Film Exhibition Research Articles

Early Puerto Rican Cinema and Nation Building: National Sentiments, Transnational Realities, 1897–1940

Naida García-Crespo's superb study of the confluence of early Puerto Rican cinema and the development of nationalism should interest a wide set of readers in the history of early cinema, Puerto Rican and Caribbean studies, and Latin American intellectual discourse during the early twentieth century. It provides both an excellent historiography of silent and sound films produced on the island before World War II and a treatise on how the idea of the Puerto Rican nation emerged as a “mediation among contradictory discourses” of nativist nationalism and cross-cultural, transnational, and colonial exchanges (p. 170).In her attempt to create something solid out of the otherwise spectral, García-Crespo faced two daunting challenges. On the one hand, only one feature film produced in Puerto Rico before 1940 still exists today—the 1934 Romance Tropical, which García-Crespo informs us is preserved in the University of California, Los Angeles, film archive (p. 177n2). On the other, the study of a national cinema usually implies the existence of an actual nation and an actual state; Puerto Rico, of course, transitioned from a colony of Spain to one of the United States during the period under review and remains today, in García-Crespo's term, a “stateless nation” (p. 9).She was able to overcome the first of these challenges thanks to a solid methodological grounding in the study of early film. Through an exhaustive study of archival and published primary sources—including movie scripts, newspaper and magazine reviews, business documents, government records, and ancestry work—García-Crespo re-creates both the narrative plotlines of several films and the institutional history of the nascent film industry in Puerto Rico. Following a recent trend in early film studies that considers distribution networks, viewership, and exhibition practices to be as important to the development of national cinema as auteurship and film production, she demonstrates that even notable failures produced long-term benefits to the Puerto Rican film industry. Both the Tropical Film Company (based in Ponce between 1916 and 1917) and Porto Rico Photoplays (which built a film studio in the Hato Rey neighborhood of San Juan in the early 1920s) reveal the kinds of transnational partnerships at the heart of Puerto Rican culture.Despite key differences, both of these short-lived production companies symbolize the creative use of transnational analysis that García-Crespo employs to overcome the second challenge mentioned above. The Tropical Film Company, which was founded by Rafael Colorado D'Assoy (a Spanish-born entrepreneur who first came to the island as a Spanish soldier in the Cuban-Spanish-American War of 1898) and Nemesio Canales and Luis Lloréns Torres (two elite intellectuals known for their involvement in the nationalist independence movement), deployed cinema as a Progressive Era tool of education and reform. In contrast, Porto Rico Photoplays was a business venture between the American filmmaker F. Eugene Farnsworth (who later became a leader of the Maine chapter of the Ku Klux Klan) and local elites such as San Juan businessman Enrique González Beltrán that sought to attract US capital and talent to the island. Although the Tropical Film Company also had commercial aims, it produced a wide array of narrative and documentary films such as Los funerales de Muñoz Rivera (1916). Porto Rico Photoplays produced just one film, a derivative romance with antimiscegenation themes called Tropical Love (1921).For each example, García-Crespo argues that we cannot read history backwards to see the birth of the Puerto Rican independista movement in the films of the Tropical Film Company or simply condemn the colonial commercialism of Porto Rico Photoplays. Rather, each exemplifies how under colonial contexts “the national and the transnational become so intricately connected . . . that delineation between the two becomes impossible” (p. 8). Each, she argues, demonstrates how ideas about the nation “emanated from both rejecting and embracing different transnational discourses about the island's image and place in the world” (p. 172).The book moves chronologically forward from the first film screenings in Latin America and the Caribbean in the late 1890s to the creation of the New Deal–inspired Division of Community Education (DIVEDCO) by the insular Puerto Rican government in the 1940s. Delightful stories about early Puerto Rican filmmaking (too many to detail here) are matched by astute analyses of how gendered and elite visions of the nation are at the root of both early cinema and the early nationalist project on the island.Readers of the Hispanic American Historical Review, however, might come away wishing that García-Crespo had expanded her analysis through more explicit comparisons with cinematic and nationalistic developments in other parts of Latin America. Despite its somewhat inward-looking approach (common in Puerto Rican studies), the book makes a substantial contribution to the study of early Puerto Rican cinema and culture. Serving as a counterweight to traditional national histories of early cinema, it would make a great addition to syllabi in global film courses as well.

Collaborative Filmmaking: A Participatory, Visual Research Method.

