There have been lots of stories about the resilience of cinemas and film festivals during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the success many of them have seen in moving screenings online and reaching new audiences during this period. But less has been said about the hardship and difficulties that DIY and pop-up cinemas have faced over the past 18 months.
In this blog Rosie Beattie, Co-founder and Producer of Unmellow Movies, discusses the specific challenges that the pandemic has posed to these operators, who make such a distinctive and valuable contribution to their communities.
Ever since cinemas faced widespread closure in March 2020, there has been major concern about the impact of the pandemic on cinemas and film festivals both big and small. But before COVID-19 struck, conventional cinemas were not the only places where films could be enjoyed on the big screen. As a film student in Glasgow until 2020, I was often spoiled for choice between the pop-up and DIY film screenings taking place across the city’s bars, cafés, community halls, art spaces and strangers’ living rooms.
It is difficult now to recall the thriving atmosphere of a pre-pandemic pop-up film screening. Whether in an art centre you had yet to visit, the basement of a pub or a tiny café, one of the pleasures of pop-ups is stepping out of your comfort zone (the plush red seats of the local cinema) and discovering alternative places where film can be enjoyed with like-minded people (although most likely in a much less comfortable seat!). These kinds of DIY film screenings often bring a fresh perspective to a film, or allow more obscure films to be shared with an enthusiastic audience on the big screen. Most significantly, DIY film exhibition allows small communities to form through a shared love of film.
While a lot of established festivals and independent cinemas were able to shift online, smaller independent exhibitors with much less financial support had a harder time keeping their momentum going during lockdown. DIY and independent pop-up exhibitors therefore face a bigger challenge in getting back to their feet as we re-enter cinemas and begin rebuilding in-person film screenings.
I spoke to independent exhibitors from Backseat Bingo, Mental Health in Movies, Pity Party Film Club, Red Thread Film Club and Leith Cult Film Club – all of whom take a DIY approach to programming and exhibition – and asked them about the impact of the pandemic on their organisation and their plans for moving forward.
The organisations I spoke to faced major losses during the first lockdown, when in-venue screenings were cancelled altogther. This included an all-day Bette Davis vs Joan Crawford screening event from Backseat Bingo; the UK premiere of Ask Any Buddy, a screening of The Before Trilogy, and a screening of Rushmore with a Q+A with Stephen McCole from Pity Party Film Club; and a pop-up film festival from Red Thread Film Club. While much of the industry remained active through online screenings and discussion events (which did have significant advantages in access), transitioning online proved to be financially and/or practically unviable for many DIY exhibitors.
Casci Ritchie, the sole organiser of Backseat Bingo, a film club specialising in cult screenings with illustrated talks focusing on costume design and popular culture, discussed the challenge of single-handedly hosting online events after an initial attempt resulted in being Zoom-bombed. She said, “After attending a few excellent online events myself I realised I didn’t really have the tech skills to host similar events, and to be honest wanted Backseat Bingo to remain an in-person event. I miss the physicality of the cinema, meeting new friends and watching films with like-minded people”.
Emerging out of a full lockdown earlier in the year, as cinemas and other venues began to open, also proved difficult for DIY exhibitors, many of whom could not feasibly run screenings at reduced capacity. For many DIY exhibitors, hosting screenings and events is a non-profit endeavour and organising screenings at a much-reduced capacity was “neither appealing or viable” according to Pity Party Film Club programmer Calvin Halliday. As DIY exhibitors are often responsible for the cost of their screenings, the risk of losing money out of their own pockets for restricted screenings was too high for many of these operators.
This concern was shared by Casci Ritchie, who also highlighted her fears of being solely responsible for audience safety during a screening, even with social distancing measures in place. Likewise, Morvern Cunningham, an organiser of Leith Cult Film Club, which screened cult films to a small audience in the back of a Leith bar pre-COVID, also expressed concerns about returning to in-person screenings in enclosed spaces while the pandemic is still ongoing.
