The is a test of the Staircase broadcasting system. Not that we have a broadcasting system. But we do have tests.

Festival line-up to be announced Sept 1st.

The Hamilton Comedy Film Festival is an annual juried showcase for international comedy films that have been produced for any delivery mode – broadcast, theatrical release or the web. If it delivers the Ha Ha it’s in!

Funny comedy film-making is tough and often gets relegated to a single segment of most film festivals…at HCFF we think Comedy films need to start man-spreading…and lady-spreading too.

 HCFF will combine film screenings with live comedy performances from invited Stand up, Solo, Sketch and Improv groups over our 3 day festival to create the funniest Comedy Film Festival happening in Hamilton on Oct 1-3, 2015 on Dundurn St north. We’ll brag more after our first year!

For the month of August the café will open centric around

events in our theatrical space. Join us:

Aug 1^st Horror in the Hammer Film Screening

Aug 5, 26 Open Mic for Musicians

Aug 9^th Sky Gilbert presents Have a drink with Tom and Tee!

Aug 27^th  HammerNight Live

Aug 29^th  Gib & Tam in Concert

We will return to our normal hours Sept 9^th

SOUP AND CINEMA SUNDAYS

Starting Sunday Oct 13 The Staircase will launch SOUP AND CINEMA SUNDAYS presenting some of the best and newest documentaries being produced….and to boot we throw in a lovely cup of soup for 10 bucks! And it’s Vegan! (The soup that is)

The Staircase kicks off our Soup & Cinema film series by screening four films with our first theme ‘The Performing Arts’  Please note the start times of each film as they do change depending upon the 100’s of events we schedule.

SUNDAY OCT 13TH 3PM

‘The Life of Reilly’ – an adaptation of Charles Nelson Reilly’s acclaimed one-man show. The film takes us through this man’s strange, tragic, and hilarious life, from his birth in a humble neighborhood of the Bronx to his retirement in his posh Beverly Hills abode.

SUNDAY OCT 20TH 3PM & 7PM

‘SOUND CITY’– Deep in the San Fernando Valley, amidst rows of dilapidated warehouses, was rock n’ roll’s best kept secret: Sound City. America’s greatest unsung recording studio housed a one-of-a-kind console, and as its legend grew, seminal bands and artists such as Fleetwood Mac, Neil Young, Rick Springfield, Tom Petty, Metallica and Nirvana all came out to put magic to tape. Directed by Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) and featuring interviews and performances from the iconic musicians who recorded some of rock’s greatest albums at the studio, Sound City doesn’t just tell the story of this real-life rock ‘n’ roll shrine, it celebrates the human element of music as Grohl gathers some of rock’s biggest artists to collaborate on a new album. Using Sound City’s legendary analog console, together these artists continue to create musical miracles in a digital world

SUNDAY OCT 27 3PM & 7PM

BEWARE OF MR. BAKER

Born in South East London the same week the Nazis began bombing, Ginger Baker’s first memory was running after a train that carried his father off to death in WWII. From his music to his life, at the expense of family and fortune, Ginger would never be left behind on the tracks again.

Though best known for his work with Eric Clapton in Cream and Blind Faith, the world’s greatest drummer did not hit his stride until years later in 1972 when he drove the first Range Rover ever produced from London to Nigeria in pursuit of the African rhythms and musical icon, Fela Kuti. There he found his Mecca of drumming, introducing the African beat and “world music” to the West, years before any other musicians in the field.

Unfortunately, Ginger’s African glory days were short-lived as he found himself looking down the barrel of a Nigerian officer’s machine gun. Signaling his departure from the continent and the loss of his fortune, Ginger returned to England where a pattern of divorces, self-destruction, and countless groundbreaking musical works continue on to Italy, California, Colorado, and current day South Africa where he lives inside a fortified compound with his 29-year-old internet bride and 39 polo ponies.

Chain smoking and ingesting copious amounts of morphine while sitting in his leather recliner, the 73-year-old reflects back on his life as we concurrently witness his current law suits, local disputes, and yet another chapter in his path of destruction. Unfortunately, Ginger’s ginger hair has faded, and we wonder if he is physically capable of saving himself by playing the instrument that has defined him. In his own words, “God is punishing me for my past wickedness by keeping me alive and in as much pain as he can. I wasn’t planning on living this long!” In true Ginger Baker fashion, 3 years into shooting the film, after squandering yet another fortune, Ginger Baker triumphantly returns to the stage. As he went on a 30 date sold out European tour, we were there to capture it.

The documentary includes stories from his ex-wives, children, and many of the greatest living musicians that worked with Ginger including Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Charlie Watts, Mickey Hart, Carlos Santana, Max Weinberg, Chad Smith, Femi Kuti, Neal Peart, Simon Kirke, Marky Ramone and many more.

This documentary is one such story – a marriage of the film and music worlds through the life of one of the most unforgettable and controversial musicians. He was there the night Jimi Hendrix died, shared the drugs, the music, the names, the groups, while stripping away the other voices as the conductor, time keeper, the master drummer of our time. Beware of Mr. Baker catapults the viewer into his beat – with every smash of the bass drum there is a man behind it smashing his way through life.

SUNDAY NOV 3RD 1PM & 3PM

HARRY DEAN STANTON: PARTLY FICTION –
“Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction is a compelling collage of a man who has been
ubiquitous in American films for over half a century and is still with us, still working,
still staring out at that horizon.”  Roger Ebert