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VINTAGE TOMORROWS examines the Steampunk movement's explosive growth, origins, and cultural significance. It explores the fundamental question: What can we learn about tomorrow from Steampunk's playful visions of yesteryear?
WATCH THE TRAILER
PRODUCTION STILLS
IMAGES FROM THE WORLD OF STEAMPUNK
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The original Steampunk Dinner at the Dahlia Lounge, Seattle, WA
Cory Doctorow in his office in London
Cory Doctorow's Dr. Grodbort ray gun
Cherie Priest, post-interview. Photo by Ben Z. Mund
Historian James Carrott poses with Cherie Priest. Photo by Ben Z. Mund.
Paul Guinan and Anina Bennett pose with a Captain Nemo rifle created by Mikel Sauve
Juggler Jason Sawyer Arquin poses in a costume created by Autumn & Andrew Anglin
Airship Ambassador Kevin Steil prepares to conduct an interview at Norwescon
Captain Chronomek's Luminiferous Tesselator, created by Tess Tanenbaum
Jeff and Ann VanderMeer speak during a panel at the Victoria Steam Expo
Jordan Stratford (right), Victoria Steam Expo co-founder, poses with a volunteer
Gail Carriger twirls a parasol in between takes during her interview
Deborah Sciales of Obtainium Works tends to their Maker Faire booth
Michael Stewart of Love Coin welcomes visitors to his Maker Faire booth
Shannon O'Hare of Obtainium Works is interviewed during Maker Faire
Gon KiRin, a 60ft fire-breathing dragon created by Teddy Lo & Ryan Doyle, at Maker Faire
An under-construction steam-powered robot at the Obtainium Works workshop
Byrd McDonald conducts an interview with Samuel Coniglio of Obtainum Works
Andy 'Playarazzi' Pischalnikoff and his fire cannon at Obtainum Works
Shannon O'Hare prepares to put on a show at Obtainium Works
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"The Victorians thought that if you were going to make a giant death ray killing machine, it should look like a giant death ray killing machine. It should fill an entire room, and it should be gorgeous, and it should have a million buttons and levers that don’t even do anything, they just look cool. But it should look like a giant death ray killing machine. And now we have… a button."
Cherie Priest
author, Boneshaker
"One of the big questions today is whether or not we will have enough tinkerable stuff in our world that when someone takes away the tinkerable, we go 'Wait a second, inherently technology should be tinkerable!'"
Cory Doctorow
author & blogger, boingboing
FILM SYNOPSIS
AND FURTHER INFORMATION
SYNOPSIS:
“Steampunk” started as a sub-genre of science fiction typified by a fascination with steam-powered machinery and alternative histories, with stories frequently set in Victorian England. Today, Steampunk has grown into an aesthetic movement all its own, with influence in art, fashion, design and music.
VINTAGE TOMORROWS examines the subculture via interviews with the writers and artists credited with galvanizing the movement, and the cultural historians and social scientists investigating the phenomenon. The documentary analyzes the spike in Steampunk cultural activity and poses the question: What can Steampunk tell us about history, humanity and our complicated relationship with technology?
INTERVIEWED IN THE FILM:
VINTAGE TOMORROWS features interviews and appearances from across the spectrum of Steampunk artistic expression: storytellers, costumers, musicians, makers and more!
STORYTELLERS include William Gibson and Bruce Sterling (The Difference Engine), Cherie Priest (Boneshaker), China Miéville (Perdido Street Station), Cory Doctorow (Makers), Gail Carriger (The Parasol Protectorate series), Paul Guinan and Anina Bennett (Boilerplate: History's Mechanical Marvel), Ann and Jeff VanderMeer (Steampunk, The Steampunk Bible), Nisi Shawl (Everfair) and Phil and Kaja Foglio (Girl Genius).
VINTAGE TOMORROWS also features interviews with illustrator Claire Hummel, founder of Steampunk Magazine Margaret 'Magpie' Killjoy, photographer Libby Bulloff, Obtainium Works (the team behind the Neverwas Haul), numerous Steampunk bloggers (Jaymee Goh, Kevin Steil, Jordan Bodewell) and musical appearances by Abney Park and Unwoman.
