Documentary
Follow the rise and fall of the world’s wildest cinema in the riotous new doc from co-directors Ali Catterall and Jane Giles: SCALA!!!
In a cavernous building near Kings Cross, reverberating from the rumbling tube trains below, London’s legendary Scala cinema ran from 1978-1993. A site of permissiveness, subversiveness and transgression during the politically turbulent, post-punk, pre-digital Thatcher years, it was legendary for its anything-goes attitude and the sheer excitement it generated around repertory film – with all-nighters, trash/horror/arthouse double and triple bills, and screenings of battered prints of Pasolini, Walerian Borowczyk, Russ Meyer, Derek Jarman and David Lynch. As famous for the off-screen antics of its patrons as much as its daring, ever-changing programme, it continues to inspire UK film culture.
Featuring archive footage, eye-popping clips and testimonies from former audience members who went on to become famous filmmakers, musicians, writers, artists, actors and activists, Catterall and former Scala programmer Giles’ energising film explores the power of cinemas to inspire young minds and create community among outsiders.
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