The Paprika Theatre Festival is, for the first time ever, including short films among the theatre performances (hey, it’s like a variety show). The first film to play will be an early-cinema style silent film that I was very much involved in the production of. It’s premiering on March 13 at 8 and showing again on March 16 and 23 at 2:30. It’s at the Tarragon theatre. Please attend if you can; it’s going to be great. 
The Bioscopewallah
Prashant Kadam, York University (video, 12 mins.)
The Bioscopewallah is a brief encounter with an
entertainer, Rau Waghmare.
A dalit folk artist, hit by an unfortunate drought Rau
narrates in colloquial Marathi the story of his struggle
for survival in the face of a natural calamity and
migration.
Rau’s cheerful singing and gestures, his unconditional
pride in the bioscope, stand in contrast to the lurking
shadows of poverty and failing health.
Prashant Kadam
Please post any responses, reactions, questions and comments on his amazing film in the comments section or at his website here.
This week’s readings cover Louis Feuillade’s “Les Vampires” (1916) and a contemporary intertextual play on the film in Olivier Assayas’s “Irma Vep” (1996). Another interesting utilization and examination of the woman heroine in early film serials was done by Janie Geiser who created a multimedia work called “The Spider’s Wheels”. An article on the piece and the use of early film, specifically “The Perils of Pauline”, can be downloaded here: Towards A Feminist Coney Island of the Avant Garde.
Anyone interested in an introduction to the production context of Louis Feuillade’s “Les Vampires” (1916), Roy Ames provides a good one here . The site also has a substantial list of books and articles on the film.
For week nine, we will be screening “Hazards of Helen”. The film comes from an American adventure film serial of 119 twelve minute episodes released over a span of slightly more than two years by the Kalem Company between November 7, 1914 and February 24, 1917. At 23.8 hours, it is one of the longest non-feature length motion picture series ever filmed (and is believed to be the longest of the film serial format). Episodes 1-48 were directed by J.P. McGowan and the remainder by James Davis.
Here is Episode 9: The Wild Engine
For week nine, we will also be screening “Perils of Pauline”. Like “Hazards of Helen” the film is an installment in an American adventure serial series. The serial had 20 episodes, the first being three reels and the rest two reels each. After the original ran, it was reshown in theaters a number of times, sometimes in edited, shortened versions, through the 1920s. Today, The Perils of Pauline is known to exist only in a shortened 9-reel version released in Europe in 1916. It was remade into a sound film in 1934, 1947 and again in 1967.
Here is Episode 1: Through Air and Fire
This week the class was fortunate enough to have Franci Duran screen two of her films. Please post any responses, reactions, questions and comments on either or both of her films.