Celluloid City

Location
The Barber Institute of Fine Arts (R14 on map) Concert Hall
Dates
Sunday 22 March 2015 (12:00-16:00)
Aston Hippodrome. Image courtesy Jean Turley
Aston Hippodrome. Image courtesy Jean Turley .

The birthplace of celluloid and the Odeon circuit, Birmingham has always had a fondness for movie-going. During the 1940s the city boasted over 100 cinemas, from backstreet fleapits to glittering picture-palaces, and later it was the launchpad for South Asian cinema in the UK. As Flatpack Film Festival prepares to embark on a journey exploring this unique history, the Barber Institute plays host to an afternoon of free screenings and activities allowing you to whizz through a century of cinema-going. Ingredients will include:

  • A taste of silent cinema, with pianist Paul Shallcross accompanying a selection of classic comedy shorts;
  • Cultural historian Rajinder Dudrah (University of Manchester) and guests revisit the birth of the Eastern Film Society and the early impact of Bollywood in Birmingham;
  • Free screenings throughout the afternoon including The Last Projectionist, which recounts the shape-shifting history of the Electric Cinema.

Admission free, no booking required. 

This event is presented by Flatpack Film Festival in partnership with University of Birmingham's Arts and Science Festival.