White Wall Cinema: THE GOONIES
2025-11-29 18:30 - 22:30 (Europe/London) | Wagner Hall
40TH ANNIVERSARY – 4K REMASTER

One of the most beloved films of the 1980s, The Goonies is a wildly fun kids’ classic from Superman and Lethal Weapon director Richard Donner. Blending the sassy, the hip, the innocent, and the wild, the film features an all-star cast of young ’80s talent including Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings, Stranger Things), Josh Brolin (Weapons, No Country for Old Men, Dune), Corey Feldman (The Lost Boys, Stand By Me), Martha Plimpton (The Mosquito Coast, Parenthood), and Ke Huy Quan (Indiana Jones, Everything Everywhere All At Once)

As a group of West Coast kids spend their final days together before their homes are bulldozed to make way for a country club and golf course, they stumble upon an ancient treasure map. Determined to save their neighbourhood, they embark on a swashbuckling adventure that leads them deep into a dangerous underground cavern — with the local crime family, The Fratellis (played by Anne Ramsey – Throw Momma from the Train, Robert Davi – Die Hard, and Joe Pantoliano – The Matrix, The Sopranos, Bound) — hot on their trail.

Few films have become such enduring icons of pop culture as The Goonies and its unforgettable characters — Chunk, Data, Sloth, and Mama Fratelli and with such iconic instantly recognisable 80s moments like “The Truffle Shuffle” and “Hey, you guys!” With a story by Steven Spielberg and a script by Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire, Harry Potter), this riotous kids’ adventure — with its perfect blend of 1980s innocence and attitude — remains as dynamic as ever in this stunning 4K restoration.

Join us for this special 40th Anniversary screening — the grand finale of the It Is Still 1985 Movie Club for the year!

DOORS: 6.30pm*

START TIME: 7pm*

RUN TIME: 114 mins

CERT: 12A (Under 16’s must be accompanied by an adult).

*Please note – doors open at 6.30pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.00pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: YOUNG SHERLOCK HOLMES
2025-12-11 19:00 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
STEVEN SPIELBERG 40TH ANNIVERSARY – CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

If these days you like your Harry Potter without any actual Harry Potter in it, you’ll love Young Sherlock Holmes.

The story follows a young Watson (Alan Cox — yes, the son of Brian, and bearing a remarkable resemblance to a certain young wizard) during his first term at a Victorian London boarding school, where he befriends a teenage Sherlock Holmes (Nicholas Rowe). When a series of bizarre deaths begin to occur around campus, seemingly the result of strange hallucinations, Holmes and Watson set out to investigate, aided by fellow student Elizabeth (Sophie Ward) and a who’s who of vintage British character actors familiar from Doctor Who, Coronation Street, Rising Damp, Brideshead Revisited, The Elephant Man, Brighton Rock, The Great Escape, The Avengers, The Prisoner, Yes Minister, and many, many more.

Directed by Barry Levinson, right in the middle of an extraordinary run that included Diner, The Natural, Good Morning, Vietnam, and Rain Man (for which he won the Oscar for Best Director), Young Sherlock Holmes was ground-breaking in many ways, including featuring the first fully CGI character in film history. Blending Conan Doyle’s classic detective world with an Indiana Jones–style sense of adventure, it’s a deeply underappreciated gem that invites endless comparisons to the Harry Potter series, despite predating the first novel by over a decade.

This joyous coming-of-age, boarding school, supernatural adventure mystery remains a forgotten treasure, and we can’t wait to bring it back to the big screen for this special 40th anniversary screening.

DOORS: 7pm*

START TIME: 7.30pm*

RUN TIME: 109 mins

CERT: PG (Under 16’s must be accompanied by and adult)

*Please note – doors open at 7.00pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.30pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

The Brighton Festive Makers Fair
2025-12-13 10:30 - 16:30, 2025-12-14 10:30 - 16:30 | Wagner Hall
FOOD & DRINK

Grab a bite to eat and a coffee from the pop-up cafe run by local baker Seashore Bakes. You’ll find an amazing selection of cakes & sweet treats including some festive specials too.

Head to the garden to get in the festive spirit with a cheeky mulled wine or cider!

The Brighton Festive Makers Fair returns to Wagner Hall for its fifth year, showcasing some of the most diverse and talented makers, artists & designers local to Brighton.

Shop small with local makers and artisans this Christmas and find some truly unique and thoughtful gifts that you won’t find elsewhere! The Brighton Festive Maker Fair will feature over 80 exhibitors, spread across the weekend, who are ready to showcase their unique handmade treasures & designs.

What to Expect

Explore a curated selection of quality one-of-a-kind gifts, home wears, art, fashion, food and decorations with exhibitors inside & out.

Come and meet everyone’s favourite snowman!

Support local talent and find the perfect presents for your loved ones.

Enjoy a warming mulled wine or cider from the festive pop-up bar.

Head to Seashore Bakes pop-up for hot chocolates, coffees and delicious seasonal home baked treats.

Engage with artists and artisans, and learn about their craft and inspiration.

Please note: some stalls will be located on the stage with access via stairs only.

For more info..

