In the organizer's words:

"Scala!!! Or, The Incredibly Strange Rise and Fall of the World's Wildest Cinema and How It Influenced a Mixed-up Generation of Weirdos and Misfits"

UK 2023, 96:00, Director: Ali Catterall & Jane Giles

"The Scala had magic, it was like joining a club, a very secret club, like a biker gang or something. It's like they were a country club for criminals and lunatics and people that were high. Which is a good way to see movies" John Waters

"Scala!!!" is an anarchic, exuberant and ultimately heartbreaking feature-length documentary that tells the turbulent inside story of the legendary London cinema Scala from 1978 to 1993. The film is a kaleidoscopic combination of archive film and photography, spectacular film clips, graphics and animations as well as interviews. As a result, "Scala!!!" goes beyond pure nostalgia and becomes a universal appeal to the power of cinema to inspire young minds and create a sense of community for outsiders - a place where everyone is welcome.

During the politically turbulent post-punk 'Thatcher years', more than a million people from across the UK flocked through the doors of the Scala Cinema. Over 15 glorious years, it inspired a generation with its legendary monthly repertory programs, which included everything from high-profile classics to sexploitation, horror, kung fu and LGBTQ+ in daily double bills and unforgettable all-nighters. At the heart of the monthly Scala programs were worn 35mm and 16mm prints of works by alternative auteur filmmakers such as Pier Paolo Pasolini, Walerian Borowczyk, Russ Meyer, John Waters, Derek Jarman and David Lynch. In addition, there was much more that pushed the boundaries of good taste and convention.

Many of the young visitors to Scala went on to become musicians, writers, artists, actors, activists and, of course, filmmakers.

With: John Waters, Peter Strickland, Thurston Moore, Barry Adamson, Mark Moore, Matt Johnson, Princess Julia, Douglas Heart, Ben Wheatley, Isaac Julian, Caroline Catz, Stewart Lee, Adam Buxton, Cathi Unsworth, James O'Brien, Mary Harron, John Akomfrah, Jah Wobble a.o.