of smaller speciality stores, you’ll be able to enjoy casual shopping or find that urgent last minute purchase. While the city centre itself is well supplied with restaurants, food halls and cafes, the place to eat at night is definitely Northbridge. One of the most colourful areas of central Perth, it boasts a huge variety of pavement cafes, superb restaurants, colonial bars, nightclubs, markets and food. All cuisines, familiar and some not so familiar, are available – your palate won’t be neglected or abused here.

For more details on our wonderful state, where the men are men, the women are women, the quokkas are quokkas and the entrepreneurs are in prison, you can write to the WA Tourist Centre …

.. and we’ll leave the last bit of the address out. This was a surprisingly commercially oriented bit of writing – not quite the style we would see elsewhere in these kinds of documents [Ed]

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