​

White Wall Cinema: BRAZIL
2025-12-17 18:50 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
TERRY GILLIAM 40TH ANNIVERSARY – CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

Originally known as the mad genius behind the “stomping foot” and other iconic animations for the legendary Monty Python’s Flying Circus, Terry Gilliam got his first taste of directing when he co-helmed the classic Monty Python and the Holy Grail in 1975. Over the following decades, Gilliam evolved into one of cinema’s great visionaries, a Hollywood outsider whose work stood firmly against the factory line of corporate moviemaking.

The story follows hapless low-level bureaucrat Sam Lowery (Jonathan Pryce – Wolf Hall, Game of Thrones), who repeatedly daydreams about rescuing the same beautiful woman. Just before Christmas (yes, it’s a kind of bizarre Christmas movie), Sam discovers an administrative error at work that has led to the accidental arrest, and subsequent death, of an innocent man, while the fugitive terrorist Harry Tuttle (Robert De Niro) remains at large. As Sam tries to untangle the mess, he encounters the woman from his dreams (Kim Greist) and unintentionally turns himself into an enemy of the state. What follows is his hilarious and beautifully bizarre struggle to navigate a dystopian, polluted, hyper-consumerist, and suffocatingly bureaucratic world in the desperate hope of making sense of it all.

A landmark film brimming with unfettered visual imagination, Brazil remains a true masterwork, a madcap classic that, even 40 years later, fizzes with invention, relevance, and Gilliam’s signature brand of sharp, absurd, dark comedy. At once sad, uplifting, harrowing, and hopeful, it’s a true alternative Christmas treat. Don’t miss our special 40th-anniversary screening, which will conclude our 2025 film programme.

DOORS: 6.50pm*

START TIME: 7.20pm*

RUN TIME: 142 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16’s must be accompanied by and adult)

*Please note – doors open at 6.50pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.20pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

Café Scientifique: Brain–Body Conversations
2026-01-21 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
How body rhythms shape brain physiology

Prof Iris Asllani

DOORS 7PM | SPEAKER 7.30PM

Please note that we are entirely dependent on donations from those who attend our events. You can make a donation as you arrive or leave; we are happy to accept cash or card payments. All donations greatly appreciated!

Register to Attend

Please ensure you REGISTER prior to attending!

In this talk, Iris will explore how the brain’s physiology is shaped—sometimes quietly, sometimes dramatically—by the body’s own rhythms.

We’ll look at how MRI can measure cerebral blood flow, how pulsations from the heart and lungs leave their imprint on the brain, and how cerebrovascular reactivity reveals the brain’s ability to adapt. We will close with a glimpse of magnetic resonance elastography, which lets us “feel” the brain’s mechanical properties in vivo and highlights the work we are doing to link the brain’s mechanics with its function.

Iris Asllani is Associate Professor and Head of MRI Physics in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at the University of Sussex. Her work centres on developing MRI methods to study the brain—its physiology, metabolism, and the body rhythms that shape it. Trained originally in Theoretical Nuclear Physics at the University of Tirana, she went on to receive two Fulbright Scholarships to pursue her Master’s and PhD at the University of Washington in the U.S. She later joined Columbia University in New York, where she established the Brain Perfusion Program at the then newly founded MRI Centre. Beyond her research, Dr. Asllani is active in global engineering and education. She is an adjunct professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Ibadan in Nigeria and serves as Vice-Chair and Chair of the Advisory Board for the Consortium for Advancement of MRI Education and Research in Africa (CAMERA).

White Wall Cinema: THE DEAD ZONE
2026-01-23 19:30 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
From acclaimed body-horror master David Cronenberg (The Fly, Videodrome, Crash, Scanners, Dead Ringers, etc.) comes this superlative Stephen King adaptation—an elegant fusion of horror, relationship drama, and psychological-political thriller.

A prescient and highly entertaining supernatural thriller, The Dead Zone features an excellent, nuanced performance from Walken and stands as one of Cronenberg’s most gripping, bleak, relevant, and unexpectedly romantic films. Here the director steps away from his signature body-horror terrain to focus on the terrors of the mind, resulting in one of the most poignant, powerful, and strangely humane works of his career.

In what is usually the festivity free “dead zone” of January, treat yourself to a Friday night taking in this wonderfully wintry New England mood piece, stacked with pulpy thrills, elevated by the inspired pairing of one of America’s great directors with one of its most entertaining storytellers.

DOORS: 7.30pm*

SCREENING START TIME: 8pm*

FILM RUN TIME: 103mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 7.30pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 8.00pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: ROOFMAN
2026-01-30 19:20 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
You might be forgiven for assuming this true-crime comedy-drama is merely a popcorn vehicle for the indisputable talents of its star, Channing Tatum (Magic Mike, Foxcatcher). In reality, Roofman—directed by U.S. indie film stalwart Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine, The Place Beyond the Pines) is filled with deft, thoughtful touches that elevate it into one of the most surprisingly poignant and enjoyable pieces of crowd-pleasing cinema in recent memory.

This uncharacteristically light-hearted drama from a director better known for brooding intensity navigates its necessary tonal shifts with remarkable ease, resulting in an oddly compelling, funny, quirky, and quietly affecting film that surprises at every turn. Expertly tailored to Tatum’s natural charisma (arguably delivering a career-best performance) he is supported by an outstanding ensemble, including LaKeith Stanfield (Get Out, Sorry to Bother You, Uncut Gems, Knives Out), Juno Temple (Ted Lasso, Fargo), Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones), and Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom, Rogue One).

