- Illustration by Brennan Bova
Campus club offers a different movie-going experience
TIRED OF PAYING $10 for not-so-good blockbusters at the movies? Sick of Hollywood recycling content and actors to create the usual crappy comedy, romance, or drama? Well, a club at the University of Ottawa might just solve your problems.
Cinema Academica is a group on campus that allows students and community members to meet up and discuss what they love—films. Screening avant-garde film and indie-style documentaries, Cinema Academica is an alternative place to watch interesting movies without emptying your wallet.
“Basically Cinema Academica is a weekly film series we put on every Friday evening,” explains Wayne Sawtell, the club’s previous president and graduate student at the U of O.
“It shows documentary films about various social justice issues.”
The Student Federation of the University of Ottawa-registered club wasn’t always an independent endeavour. Cinema Academica comes from a Canada-wide film club.
“It started off [as] Cinema Politica and was affiliated with the network of other organizations across Canada,” explains Sawtell.
“The series used to get films from that organization, but for the last few years it’s been completely independent and just based in the U of O campus.”
Don’t expect the club to get any of its movies from local theatres, though. Cinema Academica procures its films from a variety of sources, including the National Film Board of Canada, One World Arts, the U of O’s library, and even YouTube.
“We try to take a perspective that you normally wouldn’t find. For example, a film shown in a course [at] the university or in the cinema—you know commercial cinemas,” he says.
“We try and show films that you can really get to the root of various social and economic problems.”
The movies are only part of the fun. It’s usually the discussions afterward that make the experience more entertaining than a regular cinema.
“It’s what makes it kind of unique,” explains Sawtell.
“Like you go the cinemas and everyone leaves after the film, but [here] you have people stick around and talk about the various issues.”
Tomorrow’s screening features a movie and discussion about Remembrance Day.
“[On Nov. 11], we’re showing something called Silent Screams, which is more about victims of war and human rights pieces.” says Sawtell.
“[Usually Remembrance Day ceremonies] tend to not focus on civilian losses in war; they really focus on the military. We wanted to provide that perspective that most of the casualties in war are civilians.”
By showing films about social justice, economic problems, and ethical issues, Cinema Academica hopes to spur students into action and make them less apathetic.
“The whole point of starting the film series was to make students become activists, to stand and take a role in trying to influence all these decisions instead of just being passive,” he says.
For more info on Cinema Academica, email [email protected]
