Instant Film Society’s PolaCon returns with another cool year of 20+ demos, talks/Q-and-As/panel discussion, workshops, #PolaWalks/photowalks, photo booths, and more, featuring sessions on all types of currently available instant film (including 8x10, and how to shoot Polaroid 600 film in 4x5 camera), lift/transfer demos, tintypes, two cyanotype demos, and a cyanolumen print demo as well. We’ll have sessions for beginners just starting their instant film journey as well as advanced ones for the long-time “Polaroiders.”

PolaCon7 will officially kick off with IFS’ 11th Annual Rain-or-Shine #PolaWalk at The State Fair of Texas on Friday, September 30 followed by a mixer, concert and after party Friday night in Denton at Rubber Gloves. And this year we’re pleased to announce we’ve partnered with Rubber Gloves to host cool, photographable bands and performances each night of PolaCon.

We'll spend all day Saturday and Sunday near Downtown Denton with the Zines & Things Swap Meet, PolaWalks, workshops, demos, roundtables, tons of backdrops, photo-ops, and many surprises.

As in past years, events on Saturday and Sunday all take place within a walkable 0.9 mile area around the historic downtown Square, so, we recommend staying nearby. [See below.]

Thursday, too? It's come to our attention that many PolaPals arrive late Wednesday or early Thursday. For those who arrive to North Texas early, by popular demand, we’ve planned a historic-locations #PolaWalk in Dallas during the day-time hours on Thursday (9/29) that includes Dealey Plaza, “The Grassy Knoll,” Texas Theater, Top Ten Records, a retro VHS “Video Store” and more. [A separate event page with a map, times and locations/addresses will be posted soon.]

Then Thursday night in Denton at Rubber Gloves, Ryan Rudewicz ( @rudepolaroids in from Brooklyn, NY ) will be at GlitterBomb Denton doing a Polaroid Photo Booth and more.

This is a brief schedule still in the developing tray. A full “fixed” schedule will be posted about 2 weeks prior to the start of #PolaCon7 — all events optional.

For those who arrive early:

THURSDAY (9/29) DAY ZERO
DALLAS
11-ish meet-up for lunch at Campisi’s { https://www.campisis.us/history/ }

Noonish at Dealey Plaza/The Sixth Floor Museum

3 p.m. Meet at Top Ten Records “Dallas’ Oldest Record Store” on Jefferson St in Oak Cliff before a Jefferson Street #PolaWalk
toptenrecords.org/

4-6 p.m. The extremely photographable historic Texas Theatre for a “History Happy Hour”
thetexastheatre.com/about/
wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Theatre

DENTON
6-8 p.m. back to Denton for dinner and more… {Highly recommend Mission Pizza at Herf’s Taphouse for those staying in North Denton. For those near the Square, head to the Austin St. Truck Stop and then The Bearded Monk like last year!}

DENTON
8 p.m. Doors open at Rubber Gloves

9 p.m. @rudepolaroids Polaroid Photo Booth at GlitterBomb, as well as a pop-up exhibition of Ryan’s Polaroids.

FRIDAY (9/30) DAY ONE
DALLAS
{Highly recommend AllGood Cafe for breakfast.}
10 a.m.-8 p.m State Fair of Texas in Fair Park. While the 10-8 time is set for the event, attendees can arrive when they want, but the official meet-ups behind Big Tex are at noon, 3 and 6 p.m. then we move to Denton with all remaining PolaCon events taking place near the Downtown Square.

For full information, check the 11th Annual IFS Rain-or-Shine #PolaWalk at The State Fair of Texas FB event page: https://fb.me/e/4VlQOnhbf

DENTON
Welcome party, reception and concert! Check out some cool, photographable bands, take lots of pictures with PolaPals, have “a little too much fun” taking a turn at karaoke….
All at Rubber Gloves.

FB event page: https://fb.me/e/6HZBdo2Ki

7 p.m. doors open
8 p.m. show starts
1 a.m. the end of programming for the Night Owls
(Attendees should try to rest.)

SATURDAY (10/1) DAY TWO
DENTON
8:30-10 a.m Downtown Mural Walk for the Early Birds

10-11 a.m. Choose-your-own-Brunch-venture {we highly recommend The Chestnut Tree. Barley & Board and 940’s Kitchen are also quite popular. Or if a greasy-spoon is more your thing check out Dix or Cartwright’s. Also breakfast from Mi Casita or burritos from El Cucuy.}

11 a.m. Meet-up at Denton Camera Exchange before PolaWalking across the Square to Rubber Gloves our primary host venue for PolaCon7, and our headquarters from noon until the end of programming on Saturday.

