The Girls We Should Thank for Kickstarting Hollywood

Did you know know that half of all the films copyrighted in between 1911 and 1925 were written by women? A hundred years ago women were involved in nearly every aspect of production and held key positions in the industry. Alice Guy-Blaché, a Parisian secretary, was the first person believed to have directed a narrative film.…

Revisiting a Censored ‘Film Noir’ that Tackled PTSD Decades before it was Acknowledged

For so many US veterans, the real journey home begins in the head – that long, winding road to psychological stability after the traumas of service. Even today, it’s a topic not easily broached given the stigmas surrounding mental health. It wasn’t until 1980, and under much controversy, that the American Psychiatric Association added the term…

I Found a Belle Epoque Theatre Hiding inside a Paris Shoe Store

I‘ve been spending some time lately getting to know the quartier of Barbès a little better. Had I ever listened to those funny people on the television who declared this neighbourhood a Paris “No Go Zone”, I would never have discovered one of the most surreal secrets in Paris. If you ever find yourself in the area, you must stop in at the…

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A Little Lady with a Giant Prop House

This is embarrassing to admit now, but when we first saw Suri Bieler pop her head out from behind a doorway as we called out “anybody here?” in the entryway of a 95,000 sq. foot warehouse in Queens, we assumed she might be an office assistant; maybe a weekend volunteer. Because there was no way…

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10 American Indie Alternatives for an Anti-Oscars Movie Night

We look to movies for many things today — an escape, a laugh, a glossed-over Hollywood take on the life of another music icon that died too soon. But American filmmaker John Cassavetes looked to the movies for one reason: to fail, and fail beautifully. “I feel that we must try many things,” the late…

Midnight Movie of the Month: A Forgotten “Rocky Horror” Sister Film

What’s your favourite midnight movie? That one totally weird film you tell your friends about at parties, a vintage masterpiece that slipped through the cracks of mainstream culture, because it was just too strange to find a traditional audience, and instead found an unlikely cult following elsewhere. We’ve discovered a midnight movie that’s slipped under…

They Built a Life-Sized Stunt Double of Paris

Remember when French authorities built a miniature version of Paris to save the city from Nazi bomb-fire? Well, it wouldn’t be the last time the City of Lights required a stunt double. The second time, however, was under much cheerier circumstances: the filming of the Leos Carax’s cult ’90s French film, Les Amants du Pont-Neuf. Initially, Carax…

The Abandoned Secret Cinema of the Sinai Desert

As if the auditorium had risen from the sands of the Sinai itself, an abandoned cinema lies in waiting for an audience that never came. A movie-worthy mirage, you’d be easily forgiven for not trusting your eyes upon stumbling such a surreal sight in the heat of the dusty Egyptian desert. This extraordinary outdoor cinema was…

Don’t Call Her the Dragon Lady: Hollywood’s First Chinese American Star

Wong Liu Tsong was born on Los Angeles’ Flower Street in 1905 – a rather befitting location for a gal whose Cantonese name meant “frosted yellow willow.” Most U.S. moviegoers, however, would get to know her under a more American moniker: Anna May Wong, the “Dragon Lady” of Hollywood. Wong was just your average California girl…

Let’s Sneak into California’s most Beautiful Art Deco Cinemas

The credits have rolled on the last late-night screening, the box office curtain is closed, the ushers have done their rounds and popcorn machines are turned off. Now is our chance; we emerge from our hiding place in the back row. The cinema is ours. This is the sort of private tour that French photographer Franck Bohot likes…