HippCast – Détails, épisodes et analyse

As September comes to a close, students across the UK return to schools or higher education. To mark the start of a new academic year, we spoke to Dr. Paul Sellors, Lecturer in Film Theory, History and Criticism at Edinburgh Napier University and Programme Leader of the Film BA (Hons). HippCast Episode 18 considers what film students today can learn from early cinema: stylistically, contextually, and as a way to reconsider contemporary questions.

The conversation touches on the various lenses through which we watch, study and try to understand early film including the intersection between early films and politics, public utilities and consumer behaviours; considers ideas of film ownership and authorship; compares early film viewing with scrolling TikTok feeds; and tackles perhaps the biggest and most challenging question of them all: naming a favourite silent film.

We hope you enjoy this 'Back to School' episode and share it with any students you know heading off to start their journey in film education. As always, you can find a full transcript and a number of links to relevant publications cited throughout the episode via the HippFest blog. Happy listening!

In today's show we hear about a very special cinema loved by its local community, Highlands Cinemas - not to be confused with the Highland Cinema in the Highlands of Scotland on Fort William High Street - this picture palace is in the Halliburton Highlands in Ontario, Canada.

Digital Content Manager Christina Webber chats to the cinema's owner Keith Stata during the height of their busiest season. Our cinemas are three and a half thousand miles apart, but both celebrate that hallowed feeling invoked by a beautiful cinema space, the tangibility and materiality of our first cinema experiences, the curtains sweeping majestically in front of the screen, the carpets, the lights, the buttery smell of popcorn...

All of these sensations are bound up with the time we first fell in love with the movies. Keith set about building the Highland Cinema in his backyard in 1975, and since then it has grown and grown, now housing five theatres and a museum featuring cinema related photographs, memorabilia, and an impressive vintage projector collection. They may not show silent movies, but Laurel and Hardy do make a cameo on the cinema signage! (See above).

Earlier this year, Keith featured as the subject of a feature length documentary reflecting on his life's work, The Movie Man. Keith talks about his time in front of the camera, and paints an evocative picture of cinema going in the forests of Ontario - cats and bear included. What did a trip to the movies look like during his childhood? How to make the perfect iced cappuccino? And what does he think the future of cinema-going looks like? All will be discussed, and more.

Relevant links:

• A full English transcript of this show can be found here: https://hippfest.wordpress.com/2024/08/31/hippcast-episode-17/
• More info about Highlands Cinemas: https://www.highlandscinemas.com/
• The Cinemas' 58 resident cats: https://www.highlandscinemas.com/cats/
• THE MOVIE MAN (2024): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21916284/

In today’s episode, released in celebration of Silent Movie Day, we share a fascinating conversation on the final title in the season SALOME (1922), between HippFest podcast-wrangler Christina Webber and members of archive activist film collective Invisible Women: Rachel Pronger, Camilla Baier and Lauren Clarke. Invisible Women are an international collective who seek out and champion the work of women and filmmakers with marginalised identities who have been overlooked, un-credited or left out of the history of cinema. By drawing attention to these forgotten stories, they aim to reinsert female voices into the story of film.

And in today’s release this is certainly the case!

The conversation covers the visual splendour of the film, its oddness, sexiness, and humour, its contemporary resurgence and queer and feminist reclamation, but also paints a vivid picture of the scene in Hollywood at this time, and the cast and crew behind the movie. Alleged to be an entirely queer cast, SALOME (1922) is a perfect example of the subversive networks that were able to operate at the start of the 1920s, and how despite being overlooked in film history, women like Alla Nazimova and Natacha Rambova achieved incredible success.

We hope you enjoy - as always there is a full episode transcript available here.

Relevant links:

• More about the HippFest Taste of Silents season
• Book to watch SALOME (1922) in-person at the Hippodrome (Bo'ness)
• Book to watch SALOME (1922) via online live-stream (available for 48 hours)
• Find out more about the work of Invisible Women and join the mailing list

Episode 7 of the Hippodrome Silent Film Festival Podcast is dedicated to our touring HippFest 2022 Commission Journey to the Isles: Marjory Kennedy-Fraser, which just last week travelled to Brittany to open Le Festival International du Film Insulaire du Groix, and which will travel again for another outing at the University of Glasgow Advanced Research Centre in November!

The full performance offers a mesmerizing glimpse into the landscapes, folktales, and songs that inspired Marjory Kennedy-Fraser, one of Scotland's great early collectors of traditional arts, featuring two of Kennedy-Fraser's own films preserved by the National Library of Scotland Moving Image Archive. Joining audiences on this journey to the isles are acclaimed live performer, multi instrumentalist and one of Scotland's leading storytellers, Marion Kenny with award winning musician, singer and songwriter, Mairi Campbell. Both artists co-created a new score, weaving together words, music and song alongside Kennedy-Fraser's enchanting films.

But for those unable to attend, waiting to watch, or anyone listening in curious to hear more about Marjory Kennedy-Fraser's incredible story, we have adapted a live recording of the show from Eden Court Highlands Cinema in Inverness from October 2022 into this audio-only podcast for your listening pleasure. Researched, developed and performed by Marion Kenny, the story of Marjory Kennedy-Fraser is full of adventurous twists and turns and will paint a vivid picture of what life was like as a song collector in the early 20th century... We hope you enjoy tuning in.

