C I N E S T U D I O.

The following feature story appeared in the campus publication MOSAIC in January, 2000.  Although some of the courses, students, and faculty members referenced in the story may have changed in the meantime, it still provides a full and accurate picture of Cinestudio. For the most current course information and faculty listing, we encourage you to visit their homepage.

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION, AND LEARNING

A cultural force captivates moviegoers for three decades

In a world of high-profile, high-profit multiplex cinemas, Cinestudio stands out like a Technicolor wonder in a black-and-white world. It is a single-screen theater and a non-profit cooperative, managed almost entirely by Trinity undergraduates, that combines an old-fashioned movie palace atmosphere with technically advanced equipment. As a result, it is a renowned and favorite venue for screening and premiering world films. Quirky and unique, Trinity’s Cinestudio is a gem that sparkles no matter how you look at it.

With its intimate and elegant ambiance and diverse film offerings, Cinestudio captures the imagination of a variety of audiences, among them: film buffs who want to see classics in their full glory on the big screen; art lovers who seek out small, independent films that never make it to the commercial theaters; and students and other learners who thrive on the cultural insights and other knowledge gained from viewing foreign films and thought-provoking documentaries. According to Professor of English John "Fred" Pfeil, a fan of and volunteer at the theater, Cinestudio’s primary reputation is for showing movies of high quality in "an extraordinary exhibition space for films." He says, "You can go in blind, knowing little or nothing about the film that is going to be shown on any given night, and you know you’re going to get something intellectually or artistically stimulating."

A student enterprise
Flashback to the fall of 1969, when what is now the grand Cinestudio was merely an auditorium in the old Clement Chemistry Building. The facility had bland walls, hard, wooden seats, no carpet, poor acoustics, and a projection booth that nobody knew anything about or even had a key to open. But a group of students in the film society "saw the possibilities," according to James Hanley ’72, one of the founders, who is now employed by Cinestudio as a film consultant and projectionist. With a loan from the group’s faculty adviser, Lawrence Stires, the students upgraded the equipment, and on February 16, 1970, Cinestudio officially opened to the public with a double feature of Alice’s Restaurant and Yellow Submarine. Three years later, the founding students obtained a bank loan to buy new projectors, comfortable seats, regal red carpeting and wallpaper, and a grand scalloped curtain that is still in use today. With the help of a few professionals, the students did all of the renovation themselves.

Zoom in to the present to find that students are still the life force behind Cinestudio. Hanley, co-founder, Peter McMorris ‘73, a film consultant and projectionist, and Christine McCarthy McMorris ‘79, who does publicity, work with 50 to 60 student volunteers, who serve as ticket sellers, ticket takers, security personnel, and managers for the shows that run every evening and in matinees offered on weekends. Students and paid staff together discuss and devise the eclectic roster of films each year. Jeffrey S. Green, a junior with a double major in computer science and philosophy, is one of two coordinators who manage the undergraduate staff at Cinestudio. He says that the love of movies is what motivates most of the students, who earn free admission in exchange for their volunteer work. "We don’t work for money; we want to be there," he says. "In addition to learning about theater management, I get to see great movies."

Catherine L. Bakulski ’01 is the other student coordinator. An economics major, she believes her avocation will help with a future career in business. As with an internship that takes place off campus, student volunteers develop real-world skills. She says, "Being a manager is of course a good learning experience, and I’ve learned a lot about public relations."

Many alumni who have worked for or patronized the theater remember it as an important part of their Trinity experience. Some, like TV and movie producer Stephen Gyllenhaal ‘72, an early Cinestudio staff member, go on to careers in the film industry. Gyllenhaal is currently working on a new television movie for Showtime and recently has been in dialogue with his alma mater regarding its fledgling plans to establish a film studies program. Others who still live in New England make pilgrimages back to the theater on a regular basis. Past and current staff members will mingle in April when Cinestudio hosts a 30th-anniversary celebration.

A cultural center
Faculty members are among Cinestudio’s most ardent supporters. Professor of Modern Languages Sonia M. Lee says, "I consider Cinestudio to be one of the most important things on campus. I’ve been at Trinity a long time and it has been a very steady, positive cultural force." Lee, who teaches courses in African and French cinema, collaborated with Cinestudio staff on the upcoming French Film Festival, scheduled to take place in April. Sponsored in concert with Lee’s course in "French Cinema," the weeklong festival will feature guest speakers, discussion of each film, and two receptions. Lee, who hopes the festival will become an annual event, strongly believes in the role that film as an art form has to play in curricular and co-curricular learning. "Students today are very visual," she notes. "It is sometimes easier for them to get into a culture through the cinema." With its selection of international films, she says, "Cinestudio provides a cultural space and an opening on the world."

Pfeil, who also teaches film studies, believes that like the Austin Arts Center and the Gallows Hill bookstore on campus, Cinestudio as an institution supports the broad mission of the College. "Theater and literature are important aspects of the landscape of a liberal arts education," he notes, "and the same is true for film."

Community connections
Green notes that the general public represents a large portion of Cinestudio’s patrons and that the student-run enterprise reflects well on the College. "It brings in a lot of people to campus," he says. "For many of them, their first exposure to Trinity is through the theater." Cinestudio staff members regularly collaborate with community organizations on thematic film series such as the annual Jewish Film Series, co-sponsored with the Greater Hartford Jewish Community Center, and the Connecticut Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, co-sponsored with Alternatives, the Hartford gay and lesbian cultural association. The gay and lesbian festival, which has been held at Cinestudio since 1988, will feature question-and-answer sessions and other interplay between directors and actors and the audience this June. "Cinestudio is really the only place where this type of festival can take place in the Hartford area," states Dan Millett, director of Alternatives. "It’s irreplaceable."

In its 30-year existence, Cinestudio has found many ways to remain vital and serve its diverse audiences. For example, it was among the first to show the midnight movies that became so popular in the 1970s. More recently, Cinestudio simulcast the 1996 presidential debate that was held at Bushnell Hall. Afterward, Trinity President Evan Dobelle moderated a discussion with the Cinestudio audience, portions of which were rebroadcast on C-SPAN and MTV.

Hanley says that the high-quality experience of viewing a film at Cinestudio — a wide, shallow theater that offers better sound and a bigger picture than a long, thin theater — keeps it in demand, as does its excellent reputation in the film industry. "We are increasingly doing premieres as a niche house," he says. While VCRs and classic cable channels have decreased the demand for some films, Cinestudio will survive and thrive because it provides a good reason for people to come out and wait with anticipation for its magnificent curtain to rise. Says Hanley, "People gather in a space to watch a film together, and it’s a communal emotional experience that can’t be duplicated."

-Leslie Virostek