Beautifully shot and assuredly directed, Cianfrance allows the shaggy-dog, lovable-rogue elements to flourish without ever losing sight of the story’s social grounding. A glorious exercise in noughties nostalgia, stylish crowd-pleasing filmmaking, and stealth heartbreak, Roofman feels destined to become a sleeper hit. Best experienced with an audience, it’s a modern popcorn movie with genuine soul—and one that comes highly recommended.

DOORS: 7.20pm*

START TIME: 7.50pm*

RUN TIME: 126 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 7.20pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.50pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: TAXI DRIVER
2026-02-04 19:15 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
MARTIN SCORSESE’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY NEW 4K REMASTER

One of the cornerstones of modern cinema, we celebrate a true masterpiece with a special 50th anniversary screening of the newly remastered 4K of Taxi Driver. In a career filled with iconic films, including Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Casino, The Wolf of Wall Street, and Killers of the Flower Moon -Taxi Driver stands out as arguably Martin Scorsese’s most influential and searingly powerful work, a film that single-handedly turned the landscape of cinema on its head.

The signature role of perhaps the greatest screen actor of his generation, Robert De Niro stars as Travis Bickle, a disturbed loner who takes a job driving a cab on the graveyard shift in New York. Confronted daily by the urban decay and perceived sleaze of the city at night, Travis gradually detaches from reality, cultivating a dark desire for violence and retribution. The film also features a remarkable performance from a then-12-year-old Jodie Foster, alongside an equally intense and unsettling turn from Harvey Keitel, at the height of his powers, as her manipulative pimp.

A defining masterpiece of American cinema, Taxi Driver remains just as powerful, and perhaps even more relevant, 50 years after its initial release. This collaboration between arguably the greatest actor/director duo in film history, Scorsese and De Niro, presents the definitive portrait of a man on the edge, offering profound insight into one of today’s most pervasive societal issues: the damaged and alienated male psyche. Brimming with emotional depth, political complexity, and some of the most daring technical filmmaking in all of cinema, seeing this on the big screen is an experience YOU cannot miss. And yes… I’m talking to YOU.

DOORS: 7.15pm*

START TIME: 7.45pm*

RUN TIME: 114 mins

CERT: 18

*Please note – doors open at 7.15pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.45pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

Brighton Astro: Autonomy in Robotics for Exploration
2026-02-05 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
Dexter Shepherd from the University of Sussex

DOORS: 7.00pm

LECTURE: 7.30pm

Exploring distant worlds presents a unique challenge: robots in space can’t rely on real-time control from Earth because communication is limited by the speed of light. Although today’s missions, such as Curiosity and Perseverance, carry software that helps them stay safe, we are still far from achieving true robotic autonomy. The future of space exploration will depend on robots that can make their own decisions, protect themselves, and boldly venture into places no robot has gone before.

In this talk, Dexter will share his research on how we can help robots begin to understand their environment. Often, we don’t have detailed training data to tell a robot exactly what actions are right or wrong, we only know whether it succeeded at the task. This opens the door to powerful approaches inspired by nature: using evolutionary algorithms to allow robots to evolve their own behaviours, or drawing directly from the strategies insects use to navigate the world.

However, moving from simulated or biological inspiration into the real world brings challenges. Robots need rich, reliable sensing to connect what they learned in simulation with what they encounter in reality. In this talk, we will explore these sensing challenges, the “simulation-to-reality gap,” and the key steps needed to create truly autonomous robots for the next era of space exploration.

Dexter Shepherd is finishing his PhD in Bio-inspired Artificial intelligence and robotics at the University of Sussex. Here he has spent many years researching into robots that understand and adapt to their terrain through tactile sensing and evolutionary strategies. In addition to his research, he has been greatly involved in outreach in schools and internationally where he leads educational courses in hardware and machine learning across the African continent.

Attendance is free, but we would be grateful if those of you who are able to could donate a few pounds to help cover the cost of hiring this event space. We will have a card reader and a money box you can drop your donations in on the night. We also have a bank account you can donate to electronically.

Please only come along if you’ve signed up, as we’re limited on space so won’t be able to fit anyone else in.

If you can no longer attend, please update your status to say that you are no longer attending so that someone on the waiting list gets a place.

Café Scientifique: Engineered Quantum Agents
2026-02-11 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
Gerard Milburn

DOORS 7PM | SPEAKER 7.30PM

Please note that we are entirely dependent on donations from those who attend our events. You can make a donation as you arrive or leave; we are happy to accept cash or card payments. All donations greatly appreciated!

Please ensure you REGISTER prior to attending!

Register to Attend

Galileo’s genius saw that we can learn about the world by building artefacts to exhibit simple, reproducible phenomena. We push on the world and the world pushes back. Over a century ago we discovered that some interventions produced a big surprise: the world is quantum.

Quantum theory is notoriously weird, but we understand it well enough to use it. Quantum technology seeks effective strategies to control the quantum world to make us wealthier, healthier and safer.

In this talk Gerard Milburn will describe some quantum technologies already changing our lives, including new navigation tools and algorithms for cybersecurity. The next step is Embedded AI, delivering ‘self-driving laboratories’, accelerating scientific discovery, and leading to quantum technologies beyond human imagination.