More about HippFest's touring commissions

Book to attend the CinemARC screening (Glasgow) Nov 16th

Marjory Kennedy-Fraser's films at the National Library of Scotland Moving Image Archive

More about Marion Kenny

More about Mairi Campbell

This month's episode is all about the legendary Harold Lloyd title SAFETY LAST (1923), screening as part of the upcoming Edinburgh International Film Festival in collaboration with HippFest, and featuring live accompaniment from Festival favourite Mike Nolan.

Social Media Officer and Online Coordinator Christina Webber speaks to Tamara Van Strijthem (Executive Producer for the EIFF) about this year's programme, and asks Mike Nolan about his love for silent cinema, plus the process involved when approaching a silent movie. There is of course much discussion on Harold Lloyd, other EIFF highlights to check out, and even a story beginning 'one dark and stormy night...'. Enjoy!

• Browse the full EIFF programme here
• Book tickets to see SAFETY LAST (1923) ft. live accompaniment from Mike Nolan
• Or, read the show transcript in full via the HippFest blog

This month's release re-visits a conversation from 2022 between Dodge Brothers Mark Kermode and Mike Hammond, plus honourary Dodge (and HippFest favourite) Neil Brand. Some of the topics covered throughout the conversation include the particular nature of silent film accompaniment, ways to approach working collaboratively (described here as 'mind meld'), as well as ways the audience can influence the musicians, and some anecdotes from along the way.

As always, you can read a full show transcript here (including some photos from the eventual CITY GIRL performance) and with this episode, you can also watch a full event recording which we added to our HippFest at Home YouTube playlist, if you would rather watch the speakers as they converse.

We hope you enjoy listening, and will be back next month with more treats for your ears!

May's episode 'All Faces are Masks' is an exploration of silent cinema's portrayal of visibly different characters led by Changing Faces campaigner Dr Chris Heppell and filmmaker David Cairns. Changing Faces is a charity dedicated to providing support and promoting respect for everyone with a visible difference, and the week of this release (15th - 19th May 2023) is Face Equality Week.

Face Equality Week aims to raise awareness about the prejudice experienced by those with a visible difference. Underpinning 2023's event is the celebration of Changing Faces' ambassadors and campaigners proudly being the role models they want to see more of, and saying: "This is me". You can watch and share the campaign video, donate, or sign up for email updates in order to support the important work that Changing Faces are doing.

Many thanks to Dr Chris Heppell and David Cairns for presenting such a fascinating event at HippFest 2023. If you would prefer to read rather than listen, you can access a full English transcript here.

In HippCast Episode 3 we hear from young voices on old cinema.

Bringing fresh perspectives and new relevance to archive film is one of the many pleasures of programming a silent film festival, and involving new audiences and younger people in this wonderful world has been at the festival's heart since HippFest began. This episode features a short excerpt from the live Q&A which concluded our recent presentation of New Found Sound at HippFest 2023 - with terrific performances by Megan Marshall, Chloe Gibb, Erin Richards and Anya McCheyne, as well as from the Falkirk Junior and Senior Trad Bands - plus short interviews with Jenny Alexander (HippFest Advisory Panel) and Sara Prentice (Young Scot Reward Winner) inviting some of our young audience members to share their thoughts on this year's programme.

If you would prefer, there is a full Episode Transcript available here. 

In Episode 2 of the Hippodrome Silent Film Festival Podcast (HippCast for short) members of the team at Falkirk Council discuss their personal highlights from this year's programme, with a little bit of extra chat about the magic of silent cinema.

Hear from Festival Director Alison Strauss; Online Coordinator, Social Media Officer and 'podcast operator' Christina Webber; Nell Cardozo, Development & Engagement Officer; Paul Eames, Team Leader (Arts), Falkirk Council; Marketing Manager Abbie Dobson; Independent Cinema Office FEDS Trainee James Mennie; and Natalie Allison, Festival Producer.

Interested in an event mentioned in this episode? Browse and book tickets.

If you would prefer to read this conversation, a full transcript  is available here.

In Episode 1 of the HippFest Podcast (or HippCast for short), we are delighted to share with you a lively and fascinating talk by Donald Smith, originally presented in March 2022, ahead of our Festival Opening Night screening of The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots (1923).

'The Loves of Mary' was a real highlight of the festival, the world premiere of a new restoration of an extremely rare film presented with live improvised piano, plus the famous Scottish storyteller, Andy Cannon taking the role of our very own Film Explainer or 'McBenshi'. This memorable screening event was made even richer by Donald's talk, which set the scene perfectly for this near-hundred-year-old costume drama.

Donald Smith is an author, storyteller and director of the Scottish International Storytelling Festival since 1989. His many publications include Storytelling Scotland, A Pilgrim Guide to Scotland, Wee Folk Tales: in Scots and Folk Tales From The Garden. Donald has also staged over a hundred plays and was a moving force behind the Scottish Storytelling Center and a National Theatre for Scotland. 

If you would prefer, there is a full Episode Transcript available here. Links to resources mentioned in this episode are below:

• The Execution of Mary Queen of Scots (1895) - courtesy of The National Library of Scotland's Moving Image Archive
• The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots (1923) programme notes - by commissioned for the Hippodrome Silent Film Festival 2022
• The Ballad of the Five Marys - written by Donald Smith, Luath Press
• Archive Film Agency on YouTube
• Celluloid Tapestry on YouTube