A top DJ has been named as the headline act for Huddersfield’s Festival of Light.
DJ Yoda, who mixes music with film, is to bring his sci-fi show to St George’s Square on November 29.
The show will be premiered two weeks earlier at the British Film Institute’s sci-fi festival at London’s Southbank.
Organisers of the Festival, which has been cut to one day this year, claim Yoda is one of the world’s finest manipulators of music and moving image.
St George’s Square will be transformed into not only a cinema, but also a sensational outdoor music venue as film and music come together.
‘DJ Yoda Goes to the Sci-Fi Movies’ sees the BFI team up with one of the world’s finest manipulators of music and moving image to embark on a cut, paste, scratch and mix odyssey into science fiction.
Award-winning DJ Yoda was described by Q magazine as ‘one of ten DJs to see before you die’. He pioneered a new art form when he used his turntable skills to sample film and TV to create intricate and highly-entertaining audio visual collages.
His act will be part of a double live music and film event titled ‘The Final Frontier’, and is brought to the Festival of Light by Ilkley Film Festival and Film Hub North as part of BFI Sci-Fi: Days of Fear and Wonder.
Clr David Sheard, Leader of Kirklees Council, said: “We’ve had some amazing shows in St George’s Square over the years, and this one will not disappoint. This one day event is packed with spectacular entertainment and I am confident that it will attract huge numbers of people into our town centre, and also into town centre businesses.”
Support for the DJ Yoda comes in the form of Ilkley Film Festival’s first live music commission: a world premiere live score to film A Trip to the Moon by Huddersfield band Stems.
The seminal short film by George Méliès is one of the first ever sci-fi films, defining the genre and has since been restored with hand coloured cells.
As well as the main stage acts, Huddersfield will be treated to a whole host of other entertainment throughout the day. As Festival of Light will happen on the one day this year, all the action starts earlier than usual at 2pm. At 2.45pm, families will be able to sing along with Elsa, Anna and Olaf from Frozen, visit the world’s smallest cinema, see a giant talking story book come to life, and see a variety of street theatre throughout the day.
Food and drink stalls will be set up and from dusk, local lighting artist James Bawn will light the iconic buildings in St George’s Square.
The Festival is supported this year by a Fringe Festival, Huddersfield Hat, which promises a weekend of music, performances, art and pop up galleries.