Filmmaking is a visual method that provides a unique opportunity for generating knowledge, but few studies have applied filmmaking in public health research. In this article, we introduce Collaborative Filmmaking as a public health research method, including a description of the six steps for implementation and an illustrative example from Nepal. Collaborative Filmmaking is an embodied, participatory, and visual research method in which participants are trained to create, analyze, and screen films to answer a research question. The method is useful for exploring sensitive health topics and providing nuanced insight into practices, relationships, and spaces that are difficult to capture using existing methods; however, its use requires close attention to ethical considerations. Building upon the trajectory of other visual and community-based research methods, Collaborative Filmmaking is valuable for gathering granular details and sensory data, co-analyzing data in partnership with participants, and producing participant-generated films that serve as powerful and authentic advocacy tools.

Edição #DesdeCasa do Festival Internacional Luz del Desierto: Exibição de Cinema na Argentina Durante a Pandemia

Texto descritivo e crítico sobre a edição on-line do Festival Internacional de Cinema "Luz del Desierto", da Argentina, além de apresentar outras ações de exibição de cinema realizados por entidades e organizaçãoes do país, durante o período de isolamento social, devido à pandemia.

Screening Films for Full Houses: The 2020 True/False Festival Finds an Enthusiastic Audience

Screening Films for Full Houses: The 2020 True/False Festival Finds an Enthusiastic Audience

The Origin and Initial Development of Chinese Documentaries (1905-1931)

This article discusses the origins and early development of Chinese documentaries. Cinematography in almost all countries began with documentaries, because from the very beginning cinema existed as a means of recording. Chinese documentaries, which appeared in 1905, are no exception either. Documentaries reveal the history of Chinese cinematography. The first film produced by the Chinese was a piece from the Beijing Opera. The development of science and technology, especially photography, created necessary preconditions for the invention of cinema. In 1839, a photography emerged. In 1840, a reduction in exposure time was invented. In 1851, a photograph with moving person and an animal was taken. In 1851, the first photograph was taken. In 1878, a camera roll was invented. In 1888, the French physiologist Dules Marey presented the French Academy of Sciences with the world’s first film camera. In 1888, the film was invented. In 1892, Mr. Marei’s assistant showed moving photographs on the screen. On 28 December 1895, the Frenchman Louis Lumière in one of the cafes of Paris officially showed his films: «The doors of the factory», «The arrival of the train» etc. It is believed that in different countries of the world that this show started the era of cinematography. In early 1896, Lumière hired more than 20 people as assistants, and sent them around the world to show his film. At this time, China, India and Japan had their first film screenings. In addition, Lumière had sent many cameramen around the world to shoot the film, including to China. Therefore, the earliest films about China were not made by the Chinese themselves, but by foreign entrepreneurs. Under the influence of «Western Shadow Theatre» the Chinese also began their attempts in film production organization. In 1905, the Chinese made their first silent film in Beijing.

The Interplay between States and Movements on Violence Against Women. Comparative Perspectives in Sociology and Policy Analysis

In the last 25 years, women’s movements, governments and international bodies have been active in awareness-raising on and reduction of violence against women (VAW). The main aim of this issue is to providean overview of comparative perspectivesof policies and services, which offer an innovative point of view to evaluate action. A comparative outlook on VAW initiatives can show acceleration or deceleration in decision-making, proliferation or scarcity of regulations, high or low effectiveness of plans and services in reaching set goals, and reasons why this is the case. The four articles of this issue present original research conducted on firearm policy on a global scale, comparative analysis of services in Italy, accessibility of VAW services in Israel and perceptions of VAW after film screening in Tunisia. The articles illustrate the level of interest that elicited by VAW, the complexities of the analysis and the local and global actors that play a role in action against this global problem.

