Movie Night: Christmas Roulette

It's finally over. The midterms, papers, and projects of November have run their grisly course, like the ravages of some terrible academic disease. And to celebrate: a final movie night to end both the week and the term.

This Friday's theme is horrendous Christmas movies, and horrendous movies in general. The first film of the night is Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, and the second is to be decided by an insidious device that Hunter refers to as his "Christmas Roulette." This contraption will select at random one of the many films that are too terrible for us to propose for viewing without deferring responsibility to the impartial hand of random chance. The candidates include such gems as The Room, Mega-Shark vs. Giant Octopus, Dungeons & Dragons, Samurai Cop, and The Star Wars Holiday Special. God help us all.

Time and place are 5:30pm and Buchanan B213, respectively.

Movie Night: Supernatural Teen Drama

It's another of those bi-weekly Friday nights, and this time the theme is "horror icons hijacked by teen drama." Get yourself to Buchanan B213 at 5:30pm for the infamous Twilight and it's precursor from the mid-nineties, The Craft. A teenage girl empowerment fantasy and a teenage girl disempowerment fantasy! How the times change. Anticipate even more jeering and unsolicited uproarious laughter than usual.

Movie Night: Fighting Game Adaptations

Here's to all of you who made last week's Hallowe'en party a massive success! We had a broad range of costumes and a lot of fun with bossy, VHS-based board games.

To keep the momentum going, movie night has been moved up to this Friday! The theme: adaptations of fighting games - Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. I will let those trailers speak for themselves.

The time and place are, as ever, Buchanan B213 and 5pm, irrespectively.

Hallowe'en 2011

Alright, we've finally hammered out all the details for the SFS/Wargamers 2011 Hallowe'en Party! The time and place: this Friday, 5pm, in Buchanan B213. Costumes encouraged.

Centerpiece events planned for the evening include the viewing of an APPROPRIATELY HALLOWE'EN-FLAVORED MOVIE , Hocus Pocus; the initiation of Lucie's BAD FANFICTION READING CIRCLE (to which all are invited to bring their own samples of foul internet literature for dramatic rendition); a rousing GAME OF MAFIA REIMAGINED FOR THE CTHULHU MYTHOS; and no small amount of FESTIVE CUPCAKE DECORATION.

And as if that is not enough, there will also be the Wargamers' endless variety of board- and card-games to keep you entertained.

And if, for emphasis, I may repeat: costumes encouraged! There will be prizes. And candy. It is, after all, Hallowe'en.

I'll see you all there! (Though considering my choice of costume, maybe you won't.)

Movie Night: Michael Crichton

Hello again, dear reader.

This Friday marks the first full-scale, double-feature SFS movie night of the year! The theme for this week is movies based on books by Michael Chrichton - Jurrassic Park and Timeline. The first one lures you in, the second moves in from the side, knocks you to the ground, and slices open your belly with its six-inch retractable claw.

The time and place are Buchanan B213 and 5:30pm, irrespectively.

Also, I imagine that many of you new members are wondering where the SFS clubroom is - it's not really written down anywhere, and even then it's hard to find. So here are some step-by-step directions:

The SFS clubroom is on the first floor of the Student Union Building, but can't be reached by going in through the main entrances. Instead, approach the Student Union Building on the side that faces the bus loop; to the right of the cafeteria you'll find a glass entrance leading to the Sexual Assault Center. Go in there and take a right down the hallway. The clubroom is the first room on the right.

The Cycle Begins Anew

It is that time again. Winter session 2011/2012 is upon us. We're all busy people during this part of the year: situating ourselves in and around campus, buying books, performing last minute add/drop scheduling gymnastics. And as the cogs of this reawakening academic machine slowly begin to groan and grate against one another, what better way to grease them than taking the afternoon off and reconnecting with that trusty old warhorse, the UBC Science Fiction Society?

Tomorrow (Monday, September 5th) at 1pm, we will be meeting at Trimble Park for the first official SFS event of the year. There will be food, there will be board games, there will be physical exertion to get all your pretty little endorphin glands pumping like mad. And, most certainly, there will be good company. This is terribly short notice, I know, but I'm just arriving in Vancouver myself (and let's be honest - nobody reads this thing anyway.)

