Wow the full programme for Flatpack 11 is out and it’s a doozy. They have managed to exceed every Flatpack that has gone before and we’re not sure our eyeballs can take the beautiful pressure of seeing it all. Share in our excitement here and join us for the Wire top ten picks.

Opening Night: Segundo de Chomon
Not only can we see a selection of the genius turn of the twentieth century silent shorts of Segundo de Chomon with live musical accompaniment from Stephen Horne, we can watch them in the sprawling defunct interior of the Grand Hotel that has been closed since 2002. Massive eclectic genius with travelogues, slapstick and horror filled with an array of inventively surreal imagery.
Tue 4 Apr 7.30pm at Grand Hotel, 43 Colmore Row Birmingham, B3 2BS £12 flatpackfestival.org.uk

Bugs (dir: Andreas Johnsen, 2016, cert n/a)  + The Wilderness
With Planet Earth facing a hunger crisis of epic proportions the answer for Danish documentary filmmaker Andreas Johnsen is obvious, start eating insects. In Bugs he explores the possible benefits of industrial scale insect food production, battery farmed creepy crawlies if you will.  To get you in the mood Birmingham’s The Wilderness restaurant is laying on a bug themed taster menu.
Wed 5 Apr 7pm at Grand Hotel, 43 Colmore Row Birmingham, B3 2BS £16 flatpackfestival.org.uk

Mulholland Drive (dir: David Lynch, 2001, cert 15)
The first UK screening of the Lynch supervised 4K restoration of his seminal head scratcher. Possibly the only film to ever be released on DVD with a guide from the director to understand it, which is possibly a masterpiece in complete red herring subterfuge anyway. A great surreal stab to the bloated underbelly of Hollywood it resonates in a way only Lynch could realise. Beautiful, intractable and malicious.
Wed 8 Apr 8pm at Everyman, 116 Wharfside Street, The Mailbox Birmingham, B1 1RF £9.50 flatpackfestival.org.uk

The Cremaster Cycle (dir: Matthew Barney, 1994-2002, cert 18)
Revered and reviled in equal measure and rarely ever screened this is an incredible opportunity to view all five parts of the Cremaster Cycle, that’s some 398 minutes, in chronological order. Disturbing and unpleasant but never less than compelling Barney’s vision is a visually repellent masterpiece. We cannot vouch for your mental state after watching all five episodes but the world will certainly seem different.
Thu 6 Apr 11am at BMI 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, , B3 3BS £6.50 flatpackfestival.org.uk

Kill Bill Vol 1 (dir: Quentin Tarantino, 2003, cert 18) + Chinese Buffet + DJ’s
Tarantino plunders the classics of martial arts exploitation cinema to bring us The Bride, played by Uma Thurman, seeking revenge on those who ruined her wedding day. Big, bold and brashly violent brush strokes as all the genre boxes are ticked effectively with Quentin’s customarily violent fanboy veneration. We can’t think of a better venue for screening Kill Bill than at the newly refurbished Huan Gate restaurant in Chinatown. Finger buffet is provided and DJ’s will be spinning genre specific tunes until midnight.
Thu 6 Apr 6.30pm at Huan Gate, 151 Hurst Street Birmingham, B5 6SD £18 flatpackfestival.org.uk

Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape (dir:  Zack Taylor, Georg Petzold, Seth Smoot, 2016, cert 12)
Just as vinyl has crept back into popular consciousness the humble cassette tape is peeking out from the past and looking for redemption. We have such fond memories of filling cheap C-90’s with the radio output of John Peel, gluing broken tape back together and winding the spool on with a pencil. Such musical heavyweights as Thurston Moore, Ian Mackaye and Henry Rollins praise the power of tape in this fascinating documentary.
Fri 7 Apr 8.15pm at at BMI 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, , B3 3BS £7 flatpackfestival.org.uk

Eraserhead (dir: David Lynch, 1977, cert 18) + live score from Cercueil
The film that announced the arrival of a uniquely left field cinematic visionary and has confounded critics ever since. Pretentious nonsense or surreal masterpiece? Lynch’s dark industrial nightmare is an arresting and unforgettable journey through a singularly dystopian imagination. French synth duo Cercueil will be performing a completely new soundtrack alongside the screening. ‘In heaven everything is fine’.
Sat 8 Apr 8.30pm at at BMI 9 Margaret Street, Birmingham, , B3 3BS £10 flatpackfestival.org.uk

Floating Cinema Shorts
Climb on board for some experimental thirties Gallic cine-club shorts from such legendary film makers as Jean Vigo and Georges Méliès.
Sat 8 Apr 2pm at Ikon Boat, Brewmaster Bridge, Brindleyplace, Birmingham, B1 Free flatpackfestival.org.uk

Take Me High (dir: David Askey, 1974, cert U) + Brumburger 
A repeat of the Birmingham on Film screening that took place last year. If you didn’t make that then we really recommend it this time around. Cliff Richard is transferred to the concrete hell of 1970’s Birmingham by an unscrupulous boss but still manages to find magic, love, Spaghetti Junction and invent the Brum Burger. Snuggled on a deck chair under a blanket nibbling our own Brumburger whilst watching Cliff on a big outdoor screen was certainly one of 2016’s highlights. Possibly the only film being screened at Flatpack that is sourced from a DVD given away in the Daily Mail several years ago. Ticket includes a Brumburger from the Original Patty Men.
Sat 8 Apr 5pm at Regency Wharf, Rum Runner Yard, Regency Wharf, Birmingham, B1 2DY £15 flatpackfestival.org.uk/event/take-me-high-brumburger/

Club Fierce: Television Party
Dance on the grave of that mortally wounded medium scheduled television by joining in an evening of malicious nostalgia and special events themed on shows such as Pets Win Prizes and other cultural detritus you hate to love. Club Fierce DJ’s will be filling your ears with the catchiest of TV theme tunes till the early hours.
Sat 8 Apr 9pm at Grand Union, 158 Fazeley St, Digbeth B5 5RT £6 flatpackfestival.org.uk