SHOOTING LOCATIONS:
While much of VINTAGE TOMORROWS was shot in the Pacific Northwest, the production has traveled all over the world, and visited numerous conventions and Steampunk gatherings.
Attended conventions and events include Gear Con and the PDX Steampunk Film Festival in Portland, OR, Steamcon and the Seattle Steampunk Soirée in Seattle, WA, the Key West Literary Seminar in Key West, FL, Norwescon in SeaTac, WA, the Victoria Steam Expo in Victoria, B.C., Canada, the Altered Reality Event in Santa Clara, CA, Maker Faire Bay Area in San Mateo, CA, and Dragoncon in Atlanta, GA.
In addition to these events, the production has traveled to Vallejo, CA to visit the Obtainium Works workshop, to London, England to visit Cory Doctorow's office, and all the way to the Czech Republic to visit the Prague orloj astronomical clock.
PRODUCTION TEAM
BYRD McDONALD
DIRECTOR
PRODUCER
Byrd McDonald has written, lensed, directed and edited unique media stories for a range of clients. A graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts by way of Butcher Hollow, Kentucky, McDonald worked for Academy Award-winning director Jonathan Demme from 1994 to 1999, working in development and shepherding features from script to screen. McDonald produced and directed the feature length documentary HAUNTERS, and in 2006, produced the award-winning feature FILM GEEK. McDonald also produced and co-edited the feature THE AUTEUR, which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival.
ALAN WINSTON
EDITOR
PRODUCER
Alan Winston discovered his area of expertise when he took an editing class at Oregon State University. Within a year, he was teaching the class, in charge of programming at the student TV station and producing his own show. During his professional career, Alan has worked in camera and sound departments, as on-camera talent, in picture and sound editing, and in effects and animation compositing. His work spans TV, movies, music videos, and many nationally-televised commercials. He has produced 53 short films and 5 features.
SEAN HUTCHINSON
PRODUCER
Sean Hutchinson graduated with a master’s degree in film from Georgia State University where he apprenticed under Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Gary Moss. Hutchinson has produced dozens of hours of programming for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Annenberg Foundation, the National Science Foundation, as well as several local segments on Oregon Public Broadcasting. His 2010 contemporary Native Arts documentary, FOR THE GENERATIONS, ranks as a top five seller among Native Stories for Public Broadcasting.
ADDITIONAL CREW:
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY - SHAWN SUNDBY
ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY
MICHAEL PALMIERI & CHRIS PARKHURST
ORIGINAL MUSIC BY MATTHEW MERCER
CO-PRODUCER - EMMERY McNAMARA
VINTAGE TOMORROWS
THE BOOK
IT ALL STARTED WHEN A FUTURIST AND A CULTURAL HISTORIAN WALKED INTO A BAR...
Can you imagine what today’s technology would have looked like in the Victorian Era? That’s the world Steampunk envisions: a mad-inventor collection of 21st Century-inspired contraptions powered by stream and driven by gears. In this fascinating book, futurist Brian David Johnson and cultural historian James Carrott offer insights into what Steampunk’s alternative history says about our own world and its technological future. Interviews with experts such as William Gibson, Cory Doctorow, Bruce Sterling, James Gleick, and Margaret Atwood explore how this vision of stylish craftsmen making fantastic and beautiful hand-tooled gadgets has become a cultural movement—and perhaps an important countercultural moment.
Order the eBook version of Vintage Tomorrows from O’Reilly Media and receive a free eBook copy of Steampunking Our Future: An Embedded Historian’s Notebook!
This free eBook companion to Vintage Tomorrows is packed with exclusive interviews (including Greg Broadmore, Ann and Jeff Vandermeer, and Margaret Killjoy), notes, images, and more gorgeous gadgets than you can shake a stick at. Steampunking Our Future offers you a spot in the time machine—hang on tight, our culture is changing,
"If you look at the history of computing itself, computing started off as a crazy idea that was too science fiction for its time. And in the same way, fantasy and fiction has found a way to combine the magical and the practical: in Steampunk."
Alex Peake
video game designer, Primer Labs
"I do believe that if more people grow up reading Steampunk, they’re going to have a better idea about how technology can actually be ours and not a cold, alienating thing."
