Ciné-Cinema, Huntingdon’s only film club, is excited to unveil its fall season. Beginning on September 20 with the uplifting and international melodrama The Braid, the non-profit group will be presenting films every second Friday until mid-December.
Included in its program will be Oscar nominees The Zone of Interest and internationally renowned director Wim Wender’s latest, Perfect Days. Also featured will be film classic The Third Man, the powerful documentary Amazing Grace, and a special screening for families during the Christmas holidays.
Featuring a variety of films from Quebec and abroad, the group’s mandate is to present movies that aren’t otherwise accessible at your local multiplex while engaging audiences and eliciting discussion, something the group feels is lacking as we stream movies from home.
Founded in 2016, the group of volunteers has been operating out of the Little Green Library while working tirelessly to improve its viewing space. According to Donald Roberge, member of the Ciné-Cinema committee, “The Little Green Library has been more than supportive in our efforts to increase the spectator experience, and we have been able to move forward with changes that will not only benefit our film club, but other multimedia events that the library may want to present.” Included in the upgrades are a new high-definition projector, improved sound, and additional curtains to block out light pollution.
Though Ciné-Cinema is fully aware that it is combatting a rapidly transforming culture of film-going, the group feels that there is still a desire to experience movies on a large screen with a like-minded public, and that films can serve as a catalyst for discussion on long-ranging issues such as immigration, interdependence, love, and loss. It is for this reason that Ciné-Cinema presentations are prefaced with a short introduction by one of its members, giving context to the choice of film, as well as what to look for in its themes.
Yet, apart from attracting audience members away from their smart TVs, Roberge admits that the greatest challenge facing the group is the question of language. “Films are becoming increasingly transnational, with prestige pictures moving away from the traditional Hollywood model. Many of the films that we feel are worth screening jump back and forth between languages, which is problematic when trying to appeal to our francophone and anglophone audiences, as only one pair of subtitles can appear at a time.”
To balance the programming for both publics, the group will be alternating French and English presentations, with a full program to be presented on the Little Green Library’s website as well as on its Facebook page. Ciné-Cinema will also be advertising its presentations around the Valley, with a suggested donation of eight dollars per film which helps pay for licensing fees and advertising. “Though we happen to be movie lovers,” Roberge adds, “…we are driven first and foremost by the desire to provide cultural fare to our beloved community.” (DR)