A collection of critically acclaimed and award-winning documentaries on the history of gaming will be screened for free by the Museum of Contemporary and Design (MCAD) of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.
The selection provides the viewers with a 360-perspective of the video game scene, from its humble beginnings and ending with some of the key purveyors in the community. It touches upon the conflict of tradition versus capitalism between industry giants.
It likewise takes the audience into the ins and outs of game development, commercialization, and its impact on the personal lives of its avid users.
Produced in response to the news of the closing of the Chinatown Fair Arcade, The Lost Arcade (2015) by creative director and filmmaker Kurt Vincent introduces the legacy of the legendary entertainment site and its influence on the competitive fighting game community in New York City. It is set on Wednesday, January 24, 2024.
Based on the 2014 novel of the same title by bestselling author Blake J. Harris, Console Wars (2020) by director Jonah Tullis narrates the 1990s rift between then start-up Sega and the world’s greatest video game company Nintendo. It is on view on Thursday, January 25, 2024.
Indie Games: The Movie (2012) by filmmakers James Swirsky and Lisanne Pajot introduces the audience into the behind-the-scenes of Braid, Super Meat Boy, and Fez. It tackles the tedious game development process to the struggles and success stories of its creators. It is slated for Friday, January 26, 2024.
In Free to Play (2014), American video game company Valve provides a critical look at the lives of three professional Defense of the Ancients (DotA) players. It revolves around Benedict “hyhy” Lim, Danil “Dendi” Ishutin, and Clinton “Fear” Loomis as they participated in the most lucrative e-sports tournament at the time. It is on deck this Saturday, January 27, 2024.
The screening is the year’s first offering for MCAD x Moving Image, a program that presents a series of hybrid documentaries, video essays, narrative experiments, filmed performances, and archival audiovisions.
It is free and open to the public. It will be held online via Zoom every 12 noon on the scheduled dates.
Interested participants may register through http://tinyurl.com/nhcza936.
For more information, visit https://facebook.com/MCADManila.