Another significant drawback of online screenings for DIY exhibitors was the loss of the physicality which is so central to pop-up screenings. The absence of the in-person atmosphere and experience was a major factor in deciding not to transition online for Pity Party Film Club, who are based in Glasgow and before the pandemic screened films that predominantly centred queer stories, coming-of-age tales, and women-led narratives. Calvin Halliday explained to me why they took the decision not to screen films online:
“In-person exhibition is what we love doing, so the thought of screening something online felt inherently unsatisfying. Of course, we love watching films at home… but there’s a social element to cinema-going, especially with smaller, non-theatrical screenings, that simply can’t be replicated when screening to people sitting at home”.
This was also a major concern for Mental Health in Movies (originally Mental Health Movie Monthly), a film organisation based in Aberdeen who before COVID-19 hosted free monthly screenings and discussions centring on mental health. One of the organisers, Scott Macpherson, explained, “We aimed to use something that people talk about freely (film) to increase discussion, awareness and understanding around something that remains socially taboo (mental health)”. After having to halt in-person screenings and discussions, Mental Health in Movies began running Twitter discussions alongside online screenings but, according to Scott, these “lacked the important face-to-face element of our in-person events”.
Red Thread Film Club shared a similar concern. Before the pandemic, the small collective based in Glasgow organised pop-up screenings of cult favourites such as The Mighty Ducks and The Good, The Bad, and The Weird, as well as Taika Waititi’s Boy, which was screened alongside the director’s shorter works. Although they considered shifting online, Red Thread lacked funding and were concerned about losing the atmosphere of in-person screenings. As they explained to me, “We always felt that the most valuable aspect our screenings had to offer was the energised atmosphere of the live exhibition space. We didn’t feel that any online distribution model could replace the experience of viewing these films with an audience somewhere like the CCA”.
Although Leith Cult Film Club did shift their film community online, Morven Cunningham eventually stepped back from the online screenings, explaining, “I miss the live experience of bringing folk together to watch a film in a communal atmosphere, which is what the club was initially set up to do”.
Despite the major challenges of the pandemic, these exhibitors are optimistic about the future. Red Thread Film Club are currently working on their social media outreach and plan to expand their film club across the UK, where their organisers are currently dispersed in Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Manchester. Morvern Cunningham is currently programming an outdoor film festival with local charity LeithLate, which is scheduled to take place in September. Mental Health in Movies are currently working on a rebrand and plan on trialling Netflix Parties as well as a podcast/vodcast to elevate the discussion of mental health via film. They also hope to return to local venues in Aberdeen soon. Casci Ritchie plans on resuming screenings in 2022, when they can hopefully go ahead with as much normality as possible and with a view to cultivate a community through screenings, talks, and workshops. Pity Party intend on reserving plans until they feel they can safely and feasibly go ahead with in-person screenings.
In Scotland, restrictions are beginning to lift completely, and these fantastic independent exhibitors and many others are all looking to rekindle the pre-pandemic buzz of pop-up and DIY cinema. By offering audiences a much missed sense of community and showmanship, a tremendous variety of unique cinematic experiences and by showcasing films that are often otherwise overlooked or underappreciated, I’m hopeful that audiences will be ready to engage again with DIY cinema in the very near future, supporting and cherishing these operators who provide something so unique and impassioned to their communities.
Follow Backseat Bingo (@backseatbingopresents) Mental Health in Movies (@mentalhealthmovies), Pity Party Film Club (@pitypartyfilmclub) and Red Thread Film Club (@red_thread_film_club) and Leith Late (@leithlate) on Instagram to support and keep updated on future events.
Rosie Beattie is a freelance film writer and Co-founder/Producer of Glasgow-based film collective Unmellow Movies. She tweets at @RosieBeattie9.
If you’re looking to start your own DIY or pop-up cinema, or are looking to grow an existing film club, then in the below list you can find some useful resources for screening films in community settings:
- Screening films in Community Cinemas
- Funding sources for Community Cinema screenings
- Marketing for Independent Cinemas
- How to Develop Audiences for Independent Cinemas
- How to be resilient when growing your community cinema
- How to build a community cinema from scratch in the 21st century
- How to grow audiences for films NO ONE has heard of with Matchbox Cineclub
- Q&As: lessons from a decade of hosting