Noon - 6 p.m. The Main Event & The Zines&Things Swap Meet
Workshops, demos and the like will happen across three rooms and spaces at Rubber Gloves.

Event page for the Zines & Things Swap Meet: https://fb.me/e/4FiOeT4sL

One or two food trucks are slated to be on-site at Rubber Gloves on Saturday evening. Both have vegetarian options. (One has vegan.) Several other walkable, fast dining options nearby.

6 p.m. to 1 a.m. more cool photographable bands and performances you won’t want to miss. (Have your cameras ready!)

Event page for Saturday night with full lineup/info: https://fb.me/e/4Vvuu2jAN

Lorelei K
@l0releik

The Aluminum Group
@thealuminumgroup

April Nicole
@april_nicole_creative

tooth lifeless
@toothlifeless

Helium Queens
@heliumqueensfromthemoon

With “Liquid-infused-analog-digital light show” by @connor.mizell aka @dr.mojo_ls

And, back by popular demand, Karaoke in the Speakeasy Room (with a menu of songs about Polaroids/cameras/photos/darkrooms/film)

6 p.m. doors
7 p.m. show

SUNDAY (10/2) DAY THREE

11-noon at UNT CoLab for the Closing Reception for “PolaCon: An Instant Film Retrospective”

Noon-5:30 at Harvest House for more workshops/demos, a panel discussion, photo booths and another opportunity to sell or swap Zines&Things.
http://www.dentonharvesthouse.com/

5:30-6:30 Choose-your-own-Dinner-venture, or stick around for a Pizza Party/Wrap Party at Rubber Gloves

6:30-???
Wrap Party/Pizza Party
And another concert at Rubber Gloves.

Stay tuned for more details. Follow @instantfilmsociety on Instagram and Facebook for more details as they "develop.”

WHERE TO STAY IN DENTON?
Denton is located 40 miles north of Dallas, 25 miles north of Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) Airport and 36 miles north of Dallas Love Field (DAL) Airport.

Denton has a number of great affordable lodging options – located within a 2 to 5 mile radius from the historic downtown Courthouse-on-the-Square.

Trust us, you’ll want to stay as close as possible to the Square. (Yes, Lyft and Uber are in Denton.)

The walkable area surrounding the Courthouse on the Square is packed with restaurants, fantastic food tucks, coffee houses, a comic books shop, bars (from dive bars to drafthouses to upscale cocktail bars), clubs, boutique stores and antique shops, one of the best used book stores in the U.S. (Recycled Books, Records, & CDs) is housed in an old opera house, several live music venues, Midway Mart, colorful murals that make for fantastic backdrops, tons of taco shops and taquerias, and the charmingly picturesque Beth Marie's Old Fashioned Ice Cream & Soda Fountain.

Denton has TONS of options. But PolaCon isn’t some fancy pants book-a-room-for-you convention where everything is housed in a not-very-photographable convention hotel — it’s more of a “Choose Your Own Adventure” kind of event. So, whether you want to rent an RV, crash on a couch at a friend’s place or on a king-size at one of the many new family-friendly hotels, inns, suites, etc., Denton has everything from less-than family-friendly Interstate-side “cheap motels” to pet-friendly inns and suites with nice pools to RV parks to a couple of charming, picturesque bed-and-breakfasts. (Just read the reviews before booking. And aim to stay as close to the Downtown Square/Courthouse-on-the-Square Museum as you can.)

If you really want a “Texas experience,” according to Discover Denton, there’s even a scenic ranch with grazing buffalo! (The ranch is gorgeous at sunrise/sunset.) As well as the Old Irish Inn at Patrick's Pastures Alpaca Ranch: "Where Every Day is St. Patrick's Day!"

Click here to check out all the accommodations: http://www.discoverdenton.com/where-to-stay/

Also, as some past attendees have discovered, Airbnb shows a dozen listings within a 3-mile radius of The Square.

More info on The Square: http://www.discoverdenton.com/.../shopping/downtown-square/

[ Polaroids and : @justinsgoode ]