Finding Voice through Film Viewing: Tunisian Women Interpret Gendered Violence in Post-revolutionary Tunisia

This paper reports on a 2019 study about female perception of violence against women (VAW) in post-revolutionary Tunisia triggered by their viewing of the Tunisian film, The Beauty and the Dogs (La Belle et La Meute). The two-phase study includes a one-time, in depth interview with the female filmmaker, Kaouther Ben Hania, and eight film screening sessions and post-viewing protocols with small audiences of Tunisian women and adolescents living outside of main metropolitan areas in the southern region of the country. In the first phase, the interview elicits the filmmaker’s thoughts about her motivation behind making the film and her ideas about the role of art in society. In the second phase, a post-viewing survey queries participants’ background and reactions to the film; small focus group interviewing expands upon the broader themes of VAW and connect them to their everyday lives. Slightly more than 100 females, whose ages range from 11 to 63, participated in the study. Film was chosen because this artistic medium remains among the most popular media choices for Tunisians. The analyses of the surveys and focus group interviews from this study, using SPSS and InVivo respectively, suggest that Tunisian women have very particular opinions about what actions constitute gendered violence; how women are treated at home and in public; what women and young girls’ behavior should be; and what kinds of initiatives are really working to protect them from physical and sexual violence since the 2011 Revolution. Women also appear to be questioning the overall societal impact of the newly adopted constitutional reforms and the changes to the Penal Code through their personal reflections that reveal the some of the conservative leanings of its citizenry.

Strategi Komunikasi Penganut Agama Baha’i dalam Membangun Citra Positif di Masyarakat

Negative images are often experienced by co culture groups in the community, as experienced by Baha’i religious followers. Therefore they need a communication strategy in building a positive image in the community. This study aims to determine the communication strategies of Baha'i followers in the village of Cebolek Kidul, Margoyoso sub-district, Pati regency in building a positive image in the community. This study examines the components of communication strategies in terms of message planning, communication approaches, and media selection. This research uses the co-culture theory by Mark Orbe. The interpretative phenomenological analysis used in this study as analytical techniques of the data. The Result of this study show that Baha’i followers uses an Accommodation strategy to build a positive image in the community. This strategy ranges on the Non-Assertive Accommodation and the Assertive Accommodation. In the aspect of planning the message, the Baha'i Pati held a meeting with members of the local spiritual assembly before the message is delivered to the community. The communication approach is carried out by way of friendship with residents and local government officials, using verbal and non-verbal language by showing smiles and polite language. Finally in the aspect of media selection, Baha'is in the village of Cebolek use brochures and film screenings on Baha'is, this is done so that the public understands and knows about the teachings of the Baha’i faiths.

Sociological view of the modern situation in the Kazakhstani film industry

The article discusses the current state and development opportunities of the Kazakhstani film industry. The analysis of the current state and vision of the film industry in the country is carried out on the basis of statistical data on the activities of organizations engaged in film screenings in Kazakhstan. The quantitative indicators and parameters of the film industry are also described. Strengths and weaknesses (SWOT analysis) of the current state of the Kazakhstani film industry are revealed.

Inventing the Asian community: The Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival as discourse and collective performance

This article examines how the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival constructs an imagined Asian community and how spectators perform their cultural identities at screenings and on social media. By screening films from some Asian nations and diasporas and not others, and by screening a disproportionate number of films from East Asia, Reel Asian’s programming selections imply that some Asian societies are more Asian than others, and posit certain essentialized cultural practices associated with those societies as being emblematic of the Orient as a whole. At screenings and on social media, spectators position themselves either as insiders who identify with the Orient, or as westerners who imaginatively project themselves into an oriental culture through an act of sympathetic understanding. Through an analysis of the Reel Asian Film Festival, this article demonstrates how identity-based film festivals function as sites where an imagined community becomes visible to itself and the general public.

Space Sound Effects Short Film Festival: using the film festival model to inspire creative art–science and reach new audiences

Abstract. The ultra-low frequency analogues of sound waves in Earth's magnetosphere play a crucial role in space weather; however, the public is largely unaware of this risk to our everyday lives and technology. As a way of potentially reaching new audiences, SSFX (Space Sound Effects) made 8 years of satellite wave recordings audible to the human ear with the aim of using it to create art. Partnering with film industry professionals, the standard processes of international film festivals were adopted by the project in order to challenge independent filmmakers to incorporate these sounds into short films in creative ways. Seven films covering a wide array of topics and genres (despite coming from the same sounds) were selected for screening at a special film festival out of 22 submissions. The works have subsequently been shown at numerous established film festivals and screenings internationally. These events have attracted diverse non-science audiences resulting in several unanticipated impacts on them, thereby demonstrating how working with the art world can open up dialogues with both artists and audiences who would not ordinarily engage with science.

Solution-Based Deposition of Transparent Eu-Doped Titanium Oxide Thin Films for Potential Security Labeling and UV Screening.

