Film League presents Vassar's (free) movie theater

Mike Newmark Columnist

After five years of bemoaning a slump in box office sales nationwide, analysts are becoming more hopeful in light of a summer of blockbusters that finally brought an increase in ticket sales. The main reason offered for lagging ticket sales has been the rise of home movie-viewing. These days, DVDs are released fairly promptly after runs in movie theaters end. Since discounted DVDs are widely available and can be viewed from the convenience of one’s own home (or dorm), the appeal of a movie theater, some argue, teeters on becoming obsolete.

With area movie theaters charging anywhere from $2 to $9 (and the added cost of cabs or gas), the average Vassar student may have a hard time mustering the motivation for going to the movies. But, as movie theater purists point out, the sensation of seeing a movie on a big screen, with the social element of a group of friends sitting in auditorium-style seating, cannot be matched by watching a DVD in a dorm room.

For students who savor the thrifty moviegoing experience, Vassar College Entertainment (ViCE)’s Vassar Film League has a solution: free film screenings in Blodgett Auditorium or the second floor of the Students’ Building on Fridays and Saturdays.

“We try to function as Vassar’s movie theater,” said Film League chair Kira Fisher ’10. “I don’t think many students go to theaters, since you need a car and everything for that.”

Fisher said that Film League acquires many advance-of-home-release DVDs from the St. Louis-based Swank Motion Pictures, Inc., among other distributors. “To legally play a movie, you have to have the rights, and those can be up to $500,” said Fisher. “We pay for the rights of each movie.”

According to Swank’s Web site (swank.com), upcoming DVD releases for its clients include The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), Sicko (2007), and 1408 (2007). The Film League committee, led by Fisher, will decide which movies to screen.

Fisher said the first film to be screened this semester will be the summer comedy hit Knocked Up on Sept. 21.

Past Film League screenings have included Half Nelson (2006), The Constant Gardener (2005) and Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006). According to Fisher, Film League screens “an eclectic collection of what people want to see” by balancing independent and mainstream films.

For the upcoming semester, Fisher plans to work with a sub-committee of students to bring film directors to campus and to collaborate with other groups. Fisher noted that the Vassar chapter of NARSAD: The Mental Health Research Association had approached her about screening “a film about mental illness” followed by a discussion.

Overall, Fisher hopes to expand the weekly film screenings to include refreshments. At the end of Freshman Week this year, Film League screened The Rules of Attraction (2002) and provided free cotton candy.

Unlike movie theaters that draw revenue from refreshment and ticket sales, Fisher noted that Film League is not profiting from students’ attendance at screenings. “We’re here just to entertain the students, not to make money,” said Fisher. “ViCE has the largest budget of [Vassar Student Association] orgs, and Film League has their own budget…It’s about $8,000.”

In terms of providing the campus with listings of the movies that will be screened, the Film League opts for the college equivalent of Moviefone: Facebook. Their group is called “and this week the film league is showing ___.”

“Every week I’ll send a mass message to all the members,” said Fisher. “Also, there will be posters around campus.”

Fisher also noted the possibility of ViCE issuing monthly calendars, which would include all ViCE events, from movie screenings to concerts.

Film League screenings are held at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays in either Blodgett Auditorium or the second floor of the Students’ Building. Screenings will be held every week, generally with the same movie screened Friday and Saturday.