19.09.24, 20:30, I Saw the TV Glow (2023)

We open our doors and kick off the season with the hypnotic beauty of I Saw the TV Glow. This trance-worthy coming-of-age film immerses you in the life of teenager Owen. Alienated from his peers and lost in the labyrinth of millennial adolescence, Owen spends his evenings alone in front of the television. When he meets fellow loner Maddy one day, a fragile friendship develops between the two. At the centre of this is their shared obsession with the television series The Pink Opaque, a Buffy, The Vampire Slayer-like YA horror where two girls take on occult forces on a weekly basis. As Owen and Maddy become more deeply involved in each other's lives, strange things begin to take shape and the boundaries between fiction and reality blur.

Building on the vibes and themes of their spooky pasta fever dream We're All Going to the World's Fair (2021), Jane Schoenbrun brings a nillies nightmare about identity loss, gender norms and the transformative potential of fandom. Schoenbrun creates an intimate and multi-layered universe where Lynchian malaise and Dawson's Creek-era pop culture complement each other poetically. The haunting soundtrack and stunning imagery further ensure that the film will resonate for a long time.

This film is introduced by KASKcinema's very own Elisa De Schepper and Lennart Soberon.