Reel stories

 A Reel Life Story.

Reels reinvigorated my love for cinema. My entanglement with movies may have begun when I lived in a small country town where my father organised Saturday night double headers at the local Institute. Also, the local priest would occasionally show a movie to our two-teacher school of 27 wide eyed students. I vividly remember the 1951 epic “Quo Vadis” shown on his 17mm projector. Then there were “Ranch Nights” at the nearest Drive-In Cinema and when I lived in New Guinea, movies at the town cinema or club provided an escape from reality.

Fast forward a few decades to Mount Gambier where Reels Film Society reinvigorated my romance with movies. The Wehl Street Theatre provided ambience, keen membership and the volunteers behind the scenes to make it happen. The bold move from Wehl Street to the SRHT allowed Reels an opportunity to spread its wings. A huge screen, ample seating, sound quality, a professional projectionist, insurance cover and liquor licensing benefits all added to the monthly spectacle. The SRHT with its spacious downstairs and upstairs foyer created the environment for enjoyable social interaction for members prior to screening. Many said that this was more important than the movie that followed.

Now for my highlight reel; from my time serving on the Committee at both Wehl Street and SRHT to select just one wouldn’t be possible. Films that made a lasting impression include, “Incendies”, (Iran), “Nebraska” (USA) and “Rams” (Iceland) screened off site in the historic atmospheric woolshed at Coola Station.

For a slow burning drama, “Still Life” fits the bill as we had to interrupt the screening while the Mount Gambier Fire Service came out when our fire alarms went off. Eventually the few of us that remained returned to the Theatre to resume watching.

Best suspense movies were the ones that had me on edge before the movie even started when we realised that we didn’t have the DVD or it was in the wrong format! Yes, it is 6:50pm, we have 100 people expecting to see a movie in 10 minutes, but no blinking film!

Best comedy film, funny enough they were usually French. “Supercondriaque” with Dany Boon comes quickly to mind.

Then there were movies that remained with me for a week or more as I started to unpick them and appreciate the film makers, actors and director’s art. The dramatic “Amour” (Fr.) and wait for it “The Lobster” (Gr. & Ire.) were so powerful that I had to see them again and second time around they were even more impressive.

Some genres are not everyone’s cup of tea! Good film societies aim to provide a menu serving up different genres, cultures, introduction to world cinema that is hard to access in regions. I might like baked beans and ice cream, but I do like trying and experiencing something different every once in a while. Above having access to Art House cinema, Reels provides an opportunity to socialise and make new friends and acquaintances.

Like all movies there are credits at the end. Volunteers deserve to be at the top of the list, but I would single out our membership that enjoys world best cinema. Their cinema etiquette is respectful of other audience members. No mobile phones going off, or mobile screen glare. No talking while the film is in progress, and they decide their own honest Starbox rating before they head off.

Take a bow, members, see you at Reels!

Rob Forgan

My Reels story is along these lines:

I joined the then "Reels at Wehl" Film Society back in 2014. After a couple of years as a member I decided it was time to contribute in some way, so I joined the committee in 2016. In the next 12 months we relocated to the Sir Robert Helpmann theatre, acquired our barcode scanning system, and our ability to accept eftpos payments. When Chairman, Rick Paltridge, stood down I put my hand up for that role. I maintained the jobs of sending out the monthly emails, maintaining our website and Facebook page plus keeping our member database up to date.

Undoubtedly the most challenging years were 2020 and 2021. As Shutting down completely for the best part of year could easily have meant the end for Reels. Fortunately, due to the tenacious commitment of the committee members and loyalty of members Reels was able to start back up readily and have since gone from strength to strength.

A key factor in that revival was the excellent management of resources in early years which had left the Society able to forego fees in 2021 from members who had paid in 2020 and still be financially healthy. After about 4 years in the chair, I stepped back allowing the excellent Rob Forgan to step in and move the Society further along its growth path. To be honest I feel that most of the good things that have happened during my tenure is because of support by dedicated and talented people. I consider myself very fortunate to have associated with you all.

John- Martin Brown