Transparent titanium oxide thin films attract enormous attention from the scientific community because of their prominent properties, such as low-cost, chemical stability, and optical transparency in the visible region. In this study, we developed an easy and scalable solution-based process for the deposition of transparent TiOx thin films on glass substrates. We showed that the proposed method is also suitable for the fabrication of metal-doped TiOx thin films. As proof-of-the-concept, europium Eu(III) ions were introduced into TiOx film. A photoluminescence (PL) study revealed that Eu-doped TiOx thin films showed strong red luminescence associated with 5D0→7Fj relaxation transitions in Eu (III). We found that prepared TiOx thin films significantly reduce the transmittance of destructive UV radiation; a feature that can be useful for the protection of photovoltaic devices. In addition, transparent and luminescent TiOx thin films can be utilized for potential security labeling.

Editor's Column: “We are the jury”: Steinbeck's America under Threat

Editor's Column: “We are the jury”: Steinbeck's America under Threat

Finding the familiar in the strange: transcultural learning as rihla رحلة at an Australian university

ABSTRACT Diverse university campuses present an ideal context for fostering transcultural learning. Despite the potential that this diversity presents, universities in Australia have yet to make use of this opportunity. The pilot study described here investigates an informal learning experience created by the hosting of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) funded Arab Film Festival Australia (AFFA) on an Australian university campus. By imagining and exploring new ways in which universities can encourage transcultural learning and bring students and academics together, this pilot project identified the potential of informal learning to facilitate transcultural understanding and challenge assumptions about Arab cultures. The strategic adoption of informal learning activities to immerse diverse members of the university community temporarily in Arab cultures and contexts via carefully curated film screenings and other related events show potential to facilitate transcultural learning on university campuses. We found that such strategies have the potential to deeply engage members of the university community in transcultural dialogue and learning with themselves and others.

Pengelolaan Perpustakaan Madrasah di Kota Palangka Raya (Studi terhadap Upaya Madrasah Menjadikan Perpustakaan Sebagai Sumber Belajar dan Bagian dari Sistem Pengajaran)

The role of the madrasa h library is not just infrastructure that must be available at the madrasa h , but also must be managed properly according to standards and can truly function as a learning resource that can meet information for students and educators that ultimately can improve student competency and quality of the process of education and teaching in madras ah . Madrasa h libraries in the city of Palangka Raya are still far from expectations, many libraries are managed only to meet the availability of infrastructure in madras ah . But there are still not many who manage the library properly to be used as a source of learning and part of the teaching system in the madrasa h , therefore the purpose of this study is to find out how the efforts of the madrasa h library make the library as a learning resource and part of the teaching system which includes development plans madrasa h library, library staff development program, collection development and management activities, infrastructure development, service systems used and library programs in increasing the use of libraries in madrasa h . This research is a field research with a qualitative descriptive approach. The respondents in this study were madrasah library managers and there were 11 madrasah that were sampled from 35 madrasah in Palangka Raya City. The results of this study are, madrasah efforts to make libraries as a source of learning and teaching system in madrasah from the aspect of planning, madrasah libraries do not have a strategic plan and grand design related to library development, madrasah libraries still get minimal budget for collection development and some even no, there are still many library management personnel who are not yet professional, infrastructure facilities that are not yet standard, the service system is still manual and information technology has not been maximally applied. While the efforts made by the madrasah for the use of the library by teachers and students are the movement of reading 15 minutes before learning or during breaks in the library, distributing a collection of library books in every reading corner in the class, giving rewards to students who frequently visit the library, inviting students to visit Other libraries, film screenings in the library and holding collection display cabinets in the school grounds.

Peningkatan Kompetensi Istima’ wa Takallum Melalui Media Film

This article discusses the problematics of Arabic learning. IAIN Curup Arabic Study Program students one of them is seen from the low competence of al-istima 'wa al-kalam students. The purpose of this study is to look at the competence of al-istima 'wa al-kalam students by using film media in learning al-istima' wa al-kalam, then the strategies used and the obstacles found in the learning process of al-istima 'wa al-kalam with film media. This research is descriptive qualitative. The results showed that the competence of al-istima 'wa al-kalam students was seen from the indicators of the achievement of al-istima' competence of wa al-kalam using film media divided into three categories of high, medium and low categories. From 34 students in the high category and currently dominating the ability of students who are aimed at 30% or as many as 12 students get high categories, 56% or as many as 19 students in the medium category, while 14% or 4 students are in the low category. The strategy of using film media in learning al-istima 'wa al-kalam uses several activities including grouping students in determining films to be discussed, screening films, collecting vocabulary that appears, reinterpreting films both oral and written. As for the obstacles faced in the use of film media in learning al-istima 'wa al-kalam namely the storyline and communication in the film are too fast so it needs to be repeated the screening of films in each episode as well as obstacles in technical matters such as constraints in facilities and infrastructure in the inadequate language laboratory.

