The Little Cinema in Galway is a monthly short film screening which runs upstairs in Kelly’s Bar on Bridge Street and showcases films of all genres made by local filmmakers of all levels from beginners to professionals. They are celebrating their 3rd birthday at the end of June and are going from strength to strength.
Kenny Gaughan, Liam Doherty and Julia Puchovska met as film and TV production students in Galway in 2010. While chatting about college work one day, they realised that while they and many other students throughout the city were producing films, nothing was being done with them when they were finished. Kenny was involved in stand up comedy and had recently started to make short comedy sketches. It became apparent that getting his work screened may prove more difficult than expected.
“I submitted a film to the film Fleadh and it wasn’t accepted. It probably wasn’t up to standard, but nevertheless, it started me thinking. I wasn’t too bothered about making films with a beginning, middle and end. I just wanted to make people laugh.
“I realised the kind of films I was making were not really what festivals are looking for.” When an online search for film clubs turned up nothing, they decided they to do something about it. With that, the Little Cinema was born.
The principal behind the cinema was simple. If someone went to the trouble of making and submitting a film, the Little Cinema would screen it. The only requirement being that films had to be under ten minutes long.
“Over the years we’ve screened loads of works that otherwise may not have been shown”, says Kenny. “So many filmmakers tell us they were close to falling out of love with the work but when they found an audience they suddenly felt a reason to keep going”.
Kenny thinks the key to the Little Cinema’s success is because they are not a forum for critique. “Some people suggested a Q&A session after screenings to give the audience a chance to voice their opinions but that felt a bit pompous, and contrary to the original idea. We want to get across that you don’t go there to be judged, you go there to show your film and have a good time.”
For many films, the Little Cinema is just the first stop on their journey. Kevin Minogue and Shaun Ryan first showed their music videos for Dublin band Funeral Suits there. Kyle Kroszner also premiered his short documentary ‘Emerald Warrior’ about Jay O'Callaghan, captain of the Ireland's first primarily gay rugby team, there.
More so than their feature length relatives, short films are suited to online sharing and a number of Little Cinema films later went viral. One example is Kamil Krolak’s ‘Fifty People One Question Ireland’, which amassed over a million hits worldwide.
Just because some of the Little Cinema’s films have spread online, Kenny can’t offer any magic formula for making the perfect viral video. “It’s funny, but we’ve been asked to make a ‘viral video’ so many times and when I ask them what they mean they don’t even know. Everyone’s trying so hard to make something that will work online, but there’s really no way of knowing what people will like. You can only make something short and catchy and hope for the best.”
So what advice can Kenny offer for the budding filmmakers out there? He thinks the most important step you can take is to show it publicly. “We like to tell people that if you’ve made something don’t be afraid that it’s not good enough. People are always able to find a reason for liking films. The Little Cinema has a supportive and appreciative audience and is a great place to get networking and sharing ideas with other people. And who knows where that may lead?”
The Little Cinema takes place monthly upstairs in Kelly’s Bar on Bridge Street in Galway. Contact littlecinemagalway@gmail.com for submissions, questions and to subscribe to a mailing list.