Gerard Milburn was the founding Director of the Australian Centre for Engineered Quantum Systems, established in 2011. In 2024 he moved to the UK where he is a Quantum Fellow at the National Quantum Computing Centre in the UK. He has worked in the fields of quantum optics, quantum control, engineered quantum systems and recently quantum learning machines. In 2001, together with Knill and Laflamme he published a scheme for quantum computing with photons, known as the KLM scheme, that has had a major impact on the experiments in quantum optics.

White Wall Cinema: ROMY & MICHELE'S HIGH SCHOOL REUNION
2026-02-13 19:00 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
**DOORS & BAR OPEN EARLY AT 7PM FOR A PRE-FILM GET TOGETHER WITH GAL PALS AND DRINKS + A ‘CLASS OF ’87 SOUNDTRACK’.**

Celebrate Galentine’s Day with your besties and the ultimate BFF movie: Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion. A bona fide cult classic, this irresistible comedy pairs Oscar winner Mira Sorvino with Friends legend Lisa Kudrow in cinema’s supreme celebration of female friendship, wrapped in one of the 90s’ most beloved sleeper hits.

Ten years after leaving school, where they were relentlessly bullied by the “popular” girls, two, now unapologetically quirky, pastel-clad LA twenty-somethings, Romy (Sorvino) and Michele (Kudrow), discover that a reunion is planned back home in Tucson, Arizona. Insecurity quickly sets in, and with only two weeks to prepare, the duo decide the best plan is to invent fake successful personas to impress their old classmates. Needless to say, things don’t go exactly as planned.

Don’t delay, get tickets for you and your besties before your besties get tickets for you!

DOORS: 7pm*

START TIME: 8.20pm*

RUN TIME: 92 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 7.00pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 8.20pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE
2026-02-14 19:00 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
Perhaps the pre-eminent filmmaker of his generation, Paul Thomas Anderson has directed such contemporary classics as One Battle After Another, Licorice Pizza, Phantom Thread, There Will Be Blood, Magnolia, and Boogie Nights. This Valentine’s Day, we bring you (as ever) a Valentine’s film that celebrates romantic love through an alternative lens: Punch-Drunk Love, Anderson’s wonderfully idiosyncratic, off-beat ode to loneliness and the act of finding love.

Adam Sandler stars as Barry Egan, a socially awkward small-business owner whose overwhelming loneliness is matched only by his erratic temper and obsessive hoarding of frequent-flyer mile coupons. When Barry inadvertently attracts the affection of another lonely soul, Lena (an incandescent Emily Watson), their tentative, star-crossed romance is threatened by a swindling phone-sex operator and her con-man boss, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman in one of his most unforgettable and maniacal performances.

Bring your significant other or fly solo, it matters not.. this Anderson masterpiece will satisfy a previously unknown corner of your soul, with its beauty, naivety, complexity, and its powerful punch of human empathy.

DOORS: 7pm*

SCREENING START TIME: 7.30pm*

FILM RUN TIME: 95 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 7.00pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.30pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: TO CATCH A THIEF
2026-02-28 18:30 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S 4K REMASTER

You can buy tickets for this screening only or take advantage of our discount ticket for both nights of the Vista Vision weekend to see One Eyed Jacks also.

This past year has seen the return of one of cinema’s most exciting formats, with The Brutalist, One Battle After Another, the upcoming Emma Stone / Yorgos Lanthimos collaboration Bugonia, the new Tom Cruise / Alejandro G. Iñárritu project, the latest Margot Robbie / Jacob Elordi / Emerald Fennell film, and new works from both M. Night Shyamalan and Greta Gerwig — all utilising the classic Paramount VistaVision process.

But what is it that is proving so irresistible to modern filmmakers, it has prompted a widespread revival of a format that lay dormant for over sixty years? The answer lies in the magic of the select group of films produced during VistaVision’s original heyday. Over this very special VistaVision Weekend, we present two of the most significant titles from that extraordinary list.

The very first Hitchcock film to employ Vista Vision (he would go on to make four more), To Catch a Thief stands as easily the director’s most glamorous work and comfortably sits among the upper echelons of his remarkable filmography. Pairing Cary Grant with Grace Kelly — fresh from her Best Actress Oscar win — Hitchcock transports us to the glittering French Riviera for a sun-soaked romance between Kelly’s daring socialite Frances Stevens and Grant’s retired cat burglar John Robie. When a new jewel thief threatens Robie’s now reformed reputation, he must uncover the imposter’s identity to prove his innocence.

This wonderfully enjoyable romp sees its two radiant stars rivalled only by the luminous VistaVision photography of the Riviera itself. Bubbling with humour, spice, and sparkling dialogue, To Catch a Thief delivers romantic suspense in the classic Hitchcock mould — all the while (and deliberately) never ruffling Grace Kelly’s exquisite Edith Head costumes or disturbing Cary Grant’s debonair disposition.

Charm and chemistry flow through every frame of this the most picturesque of all Hitchcock’s classics, a film that exemplifies VistaVision’s power as a vehicle for cinematic visual artistry by a master director but also as a conduit for pure, easy-going glamourous entertainment on the big screen.

DOORS: 6.30pm*

START TIME: 7pm*

RUN TIME: 106 mins

CERT: PG (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 6.30pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.00pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: ONE EYED JACKS
2026-03-01 17:40 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
MARLON BRANDO’S 4K REMASTER

You can buy tickets for this screening only or take advantage of our discount ticket for both nights of the Vista Vision weekend to see To Catch a Thief also.

