After its smash-hit inaugural year in Liverpool last Autumn, this year’s Abandon Normal Devices (AND) Festival of New Cinema and Digital Culture is hosted by Manchester from 1 – 7 October 2010, where it once again invites a host of international cross-platform artists and filmmakers to investigate the question: what are normal devices? How and why might we abandon them?

Abandon Normal Devices is a 2012 inspired new festival and has already produced award winning work, Apichatpong Weerasethakul won the Palm d'Or this year with a film commissioned by FACT, Haus der Kunst and Animate Projects and produced by Abandon Normal Devices. The film was part of the Primitive exhibition during AND in Liverpool.

In Manchester the emphasis is on explorations of identity, behaviour and systems, that define who and what we are, the 2010 edition of Abandon Normal Devices features brand new commissions from internationally renowned artists, filmmakers and cultural provocateurs, highlights of which include a special collaboration and exhibition with artist Phil Collins; the UK premiere of Gillian Wearing’s first feature length film Self Made; human vacuum packing from controversial artist Lawrence Malstaff in the form of his live performance, Shrink; and UnSpooling: Artists & Cinema, a gallery based exhibition of work from artists and fillmmakers which explores the materiality of film and the history of cinema.

Midnight Mass, from New York Drag artist Peaches Christ will encourage bad cinema and even worse behaviour; and Mechanical Games is an interactive online activity, where people can upload one minute films of themselves competing in sporting feats, a special award ceremony will take place live at AND Festival for the winning entries.

AND is presented by Cornerhouse (Manchester), FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology) (Liverpool) and folly (Lancaster), and is an innovative new festival of arts and cultural debate for the Northwest.

Offering a high calibre and energetic programme, Abandon Normal Devices 2010 will sprawl across and out from Manchester’s cultural spaces. The festival is funded by the Legacy Trust and is part of WE PLAY, the Northwest cultural legacy programme for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Further programme confirmations, venues and special events will be announced in the coming weeks at www.andfestival.org.uk