For the record, I am Myles, SFS Vice President and shameless figurehead. I'll be updating this blog throughout the year with news, events, funny internet things, awesome internet things, propaganda, and whatever else. We lost the better part of our SFS administrative body to graduation last May, and most of us in charge are terrifyingly new at this. Hold on tight.

And a note to those readers who are not members of the SFS: chances are (if you're reading this blog at all, in fact) you discovered the Science Fiction Society in the UBC club book and were all "wtf is this shit" and found yourself here one halfhearted Google search later. Perhaps you're a new student here, or a veteran student who just happens to have an extra flourish of extracurricular curiosity this year. Maybe you're a longtime member who is suffering from a severe case of amnesia. Whatever the circumstances: you are quite welcome to join in. Drop by the clubroom, or slip quietly into one of our movie nights. See what you think.

At it's heart, SFS is an informal conglomeration of people who tried growing up, and then, upon some consideration, decided it wasn't really for them. If you want the security of knowing that all your Star Wars references will be caught, or that people around you will 'get' your t-shirt with a meme on it, or that any discussion you open on the subject of Harry Potter, or the Legend of Zelda, or steampunk, or Firefly, or jetpacks, or internet culture, or dinosaurs will be easily carried in excess on one hour, this is a community you will like, and we will probably like you, too.

If you're interested and would like SFS news and events to come to you, send an email  to sfssoco@gmail.com and ask to be put on the email list. Or you could read this blog! I get ever so lonely.

The Last Sci Fi Event(s) of the Year

From left to right: Peter, Sean, Eka and Adriana. Get it??

To celebrate the end of the last week of classes, your SFS leaders have decreed that the following three events will take place:

1- Final Quidditch game. Meet in the club office at 4:30 pm, Friday April 8th. We're hoping to get enough people to play our first-ever un-abridged game, bludgers, snitch and all! Make it happen people.

2- Final Movie Night and potluck, and election announcements. Meet in the office or in Buchanan D 215 at 5:30 pm, Friday April 8th. We will be watching Death Race 2000 and the original 1966 Adam West Batman! Holy memoranda folks, make a note not to miss it!
Bring food for the potluck, but do not, I repeat do NOT bring a dessert unless your last name starts with a letter between S and Z. We will know if you do, and judge you.

Also, at this movie night we will announce the winners of our election, your exec for next year. This one requires your participation. Vote in the election if you haven't already, like right now! One of the positions is actually contested! Here are the candidates:

President:

Lucie Brown

Vice-president:

Madison Braga: (no empty campaign promises available)

Myles Wirth: Living on campus, I'd be willing and able to spend a lot of time in the office, increasing its hours of operation as a hang-out location-slash-rest stop for everyone during the day. I also excel at writing blog posts full of moving, staggeringly beautiful prose. I have an almost startling capacity for menial tasks, and my loyalty to the Society is unquestionable. Additionally, I'm rather good-looking.

Emily Hartig: Good day, fellow club members! I have unfortunately been quite invisible this year (and especially this past term) at events, as my life was forcibly taken over by the Theatre, and this is precisely one of the reasons I am interested in becoming your vice president for next year! I'm also interested in learning more about how the club runs. I hope to be around more, keep that fridge fully stocked, and procrastinate on my thesis by doing Fantastical Things (instead of by watching Star Trek in my room like I have been...). I hope to spend my summer refreshing myself by teaching children how to whack each other with foam swords and the like. So, vote for me if you like fun! Live long and prosper.

Secretary:

Azhia Larson

Treasurer:

Erin Schneider

Librarian:

Iris Liu

Assistant Librarian:

Chris Preston

Social Coordinator:

Hunter Cochrane

aand, 3- The one you've been waiting for. The foam sword weekend battle royale, with Dim Sum! Here is what Peter has to say about it: 

[M]eet at the SFS at 11:00am. We'll be going out en masse for Dim Sum. After this, we'll go out and buy supplies with which to construct additional foam swords to supplement our arsenal. If you've wanted a custom sword, you will learn how to make one. After we've made the swords, we'll hit each other with them! Between the food and the swords, this will likely cost about $15-$20.

