Celluloid Dreams celebrates the glory of 35mm film stock
Image: Still from 'Chopper'. Provided.
Celluloid Dreams: Celebrating Classic Cinema on 35mm is a unique film program. Cinephiles will have the opportunity to watch select films on the big screen the way they used to be seen – in 35mm.
“Celluloid Dreams is about the shared ethereal experience of seeing an original 35mm print on screen, the textured imperfections of celluloid that can only exist in the 24fps (frames per second) of cinema,” explained Program Manager, Andrew Perkin.
With so many titles of varying genres how was this 35mm retro program curated?
“It’s a cross section of personal favourites and underseen cinema, some will have been seen before but never like this, and others haven’t been shown at all in cinemas in any form for over a decade.”
Perkin explained that it was an exhaustive process curating this retrospective program.
“We scoured numerous sources around the country for prints to screen and during the transition to digital cinema many film prints were abandoned or forgotten, but we made it our mission to bring them back to the light.”
When asked why the 35mm format makes the viewing of movies a true celluloid experience, Perkin was quick to respond.
“35mm film is the way that cinema has been experienced for the majority of its time in existence, all cinema classics were shown to audiences on 35mm celluloid prints.
“Every time a 35mm print is screened it takes a physical toll on the print, if you stand at the back of the cinema, you can hear the film reels passing through the projector gate at 24 frames per second, and it proudly wears that connection to history in visual scratches and audio pops that makes every print and every screening unique, something rare in the world.”
Revisiting the classics on the big screen in retrospective programs is quite popular at all film festivals and Perkin explains why this is so.
“I think there is a new generation of cinema curios who have not had the chance to experience these films on the big screen before, who hear their favourite directors reminisce about the celluloid experience they had growing up in the heyday of cinema,” he said.
“There are also the generations of nostalgic audiences who want to revisit a favourite on the big screen once again, in the magic of a shared cinema environment with all the worn beauty of used print.”
Perkin believes Celluloid Dreams is a program that should appeal to all audiences, regardless of age.
“I hope that everyone will give the program a chance because a film print screening is a very special experience, but most of all I hope that the younger generation of filmgoers open their minds to it and find the tactile connection to the love of cinema that all generations before them have.”
PERKIN’S HOT PICKS
TAMPOPO – A quirky Japanese Western comedy which combines eccentric characters, adventure, food and romance. Not to be missed!
MYSTERY TRAIN – A Japanese comedic gem that combines three stories set in one night at a rundown hotel in Memphis. Explores themes of loneliness, cultural disconnection with an infusion of rock ‘n’ roll.
CHOPPER – The true raw and gritty story of notorious criminal Mark ‘Chopper’ Read returns to the big screen. Come along and revisit the classic which propelled Aussie actor Eric Bana to worldwide stardom.
Screens each fortnight until December 19. Dendy Cinema, 261-263 King Street, Newtown.
