Exploding cinema explained

Exploding Cinema is both the name for a London-based film collective and the name for regular short film screenings that the collective organises.

Overview

Anybody can screen their film at the Exploding Cinema; the programme is totally open access, on a first come - first shown basis. Between 1992 and 1999, the group put on over 80 events in 21 different venues showcasing around 1300 films by 700 film makers.[1]

Film maker Asif Kapadia profiled Exploding Cinema in a 30-minute program for BBC Radio 4 in 2011.[2]

History

The Exploding Cinema was founded at the Cooltan Arts Centre, a squatted suntan lotion factory in Brixton, South London in 1991.[3] The Cooltan was an underground arts complex with a theatre, gallery, practical workshops and regular raves. The original group was mostly film makers and the earliest shows were made up of their own films and performances.[4]

From the early 1990s onwards, the collective became the key agent in the resurgence of underground cinema in Britain.[5] Through screenings, events, agitation and propaganda they developed and inspired a new popular movement of independent live cinema and D.I.Y. filmmaking.[6] Over twenty five years the group has screened thousands of unfunded no-budget films/videos in pubs, squats, clubs, microcinemas and cafes. They staged one-off shows in disused factories, ships, museums, car parks, roofs, a circus tent and an outdoor swimming pool.[7] Internationally they have staged shows in Ireland, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Malta, North America and Australia.[8]

An offshoot of the group operated in Amsterdam.[9]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Szczelkun. Stefan. Chapter 11 - Exploding Cinema 1992 - 1999, culture and democracy . Exploding Cinema 1992 - 1999, culture and democracy. PhD Thesis Royal College of Art. 5 April 2019.
  2. News: Kapadia . Asif . 4 Extra - Exploding Cinema . 6 April 2019 . BBC Radio 4 . 2011.
  3. News: EG Perry . Kevin . Exploding Cinema: the DIY projectors . 6 April 2019 . Guardian . 6 December 2014.
  4. Web site: Urban75. A Short History of the Cooltan. Urban75. 14 April 2015.
  5. Book: Reekie. Duncan. Subversion : the Definitive History of Underground Cinema. 2007. Wallflower Press. London. 978-1-905674-21-3. 187–208.
  6. Book: Rees. A.L.. A History of Experimental Film and Video. 1999. the British Film Institute. London. 0-85170-681-9. 119.
  7. Eimer. D.. Going Off the Deep End. The Face. 1991. 2. 60.
  8. Web site: Szczelkun. Stefan. Exploding Cinema 1992 - 1999, culture and democracy. Exploding Cinema 1992 - 1999, culture and democracy. PhD Thesis Royal College of Art. 14 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20070803053711/http://www.stefan-szczelkun.org.uk/index2.htm. 3 August 2007. dead.
  9. News: Kenner . Rob . My Hollywood . 6 April 2019 . Wired . 10 January 1999.