Sounds pretty frickin' awesome.

That is all. 

It's the final countdown!

We're leaving together
But still it's farewell
And maybe we'll come back
To earth, who can tell?

Look it up. And get pumped. Cause we're heading into the final stretch of this term, and we still need people to run for the key club leadership positions. If you've ever dreamed of being President, Vice President, Treasurer or Mascot of the SFS, all you have to do is send us an email and you will be in the running! If no one steps up, we're kind of screwed!

Other reasons to get pumped up this week include:
Foam sword fighting! Wednesday at 11:00 am and Saturday at 1:00 pm. Meet in the club room and go fight in a field.
Quidditch! Friday at 4:30 pm, an hour before the movie starts. Meet in the club room and go fight in a field.
Movie night! Friday at 5:30 pm in Buchanan D201. Meet at the room, or in the club. This week's movies are
Eragon and the animated Lord of the Rings. Both highly mockable, so it should be a good time.

Come crawl out of your study caves for a bit and be entertained!

Space Madness!

This just in: amazing sci fi-themed party next Saturday (March 5) at Club 23 West. There will be dancing. There will be flashy lights. There will be people in shiny bodysuits. And oh yes, there will be costume prizes! So dress up as something awesome!

You can pick up tickets here http://canada.wantickets.com/Events/ShowEvent.aspx?eventId=86860 for only $10, or try just showing up with your UBC ID. Students have been known to get in for free if they show up before 11 pm. 

More info on this page: http://plancast.com/p/3qtx/space-madness-2011-sci-fi-theme-ball

Also, please enjoy this Ren and Stimpy episode, which is also called Space Madness.

Thirsty Thirsty SFSers

Our latest movie night featured two animated films about people looking for planets (or planet-making ships, whatev...) Titan A.E. and Treasure Planet. I think that this face will be haunting many of our dreams for the next few nights. But it will be formed out of swirling blue nebula clouds :\ ....

The only thing missing from the evening's entertainment was soda, and of course, we all missed the delicious Cheetah energy drink that has become a traditional beverage at movie nights. We will be resupplied soon, I promise. 

3 Things That Already Happened

If you have been receiving emails from Peter lately, you will be aware of three events that were not hyped on the blog in advance. My apologies. It all happened so fast!

1. SFS Booksale - for three days we braved the cold and valiantly tried to give away a portion of our vast library, exchanging classic (and incredibly bizarre) books for people's pocket change, pocket lint, cookie crumbs, kind words, and whatever else they might have to offer. Boba Fett was there to warm up the crowds, and we had a special one-day visit from Yves the rogue Sand Trooper, posing in pictures to raise money for the Alternate Shelter Society. Amazing costumes guys! I hope to post pictures here soon.

2. Movie night - this one kind of popped up unexpectedly, but featured two quality films: Dark City and Strange Days. Altered reality and dead prostitutes for everyone!

3. Weekend Lord of the Rings Marathon - this one could have gone better, but the FilmSoc generously lent us their club room and awesome TV so that we could watch the whole trilogy (extended version) in the course of one Saturday afternoon. We apologize for accidentally setting off their security alarm ;)

Stay tuned for next week's movie night announcement, which will appear before Friday, I promise.

Late Breaking News: Vampire double feature tonight!!!

Sorry for the delay folks. In case you saw us at our book sale this week and want to check out one of our bi-weekly movie nights, here's the info.
Where: Buchanan D 201
When: 5:30 pm
What we're watching: Let the Right One In (that Swedish vampire movie) and Thirst (a Korean movie about a priest who is accidentally turned into a vampire in a failed medical experiment). They both look pretty awesome.

Also: we will have free pizza, and we will be selling cheap candy and pop. Bring your appetite and some quarters!

Ahem, hem...

Just thought that some of my fellow geeks might like to see this. It's a little web comic that I've been doing, which shamelessly rips off real Spider-Man comics and changes the story into something like a teen drama or soap opera.

The blog is at http://spidersoap.blog.com - feel free to comment or email with pet projects of your own that you would like to share. Because that's what the SFS is all about. Sharing. And free pizza.