BRADFORD representatives will travel to Texas to talk about the past and possible future of cinema at an international festival.

This year’s South By Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas will include two panels featuring Bradford groups.

The event, which takes in music, cinema and technology, will feature a panel involving Kathryn Penny, festival director at the National Media Museum and Lisa Brook, from Live Cinema UK.

Selling Celluloid: Finding New Audiences for Film will look at what the future lies for traditional film. It is a subject Mrs Penny is very familiar with - she is a major part of the museum’s Widescreen Weekend, an annual event that celebrates celluloid film and attracts Cinephiles from far and wide to Bradford.

Another panel, The Future of Cinema in the Age of Virtual Reality, will include Kate Wellham, representing Bradford based arts group The Brick Box and Live Cinema UK.

The festival, which takes place next month, is considered the world’s biggest creative conference, and attracts experts and industry representatives from around the globe.

Mrs Penny said her panel would reflect how celluloid film was experiencing a resurgence, despite the fact it had been replaced by digital formats in most cinemas.

The National Media Museum is one of just a handful of UK cinemas able to show films in the traditional format. She said: “Everyone though celluloid was dead, but now many programmers are returning to the format. There are two main audiences, the people who remember the 70mm films, and younger people who want to take part in the old cinema experience where you see imperfections and flickers on the screen. There are people who want more than just the typical film screenings.

“It is similar to how some people prefer vinyl to CD.

“The talk will look at how a lot of these old film formats were junked, but how there are a few champions keeping them going.”

Miss Wellham, who also took part in a panel at the festival last year, said her panel on VR will look at how the technology could hugely alter cinema. She added: “It will also look at how we can incorporate new technology into live art and live events, and the threats and possible benefits VR could have to the exhibition experience.

“There are people there from all over the world, so as well as the panels, you learn so much about what other cities are doing to represent themselves.”

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