This past year has seen the return of one of cinema’s most exciting formats, with The Brutalist, One Battle After Another, the upcoming Emma Stone / Yorgos Lanthimos collaboration Bugonia, the new Tom Cruise / Alejandro G. Iñárritu project, the latest Margot Robbie / Jacob Elordi / Emerald Fennell film, and new works from both M. Night Shyamalan and Greta Gerwig — all utilising the classic Paramount VistaVision process.

But what is it that is proving so irresistible to modern filmmakers, it has prompted a widespread revival of a format that lay dormant for over sixty years? The answer lies in the magic of the select group of films produced during VistaVision’s original heyday. Over this very special VistaVision Weekend, we present two of the most significant titles from that extraordinary list.

One-Eyed Jacks has a history as dramatic as the film itself. Originally penned by legendary director Sam Peckinpah (The Wild Bunch), production was first set to be helmed by Stanley Kubrick, who departed just days before shooting began. In an extraordinary twist, Marlon Brando—already hailed as the greatest actor of his generation—stepped in to direct, creating what would become his only film as a director.

What followed was the actor of actors directing as only a truly great actor could. Brando’s characteristic passion, perfectionism, and intensity pour from every frame. Working with master cinematographer Charles Lang (Some Like It Hot, The Magnificent Seven), Brando crafts strikingly composed images and draws out a series of extraordinary performances from his cast—most notably from Pina Pellicer and Katy Jurado (High Noon), as well as his long time collaborator and friend Karl Malden, with whom he had previously worked on A Streetcar Named Desire and On the Waterfront.

A meditation on friendship, betrayal, and revenge, this romantic anti-Western stands as a one-of-a-kind work from one of cinema’s greatest and most enigmatic talents.

DOORS: 5.40pm*

START TIME: 6.10pm*

RUN TIME: 141 mins

CERT: PG (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 5.40pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 6.10pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

Brighton Astro: Introduction to Telescopes
2026-03-05 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
Ivana Perenic, Tom Elphick and Jason Stree

DOORS: 7.00pm

LECTURE: 7.30pm

Looking up at the sky is where it all starts for most of us. Seeing the sun, moon, planets and stars begins our journey of fascination with space, why it is how it is and what is out there. In this presentation Brighton Astro are going back to basics to discuss what we can see and what you need to see it.

With the help of expert and experienced stargazers Ivana Perenic, Tom Elphick and Jason Street we’ll discuss what you can see, how telescopes work and what is the best type to use. We’ll have a range of telescopes to look at, answer your questions and help you get started on your stargazing journey.

At Brighton Astro we are captivated by stars, bewitched by the moon and fascinated by space.Brighton Astro is a group of cosmic enthusiasts who meet regularly to discuss the universe, exchange knowledge and to gaze at the stars. We are not scientists or scholars, we are ordinary people curious about the wonders of space.Brighton Astro is FREE and open to everybody, from beginners to experts. Why not come along next month and learn about space?

Brighton Astro is inclusive and welcomes everybody.

Attendance is free, but we would be grateful if those of you who are able to could donate a few pounds to help cover the cost of hiring this event space. We will have a card reader and a money box you can drop your donations in on the night. We also have a bank account you can donate to electronically.

Please only come along if you’ve signed up, as we’re limited on space so won’t be able to fit anyone else in.

If you can no longer attend, please update your status to say that you are no longer attending so that someone on the waiting list gets a place.

Café Scientifique: Wilding Waterhall
2026-03-11 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
Working with nature to maximise biodiversity

DOORS 7PM | SPEAKER 7.30PM

Please note that we are entirely dependent on donations from those who attend our events. You can make a donation as you arrive or leave; we are happy to accept cash or card payments. All donations greatly appreciated!

Please ensure you REGISTER prior to attending!

Register to Attend

The Waterhall Wilding Project is part of the Changing Chalk Project which started in April 2022 and is due to close in March 2026. 10 partners are involved with 18 projects and it covers most of the South Downs National Park. The aim is to create multiple connections across the urban fringes and rural areas of the Downs, restoring and reconnecting the fragmented and degraded areas of chalk grassland which once covered this area

At Wilding Waterhall Nature Reserve – formerly Waterhall Golf Club – rare chalk grassland is being restored and a rich mosaic of downland habitats created for wildlife. Grazing animals, and an army of enthusiastic volunteers, are enabling this transformation to be achieved with minimal carbon emissions, whilst maximising opportunities for the engagement of local communities.

The reserve has already become the perfect living classroom for local schools, universities, community groups and local residents.

Mike Luscombe has been working for Brighton & Hove City Council as Education Ranger at Waterhall since 2023. His role is supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund through the Changing Chalk Project.

White Wall Cinema: MISSISSIPPI MASALA
2026-03-13 19:20 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
The mother of New York City’s new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, is acclaimed director Mira Nair. Between creating landmark works such as Caméra d’Or–winning and Oscar-nominated Salaam Bombay! and the Golden Lion and Golden Globe–winning Monsoon Wedding, Nair crafted this wonderfully luminous, big-hearted, sweet, sexy, and deeply satisfying celebration of love’s power to transcend racial prejudice, now finally enjoying a well-deserved revival.

A romantic gem rich filled with humour and piercing insight, Mississippi Masala explores identity, displacement, colourism, community, prejudice, family, and generational divides. It is a gorgeously irresistible yet honest ode to the melting pot of American society, as well as a moving portrait of individual emotional reckoning.

