Creating a Film Program for a Silent Era Cinema Exhibitor

Designing Your Film Program

In this assignment you must imagine yourself as a cinema exhibitor in the silent era. As a film exhibitor you must create a film program for your audience. To begin choose a kind of cinema, a location (in North America) and a year (between 1907-1927) for your film program. You can choose a nickelodeon, itinerant exhibition, a neighbourhood theatre, a picture palace, etc. The kind of theatre you choose will determine the kind of programming you will present. You can do research to find a real historical cinema – or you can create a fictional (but historically accurate) cinema. Using the Media History Digital Library (see below) research the options available to you in that year and location. Design a film program (single page pdf) You can present your program in a creative way – use text and images to design a newspaper ad, poster, or print program like the ones we’ve seen in class. Include the name and address of your theatre Include features, shorts, music, live performance, actualities, etc. (your program will depend on what kind of theatre you choose, location, year, etc) Include other important information like prices (special pricing), amenities available at your theatre, promotions, etc. Write a 500-word description of your theatre and rationale for your program. Describe your theatre – Where is it? How big is it? Architectural style? What kind of music is there? What amenities does it have? Describe your audience – Who comes to your theatre? Consider age, gender, economic class, ethnic and racial identity, etc? Explain why you have chosen the program you have? How will your programming (and other) choices attract specific audiences? How will your theatre and its programming stand out? Works Cited Include a works cited page listing the sources for your films and other details. “Consensus of Trade Paper Reviews,” Moving Picture World, November 13, 1920, p. 176; “Among the Picture Theaters,” Moving Picture World, January 4, 1913, p. 39 This assignment is about your primary research in the Media History Digital Library and you should be able to find everything you need there, and by using general information from the course readings and lectures. The course readings and any additional secondary sources should be included in your Works Cited page. There is no need to cite lecture notes. For your citations please use either MLA or Chicago style (citation style guides: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/). Whatever style you choose, be consistent and make sure you provide complete bibliographic references. Media History Digital Library The highlight of the Early Cinema collection is the 1907 to 1927 run of the Moving Picture World, one of the earliest trade papers of the motion picture industry. The heyday of the Moving Picture World was during the 1910s and the period that film historians have called cinema's "transitional era" (lasting roughly from 1908 to 1917). Showmen read Moving Picture World to stay abreast of the rapidly changing marketplace and the latest batch of pictures. Even reading now, one hundred years later, you can feel the dizzying energy of change. You will find the ads fun to look at – and helpful to see how films were promoted (subject, genre, length, star, company, etc). Some regular sections will help with programming like the “Consensus of Trade Paper Reviews” – which offers reviews of films with useful detail on who they may appeal to. To get ideas for programming, amenities, promotions, read the “Among the Picture Theaters” section, which featured stories about innovations and experiments by other exhibitors. http://mediahistoryproject.org/earlycinema/index.html (Links to an external site.) Your assignment will be graded out of 40 points as follows: Creativity and style of your program/poster. The style of your poster should match the year, kind of cinema you choose, and appeal to your target audience. Description of your theatre and its audience. You should include key details like year, location, size, style of theatre, architecture, amenities, music, etc. Describe who comes to your theatre considering age, gender, class, ethnic background, etc. These details should be appropriate for the time period and location of the theatre you choose. Explanation of programming. Using evidence from the Moving Picture World clearly explain why you have chosen the films you have and how your programming (and other) choices will attract specific audiences. Use of Evidence. Your description and works cited page should demonstrate your research in the Media History Digital Library. You should provide citations for each of the films you include in your program.