By Anna Kayser
Integrating films that are outside of the “norm” is what FilmScene and the Art House Theater day are trying to do.
Art House Theater day is a nationwide event celebrating independent movie theaters and getting the word out about those types of theatera.
Local celebrations of the event took place at FilmScene, 118 E. College St., on Sept. 24.
The movies shown locally at FilmScene were Pink Flamingos, Danny Says, Sundance Film Festival 2016 Short Film Tour, and Phantasm: Remastered.
“It’s been an above-average Saturday, which, given just how much stuff going on in Iowa City today, I think that’s a victory,” said Ross Meyer, the head projectionist and facilities manager at FilmScene. “I would have loved for every show to have been sold-out, and I think all these movies were good enough to have the potential to do that. I’m happy with the crowds we’ve had today.”
FilmScene is a community-oriented theater on the Pedestrian Mall that has “traditional” aspects like normal cinemas but also unconventional ideas. There is a projector in a waiting room where people can get food and sit on couches reading books while waiting for their movie to start.
“We are dedicated to running a full-time cinema, 365 days a year,” Meyer said.
University of Iowa student Emma Lako, who attended the event, described it as “very artsy” and a “chic movie theater.”
“It is cozy much like a coffee shop, a blend between that and an actual movie theater,” she said.
According to its website, FilmScene is a “nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching the cultural vitality of the Iowa City area through film that challenges, inspires, educates, and entertains.”
The theater shows independent films, foreign films, documentaries, and reissues of classic old movies.
FilmScene also assists the UI in film theory, thesis projects at the end of the semester, and experimental film series, and it works very closely with the Bijou Film Board.
“It’s very important that we celebrate what FilmScene does,” said Michael Davis, a member of the Bijou Film Board.
The board collaborates with FilmScene with its Bijou After Hours event, Bijou Film Forums, Bijou Horizons, programming, and volunteering on a daily basis.
Davis said mainly FilmScene facilitated the event and the Bijou Film Board helped out.
During the event, organizers provided shirts and games to those who came out for the late-night showings.
“Integrating film into communities is something I’m very proud to be a part of,” Davis said.
Some other events that FilmScene has to offer are some special events, community screenings, and series that bring different types of films to the community, while also having runs of movie showing much like a chain theater does.