Beautifully shot in warm, glowing tones with intimate, naturalistic cinematography, the film looks spectacular in this new restoration. making this modern classic more effervescent than ever. We can’t wait to welcome you to this special screening of a truly underappreciated treasure of early ’90s cinema.

DOORS: 7.20pm*

START TIME: 7.50pm*

RUN TIME: 118 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult).

*Please note – doors open at 7.20pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.50pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: AMERICAN GIGOLO
2026-03-19 19:10 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
Living in his minimalist Los Angeles apartment (before minimalism was even a thing) Julian Kaye (Gere) is the embodiment of cultivated taste: impeccably dressed, fluent in several languages, and devoted to the finer things in life. A high-class escort Julian finances his lavish lifestyle catering to a roster of wealthy women, and cultivates a carefully maintained sense of emotional detachment. But when he begins a relationship with the wife of a powerful senator and is framed for a murder he did not commit, his meticulously controlled world begins to unravel.

Slick yet substantive, director Paul Schrader never allows the high design and neon glow of the 1980s to overshadow the film’s European art-house sensibility or the moral gravity of its subject. Sophisticated and coolly detached yet charged with undercurrents of passion, American Gigolo is a tautly restrained melodrama and is one of the defining films of its era as well as an enduring icon of 80s style. Beautifully restored in 4K for the first time, it remains a ravishing work that radiates understated opulence from every frame and demands big screen viewing.

DOORS: 7.10pm*

START TIME: 7.40pm*

RUN TIME: 117 mins

CERT: 18

*Please note – doors open at 7.10pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.40pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: The Hitcher (1986)
2026-03-27 19:30 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
This rip-roaring vehicular thriller roars proudly in the tradition of motorway-stalking cult classics like Duel and Road Games – but The Hitcher boasts a far more potent secret weapon: the maniacal menace of Blade Runner legend, Rutger Hauer.

Tasked with transporting a car cross-country, young motorist Jim Halsey (C. Thomas Howell, of The Outsiders fame) begins to nod off behind the wheel and makes a decision that proves catastrophically misguided, he picks up a hitchhiker for company. The stranger (Hauer) calmly claims to be a killer, and although Jim manages to force him from the vehicle, any sense of relief is short-lived. What follows is a relentless descent into terror as the hitchhiker’s full psychopathic mania is unleashed. With the help of truck-stop waitress Nash (Jennifer Jason Leigh, later of The Hateful Eight and Single White Female), Jim is thrust into a desperate fight for survival

Despite unleashing one brutal set piece after another, The Hitcher remains lean, mean, and stripped to the bone. It plays like a sun-scorched fever dream, ruthless, existential, and soaked in dread. Marrying eerie, uncanny atmosphere with unapologetic B-movie thrills, it stands as a rare genre piece that is both artfully minimal, pulse-poundingly savage with a lingering stylistic mood that’s hard to shake. The Hitcher is a perfectly calibrated, tension-soaked Friday night big screen treat.

DOORS: 7.30pm*

START TIME: 8pm*

RUN TIME: 97 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 7.30pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 8.00pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

The Treason Show
2026-03-28 19:00 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
Satirical shots all round as Mark Brailsford and the Treason Show team bring you a show full of laughter and cheer for the new year.

“Spiting Image meets HIGNFY via The Fast Show”

“Savagely funny – fantastically silly” The GUARDIAN

“Brighton is rightly very proud of this company” THE ARGUS

“This is a most impressive parade of topical songs and sketches, brilliantly written and exquisitely performed” CHORTLE.COM

“Multi-talented performers-fast, witty, topical and surreal with a few million laughs” LATEST.

TICKETS

DOORS – 7.00pm | SHOW – 8.00pm

Brighton Astro: The Star That Refused to Fade
2026-04-02 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
The 37-Year Mystery of Supernova 1987A – Lealahni Woulfe, University of Sussex

DOORS: 7.00pm

LECTURE: 7.30pm

In February 1987, a supernova exploded in a nearby galaxy, but hours before the light arrived, detectors caught 25 mysterious particles called neutrinos. These “ghost particles” told us something extraordinary should be left behind at the heart of the explosion. It took 37 years to find it.

Come along to explore the astrophysics of stellar death, the incredible 1987 neutrino detection, and how the James Webb Space Telescope finally solved the mystery in 2024. We will also look ahead to what is next for neutrino astronomy, including the detectors waiting for the next galactic supernova, which could happen at any moment.

Lealahni is a medical student at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, fascinated by the intersection between neuroscience and physics. Originally planning to become a theoretical particle physicist, she has pursued this passion through years of volunteering at the South Downs Planetarium alongside research projects at the University of Sussex, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, and PTB Berlin.

At Brighton Astro we are captivated by stars, bewitched by the moon and fascinated by space.Brighton Astro is a group of cosmic enthusiasts who meet regularly to discuss the universe, exchange knowledge and to gaze at the stars. We are not scientists or scholars, we are ordinary people curious about the wonders of space.Brighton Astro is FREE and open to everybody, from beginners to experts. Why not come along next month and learn about space?

Brighton Astro is inclusive and welcomes everybody.

Attendance is free, but we would be grateful if those of you who are able to could donate a few pounds to help cover costs. We will have a card reader and a money box you can drop your donations in on the night. We also have a bank account you can donate to electronically.

