Fantasy, social inclusion and urban regeneration: these are the three souls of “Loving the Alien Fest”, the Festival of Modern Fantasy organised by Mufant – Museo del Fantastico e della Fantascienza di Torino in collaboration with the social cooperative Altra Mente.

The first edition of the festival will take place from 18th to 20th September: Friday 18th the online event take place on the Mufant’s Facebook page and Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th at the Parco del Fantastico, the large public space next to the museum (via Reiss Romoli 49bis), with a series of events, presentations, concerts and shows.

The rich program will alternate moments dedicated to the most popular TV series, Japanese anime, cinema, contemporary literature and comics. The term “alien” will see an important declination in the concepts of “diversity” and  in its opposite, equality.

The initiative, in fact, is part of the Loving the Alien project that is part of the 15 projects of social innovation supported by the City of Turin (Torino Social Factory program) co-financed by the Pon Metro Programma Operativo Città Metropolitane 2014-2020 (measure 331A).

Loving the Alien was conceived and realised by Altra Mente and Mufant, two very different realities that share a common denominator: the love for the Alien, the Different, the Elsewhere. Starting from the regeneration process in the district of Borgo Vittoria, the project has redeveloped the vast garden adjacent to the museum, creating the “Parco del Fantastico”, a park with large installations made in two workshops (set design and costume design) that is creating employment, both for young professionals and professionals under occupation in the art sector, and for four people suffering from mental distress.