Margaret ‘Magpie’ Killjoy
founder, Steampunk Magazine
SCREENINGS
COME SEE THE MOVIE IN PERSON
UPCOMING SCREENINGS:
As the release of the movie nears, we only have a few more festival screenings and event appearances planned. Those will be announced in the coming weeks!
In the meantime, it's still possible to arrange a Vintage Tomorrows screening at your event. Please contact us for more info!
PREVIOUS SCREENINGS:
WESTERCON 69 / GEAR CON 2016
Portland, OR, Friday July 1
Panel: 'Behind the Scenes of Vintage Tomorrows'
In attendance: Alan Winston, Sean Hutchinson, Paul Guinan, Anina Bennett, Samuel Coniglio, Katherine Becvar, Mikel Sauve
SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Seattle, WA, Friday June 3 201
[Additional screenings in Renton, WA, May 29 and Kirkland, WA, June 5]
In attendance: Byrd McDonald, Alan Winston, Matthew Mercer, Brian David Johnson, James Carrott, Claire Hummel, Jordan Bodewell, Kevin Steil, Anthony Hicks, Diana Vick, Marshal Hunter, R. Martin Armstrong and more!
CLOCKWORK ALCHEMY
San Jose, CA, Sunday May 29 2016
In attendance: Byrd McDonald, Alan Winston,
Samuel Coniglio, Katherine Becvar and Unwoman
Visit the Clockwork Alchemy website
STEAMPUNK WORLD'S FAIR
Piscataway, NJ, Friday May 13
Visit the Steampunk World's Fair website
SCI-FI-LONDON
London, UK, Thursday April 28
Visit the Sci-Fi-London website
MINICON 51
Minneapolis, MN, Saturday, March 26 2016
ROSE CITY STEAMPUNK FILM FESTIVAL
Portland, OR, Saturday, March 12 2016
In attendance: Byrd McDonald, Alan Winston, and Mac McGowan
GEEKFEST TORONTO
Toronto, ON, Sunday, February 14 2016
In attendance [via phone]: Byrd McDonald and Alan Winston
WINNER - BEST OF FEST
Visit the GeekFest Toronto website
BOSTON SCIENCE FICTION FESTIVAL
Boston, MA, Tuesday, February 9 2016
Visit the Boston SciFi website
OTHER WORLDS AUSTIN
Austin, TX, Saturday, December 5 2015
In attendance: Byrd McDonald
Visit the Other Worlds Austin website
RHODE ISLAND COMIC CON FILM FESTIVAL
Providence, RI, Sunday, November 8 2015
WINNER - BEST DOCUMENTARY
Visit the Rhode Island Comic Con website
DRAGON CON INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL
Atlanta, GA, Sunday, September 6 2015
In attendance: Alan Winston and Margaret Killjoy
Visit the Dragon Con International Film Festival website
PORTLAND FILM FESTIVAL
Portland, OR, Wednesday, September 2 2015
In attendance: Byrd McDonald, Alan Winston, Sean Hutchinson, Matthew Mercer, Michael Palmieri and Chris Parkhurst
Visit the Portland Film Festival website
SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
San Diego, CA, Saturday, July 11 2015
VINTAGE TOMORROWS made its debut at one of the largest comics conventions in the world! Producer and director Byrd McDonald, editor and producer Alan Winston, and producer Sean Hutchinson were all in attendance to present the movie.
After the screening, Byrd and Alan were joined on-stage by VINTAGE TOMORROWS book co-author Brian David Johnson, and movie interview subjects Claire Hummel, Anina Bennett and Paul Guinan as they conducted a quick Q&A (seen at top left).