Please only come along if you’ve signed up, as we’re limited on space so won’t be able to fit anyone else in.

If you can no longer attend, please update your status to say that you are no longer attending so that someone on the waiting list gets a place.

White Wall Cinema: Ghost World
2026-04-03 18:50 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
The beloved adaptation of Daniel Clowes’ underground comic Ghost World is our White Wall Cinema Good Friday special. Directed by Terry Zwigoff (Crumb), the film perfectly captures the acerbic wit, deadpan humour, and teenage angst of its two lead characters, effortlessly portrayed by Thora Birch (American Beauty) and Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation, Under the Skin). They’re joined by screen legend Steve Buscemi (Reservoir Dogs, The Big Lebowski), delivering one of his most memorable performances.

When misfit friends Enid (Birch) and Rebecca (Johansson) graduate from high school, they find themselves adrift in the malaise of a long, post-graduation summer. Beyond enrolling in an art class, adulthood feels frustratingly out of reach, but at least they still have each other. Their fragile bond begins to fray when the cynical duo prank a lonely, middle-aged record collector (Buscemi). What starts as a joke gradually becomes something more complicated, as one of them forms an unexpected attachment that drives a wedge between the pair.

Wryly observed and darkly hilarious, Ghost World is a film for anyone who has ever felt out of place, who never quite fit in or earned a seat at the popular table. Widely regarded as one of the finest coming-of-age films of the 2000s, it has maintained a devoted cult following for more than two decades.

DOORS: 6.50pm*

START TIME: 7.20pm*

RUN TIME: 112 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 6.50pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.20pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

White Wall Cinema: A Double Bill Of Interdimensional Weirdness
2026-04-05 18:30 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROOBANZAI & BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA

Two cult classics, one night, zero sense of normalcy. If you love action, humour, and just a dash of absurdity, this Bank Holiday double bill is your destiny. Originally, Big Trouble in Little China was partly conceived as a sequel to The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, making this the perfect pairing.

First up: the greatest movie about a neurosurgeon, physicist, test pilot, rock star, comic book hero, and samurai you’ll ever see. The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai follows the titular hero, played by Peter Weller (yes, RoboCop himself), on his quest to save the world from evil aliens.

Some of the most gloriously nonsensical fun ever committed to celluloid, it has also become a hugely influential cult classic. Wes Anderson even copied the film’s ending almost verbatim for the closing moments of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, while the pop-culture buffet that is Ready Player One features numerous references to Buckaroo Banzai—so much so that Steven Spielberg’s film sees the main character dressing like Buckaroo himself.

Following that, a film that was once proposed as Buckaroo’s sequel before being reshaped into another gloriously offbeat classic from John Carpenter: Big Trouble in Little China. Director of Halloween, The Thing, The Fog, Starman, Escape from New York, and They Live, Carpenter is no stranger to pulpy, genre-bending cult hits — but Big Trouble might just be the quirkiest of them all.

When truck driver Jack Burton (Kurt Russell – The Thing, Death Proof) makes a routine delivery in San Francisco’s Chinatown, he suddenly finds himself caught in the middle of a supernatural conflict between two ancient Chinese warrior societies. Before long he’s dragged into a wild rescue mission with his friend Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) and sharp-tongued, fearless lawyer Gracie Law (Kim Cattrall – Sex and the City) to save Wang’s fiancée from the clutches of the 2,000-year-old sorcerer David Lo Pan (James Hong – Everything Everywhere All at Once).

Save the world twice in one night – £13 Double Bill Price (or £.9.50 individually)7:00pm – Buckaroo Banzai9:00pm – Big Trouble in Little China.

DOORS: 6.30pm*

START TIME: 7pm*

RUN TIME: 201 mins + 10 minute intermission.

CERT: 15 (Under 16’s must be accompanied by an adult)

*Please note – doors open at 6.30pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.00pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

Waterstones: An Evening With Melissa Auf der Maur
2026-04-07 18:30 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
Melissa Auf der Maur’s Even the Good Girls Will Cry is a captivating portrait of the 1990s; rock’s final decade in analogue. A creative shape-shifter, she joined the Smashing Pumpkins ahead of her work with Hole. Subsequently she has been acclaimed as a record producer, solo performer and photographer. Hear Melissa discuss her writing about the music and the personalities of the US alt-rock scene.

Thanks to a thrown beer bottle and a fan letter to a P.O. box, Melissa Auf der Maur’s first band scored an opening slot for the Smashing Pumpkins in her bohemian home town, Montreal. Sensing Melissa’s talent, Billy Corgan recommended her to Courtney Love. Whisked from her local scene, Melissa joined Hole just after the deaths of Kurt Cobain and Hole’s prior bassist, Kristen Pfaff, with the just-widowed Courtney Love at the centre of it all.

MELISSA AUF DER MAUR is a critically acclaimed singer-songwriter, best known as the former bassist of rock bands Hole and the Smashing Pumpkins. In 2007, VH1 included her as #68 on the list of ‘100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll.’ She is also the co-creative director and owner of Basilica Hudson, a performance centre in Hudson, NY, where she lives.

Book & ticket option includes a hardback copy of Even The Good Girls Will Cry (rrp £22) available for collection on the night.

