hosted by Joanne McNeil and Hat & Beard Press
About this Event
Screening selections from the television program (1987-1988) followed by a conversation with writer Michael Cassutt moderated by Joanne McNeil
Max Headroom was a fauxtomation CGI icon in the 1980s and the center of an ABC series set in a dystopian media hellscape that our reality increasingly resembles each passing year. The character, by then familiar to audiences as a proto-meme in Coke commercials and music video interstitials, came to life over the course of two seasons that explored then-nascent concerns like artificial intelligence, hacking, targeted ads, and data privacy.
In the series, the memories and consciousness that bring Max Headroom to life have been uploaded from a comatose investigative reporter (both roles played by Matt Frewer). The megacorp TV network where Edison Carter works (also the subject of his investigation) copies his brain to see how much the journalist learned about their lethally addictive new forms of advertising. Against the odds, Carter survives the accident and now has to contend with the glitchy digital twin the network has created of him.
Joining us will be Michael Cassutt, a writer for the Max Headroom and a stalwart of science fiction literature and TV. He’ll discuss inspiration for the program set “20 minutes into the future,” and its legacy.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
1634 W Temple St, 1634 West Temple Street, Los Angeles, United States
USD 0.00