Visit the San Diego Comic-Con International Film Festival website
PRESS ARCHIVES
INTERVIEWS AND REVIEWS
REVIEWS:
After the premiere of VINTAGE TOMORROWS at San Diego Comic Con, a number of interviews hit the internet. Here are a few of our favorites:
- “Byrd McDonald’s documentary, Vintage Tomorrows, changed my perception of the culture thanks to in-depth interviews with some of its most illustrious members” -Elizabeth Weitz, Forces of Geek
- "...what I’ve realized is, in the context of sci-fi genre, Vintage Tomorrows actually defamiliarizes the beauty and passion and art behind the sci-fi genre." -Travis Bean, Film Colossus
- “...provides a great introduction to the genre and culture, but also challenges the viewer to think about that culture at the same time.” -Brett Schenker, Graphic Policy
- “This is a much-needed comprehensive look, both informative and quite a lot of fun.” -Henry Chamberlain, Comics Grinder
- “Vintage Tomorrows features some really interesting people, and whether you’re familiar with their previous work or not, they are just fun to watch.” -Amy Nelson, Games Fiends
- “...it’s not just a documentary about some people who enjoy putting on spats and pairing it with rayguns, it seems to be a love letter to those who have found a passion and are living their life out loud in celebration of it.” -Christopher Stipp, Slashfilm
- "'Vintage Tomorrows' offers several important lessons that today’s consumer designers should consider taking to heart in order to bring more beauty, improved innovation, better resilience and a sense of ownership to our technology." -Daniel Rasmus, GeekWire
- "These people around the dinner table share their thoughts, their dreams, their aspirations. These are people of high intellect, imagination, creativity, and wit. Yet they are welcoming, encouraging and supportive of those who wish to read, listen, watch, or create something steampunk." -Toni Adams, FangirlNation Magazine
INTERVIEWS:
Leading up to the premiere of VINTAGE TOMORROWS at San Diego Comic Con, Byrd was interviewed for numerous websites, radio, TV and web shows. Here is an archive of all of those interviews:
- Vintage Tomorrows "Steam Punk" Doc at Comic Con - An on-camera interview with @Hollywood, conducted at SDCC2015
- FOG! Chats With Byrd McDonald, Director of Steampunk Doc, VINTAGE TOMORROWS - An interview with the website Forces of Geek
- Fest Track On Sirk TV: VINTAGE TOMORROWS [Comic Con 2015] - Also on-camera at SDCC 2015, this time with The Inside Reel from Fest Track on Sirk TV
- SDCC: Byrd McDonald 'Vintage Tomorrows' Interview [07/10/2015] - Byrd appeared on It's Erik Nagel on SIrius XM as part of Erik's SDCC2015 special
- Exclusive: Director Byrd McDonald Talks ‘Vintage Tomorrows,’ His Definitive Steampunk Documentary Debuting at SDCC - An interview with the website Fangirlish
- Steampunk Doc Explores Vintage Tomorrows - An interview with Byrd in the Austin Chronicle to promote the screening at Other Worlds Austin
- VIDEO: An Exclusive Interview with ‘Vintage Tomorrows’ Director Byrd McDonald - Byrd interviewed at SDCC 2015 for website The Daily Quirk
- Metal Life Exclusive Interview With Steampunk Documentary “Vintage Tomorrows” Director Byrd McDonald - An on-camera interview for Metal Life Magazine, with Byrd joined by Sean Hutchinson
- SDCC IFF premieres VINTAGE TOMORROWS a FANtastic look at Steampunk's Cultural Significance - An interview on Matty P.'s Radio Happy Hour
- “Vintage Tomorrows” Steampunk Documentary - A live interview on Fox 5 San Diego, in which Byrd was joined by Steampunk Darth Vader cosplayer Dude Vader
- Byrd McDonald from Other Worlds Austin 2015 - An interview with Gavin Stone of Fanboy TV on the red carpet of the Other Worlds Austin Sci-Fi Film Festival
- Meet Steampunk's Badass Builders - an interview with Byrd conducted during San Diego Comic Con by Sci Fi Magazine [available in print only - vol 21, number 6, Feb 2016, on newsstands starting December 1, 2015]
Gail Carriger
author, The Parasol Protectorate
"You’ll walk around in the hallway at a Steampunk convention and you’ll see a sixteen year old boy and an eighty year old woman having an in-depth discussion on how to crochet an octopus, or something like that."
"Being able to say you are the hero of your own life, your own story, and so I will take this one thing I’ve always aspired to do and make a costume around it is pretty great. And then it’s just fun to filter that through Victoriana."
Claire Hummel
illustrator, Shoomlah
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