DOORS 6.30pm | EVENT 7.00pm

TICKETS

Café Scientifique: UK Food Security: Science & Politics
2026-04-08 19:00 - 21:30 | Wagner Hall
Erik Millstone

DOORS 7PM | SPEAKER 7.30PM

Please note that we are entirely dependent on donations from those who attend our events. You can make a donation as you arrive or leave; we are happy to accept cash or card payments. All donations greatly appreciated!

Please ensure you REGISTER prior to attending!

Register to Attend

Erik Millstone completed a first degree in Physics, followed by 3 postgraduate degrees in Philosophy. He was appointed to teach the History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Sussex in 1973, but in Spring 1974 read an article called ‘Death for Dinner’ in the New York Review of Books. His interest in food safety was ignited then, since when he has vigorously pursued that interest. He was a co-author of the first proposals to establish a Food Standards Agency in the UK, and now counts himself as one of agency’s critical friends.

In this talk, Erik Millstone will review several of the problematic features of food security not just in the UK, but more widely too. He will explain why the pursuit of food security is both a scientific and a political problem, and highlight some of the key ways in which science interacts with policy considerations.

He will explain why governments intervene in agricultural and food markets, as they try to stabilise what would otherwise be volatile supplies and prices. He will outline how agricultural and food policies have evolved. He will highlight some of the ways in which scientific uncertainties complicate policy choices, and illustrate some of the problems that remain unsolved.

White Wall Cinema: All We Imagine As Light
2026-04-09 19:20 - 22:30 | Wagner Hall
Topping numerous Film of the Year polls (BFI’s Sight & Sound, The New York Times, Film Comment, AP), All We Imagine as Light is a luminous, intricately woven portrait of the intersecting lives of three nurses living in Mumbai. Written and directed by Payal Kapadia in her fiction feature debut, the film was selected for the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival, where it was awarded the Grand Prix.

As much a tribute to Mumbai as it is a quiet critique, the film follows three very different women who have left their homes in search of opportunity in the big city. Each contends with her own emotional and material struggles, striving to build stability, both financial and personal, while questioning their relationships and navigating the pressures of a rapidly changing urban landscape shaped by gentrification and rising Hindu nationalism.

A series of everyday yet nonetheless life-altering events unfold, prompting each woman to gently shed the societal expectations placed upon them, by others and by themselves. Lyrically told, visually rich, and suffused with atmosphere, longing, and gentle humour, this is a deeply rewarding and delicately crafted work. Both beautifully nuanced and disarmingly simple, it stands as a modern masterpiece.

DOORS: 7.20pm*

START TIME: 7.50pm*

RUN TIME: 115 mins

CERT: 15 (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult).

*Please note – doors open at 7.20pm, Please try to allow extra time to get seated prior to the performance start time of 7.50pm. There will usually be no admittance from 20 minutes after the films stated start time. No hot food or alcohol from outside the premises is allowed. All alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises must be purchased from the bar as per the conditions of the venue’s licence

Tickets & More Info

BRIGHTHINK: The Dice That Changed the World
2026-04-21 18:45 - 21:30
From basement tables and hand-drawn maps to blockbuster video games and global streaming phenomena, Dungeons & Dragons didn’t just invent a game — it sparked a cultural revolution!

Join us on an adventure into the history, legacy, and enduring appeal of tabletop role-playing games, as we trace how their core ideas of imagination, cooperation, and storytelling laid the foundations for the digital worlds we now play in. Whether you rolled your first d20 decades ago or came to RPGs through Warhammer, World of Warcraft, or live-streaming, this is a chance to explore how a niche hobby became a cornerstone of modern gaming.

Our panel brings together a merry fellowship of voices from across the role-playing universe: James Bennison (Role Playing James), Adam Tinworth, writer and digital culture expert, Esther MacCallum-Stewart, game studies scholar, and Christoph Sebastian-Deterding, game designer and researcher.

This never-before-seen live event will be taking place in the main Stellar Firma Conference Thunderdome, also known as Wagner Hall, Regency Road, Brighton.

They will venture into how player-shaped narrative became a game design philosophy, how RPG mechanics migrated from the table to the screen, and they’ll explore how the hobby has shifted, welcoming more women and diverse voices – embracing stories that reflect all kinds of players.

Seasoned adventurers and curious newcomers are welcome on this quest as we map the past, present, and possible futures of RPGs – and why dice still matter in an age of algorithms.

All ages welcome – but all 16 year olds and under must be accompanied by an adult.

DOORS OPEN : 6:45

EVENT STARTS : 7:30

AUDIENCE Q&A : 8:30

TICKETS

Waterstones: Richard Armitage In Conversation
2026-05-26 18:00 - 21:30
With Stu Cummins

Richard Armitage, film & TV actor as well as bestselling author of Geneva, will be chatting with Stu Cummins about his latest twist-laden thriller The Cut.

Thirty years ago, one of Ben Knott’s schoolfriends was murdered. Another went to prison. The story ended. The village of Barton Mallett tried to move on.

Now the killer is back … and as the murderer’s sentence ends, the village is chosen as the unlikely location for a feature film by a Hollywood producer, with Ben’s son Nathan cast in the leading role. But, as the film takes shape, Ben begins to recognise the storyline … from his own past.

Book & ticket option includes a PB copy of The Cut (rrp £9.99) available for collection on the night.

DOORS OPEN : 6:30

EVENT STARTS : 7:00

TICKETS
