Pi + A Brief History of Circles
Pi
Dir. Darren Aronofsky, US 1998, 84 min, Digital, Cert 16
Aronofsky’s debut feature is a psychological thriller about an obsessive mathematician seeking a formula to solve the secrets of the universe. Neurodivergent filmmakers and scholars have described the film as a reflection of autistic fascinations with patterns and formulae – fascinations that seek to make sense of a baffling neurotypical world.
+ A Brief History of Circles
Dir. Georgia Kumari Bradburn, UK 2024, 11 min, Digital. Cert TBC
A short film that explores the sensory experience of autism through a visual and sonic fascination with circularity.
Screening with descriptive subtitles (short film only).
The screening will start with a brief introduction by Stims co-founder and director of A Brief History of Circles, Georgia Kumari Bradburn, who will also host the discussion in the BFI Library. There will be a ten minute break between the film and the discussion in which you will have time to refresh.
Tickets: £3
The Stimming Pool
Dir. Sam Chown Ahern, Georgia Kumari Bradburn, Benjamin Brown, Robin Elliot-Knowles, Lucy Walker, Steven Eastwood. UK 2024, 67 min, Digital, Cert 12A
AD + DS
What does an autistic cinema look like? Crafted by the Neurocultures Collective and Steven Eastwood, this film challenges neurotypical ways of seeing. Its characters move through non-linear time and space, and environments both comforting and distressing, towards a utopia of unmasking: the Stimming Pool. Shot on film by Greg Oke (Aftersun) and interwoven with animated sequences, the film features an eclectic soundtrack, creating a fascinating and immersive journey.
The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with the directors, hosted by writer and Stims co-founder Lillian Crawford. There will be a ten minute break between the film and the discussion in which you will have time to refresh.
Tickets: £3
A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things + intro and discussion (Relaxed Screening)
Dir. Mark Cousins, UK 2024, 88 min, Digital, Cert PG
Scottish artist Wilhelmina Barns-Graham – voiced here by Tilda Swinton – had an extraordinary creative passion. In his poetic documentary portrait, Mark Cousins explores her artistic practice, revealing how her synesthesia was central to it. With its intense focus on her work, exploring its variety of forms – from painting and drawing to print making – the film emphasises the singular prism through which Barns-Graham viewed the world. The film’s score, by Linda Buckley, provides a perfect response to the tonal qualities of this unique artist’s work.
The screening will start with a brief introduction by filmmakers Sam Chown-Ahern and Benjamin Brown, who will also host the discussion in the BFI Library. There will be a ten minute break between the film and the discussion in which you will have time to refresh.
Tickets: £3
Bird + intro and discussion (Relaxed Screening)
Dir. Andrea Arnold, UK 2024, 119 min, Digital, Cert 15
Andrea Arnold (Fish Tank, American Honey) focuses on life in working-class England, where 12-year-old Bailey seeks to escape from her tumultuous life through a friendship with a mysterious stranger. Seamlessly moving between social and magical realism, Bird is a tender fairytale of broken spirits searching for one another in a baffling and hostile world.
The post screening discussion will be led by Stims Collective.
Tickets: £3
Content warning: Contains distressing scenes of domestic violence
Battleship Potemkin + intro and discussion (Relaxed Screening)
Dir. Sergei Eisenstein, USSR 1926, 72 min, Digital, Cert PG
Eisenstein challenged cinematic form in his second film, an essential revolutionary classic. Dramatising the true story of the mutiny aboard the Potemkin, the filmmaker integrated bold imagery with radical use of editing that would become known as Soviet Montage and would inspire generations of filmmakers.
The post screening discussion will be led by Stims Collective.
Tickets: £3
What is a Relaxed Screening?
Relaxed Screenings are for neurodivergent audiences, with their companions and assistants. Adjustments vary between venues, however these screenings often provide the following
Unassigned seating with plenty of space. Customers can select their seats when they arrive in the auditorium, where you will be able to sit with family/friendship groups or leave space between yourself and other groups.
House lights slightly dimmed.
Film volume turned slightly down
Freedom to move around and make noise
Signposted quiet area near the auditorium.
Eraserhead + intro and discussion (Relaxed Screening)
David Lynch’s debut feature takes us into the heart of a bleak industrial wasteland, exploring the grotesque underbelly of modern life and the nuclear family through body horror and surrealism. Join us after the screening to reflect upon the film through a neurodivergent lens.
The post screening discussion will be led by filmmaker and Stims co-founder Georgia Kumari Bradburn.
Kinds of Kindness + intro and discussion (Relaxed Screening)
Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest film takes us through a triptych fable, three materially unrelated but thematically connected stories that are steeped in surrealism, comedy and existentialism.
The post screening discussion will be led by academic and Stims co-founder Dr Ethan Lyon.