Persepsi Mahasiswa UNESA Mengenai Golput Pasca Penayangan Film Sexy Killers

Screening of sexy killers films ahead of the 2019 elections simultaneously caused propaganda in the community. After the screening of the film, there were abstentions which were quoted on many social media and abstentions have been proven as much as 19.24% of the votes. This then motivates researchers to find out students' perceptions as elements of the academic community assessing abstentions when linked to the screening of sexy killers films. The method used in this research is descriptive qualitative and using interview techniques in information retrieval. The theory used is perception according to Pride and Farrel. The results of this study indicate that the students of Unesa understand the film about the socio-economic impacts felt by the community around the mining area. Besides that the film also explained the other side of the existing paslon figure. Need deep understanding to avoid abstentions. Students are of the view that abstentions can influence the results of the 2019 elections.

Remembering the past, enhancing the present and sharing the future: a qualitative study of the impact of film screenings in care home communities

AbstractMany care home residents lack opportunities for meaningful activity and social connection, resulting in poor physical and emotional wellbeing. Providing residents with varied activities and social opportunities can improve their quality of life. In this paper, we examine the potential for film to provide a meaningful, social activity. The limited existing research on film in care homes has predominantly examined the use of film clips and materials in stimulating reminiscence for people with dementia. In this paper, we adopt a broader, trans-disciplinary perspective of film, drawing on evidence from Film Studies that shared spectatorship has social and emotional benefits for the viewer. We offer the first qualitative study of care home residents’ social, emotional and embodied engagement with feature-length film and identify the key benefits of film in this setting. We ran social film screenings in two Scottish care homes over six weeks. Underpinned by psycho-cinematic theory, we collected and analysed observational data alongside interviews with care home staff and discussion groups with residents. Our findings identified three ways in which film screenings benefit residents and supports social connection: prompting reminiscence; enhancing residents’ experiences in the present; and creating a shared future and intergenerational connections. The paper offers useful insights into the rich potential for film to enhance the care home community, facilitate social connectivity and promote resident wellbeing.

Adapting to new media: A case study on exhibition and publicity practices of a rural single screen theatre in the digital era

ABSTRACT Cinema exhibition houses provide the necessary settings for Indian audience to engage with cinema. Theatre and its overall practices ranging from film publicity to screening cinema helps the cinemagoers to construct the physical and spatial sense of film viewing. In India, post-release film publicity is done by exhibitors in their respective areas. The exhibitor use film posters/notices/advertisements to attract audiences to their cinema theatre. Apart from the conventional publicity mediums, at present exhibitors are using digital platforms like mobile phones and social media to reach the cinemagoers. This study explores one such attempt by a rural single screen theatre in Kannur district of Kerala to reach its audience. At a point of time when majority of nearby single screen theatres closed down due to declining audience attendance ‘Rani Talkies Vengad’ survived by adapting new ways of reaching the audience. While retaining the conventional publicity spaces and methods, this C class theatre is active on social media sites with its regular updates about the film change and show timings. This paper looks at cinema as a holistic experience and attempts to write the local film history of Vengad Rani by looking into the thick terrain of cinema that lies outside the cinematic text.

Building Domestic Support for West Germany's Integration into NATO, 1953–1955

Konrad Adenauer's government in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) engaged in a large-scale media campaign to create political consent for the FRG's integration into the West, a policy that rested to a large extent on rearmament and entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. To counter public criticism of rearmament, the West German authorities used Mobilwerbung, a company that maintained a fleet of mobile film screening vans. Clandestinely financed by the government, Mobilwerbung brought government-commissioned films and political speakers into the FRG's remotest areas. Based on archival records on deployments in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, this article traces Mobilwerbung's role as a government unit that reacted dynamically to competing events. Through highly detailed reporting on audience reactions, Mobilwerbung served both as a public relations vehicle to foster consent and as an analytical tool that allowed the mapping of public sentiment regarding rearmament.