Dear All,
Sorry for cross-posting.
best,
Saer Ba
TALK
24 February 2009
5:15 pm. Centre for Film Studies
Lecture Theatre, Ground floor, Arts Building, University of St. Andrews
J Ron Inglis, Director, Regional Screen Scotland
/Will pixels save the soul of cinema as we once knew it?/
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The practice of cinema as a public art form has evolved ever since its
birth over a century ago. However over the past 20 years social,
technological and commercial developments have radically changed cinema
going. Studio films are released in a broadcast-style of distribution.
The number of films released theatrically has risen dramatically.
Audiences are increasingly fragmented. Digital technologies allow films
to be copied – and even remade – without any payment to the creators.
Within this challenging environment there are audiences in both rural
and urban settings who are asking for a different kind of cinema
experience. Public policy frequently supports these complementary or
alternative cinema worlds, from film festivals to arts centres to rural
touring cinemas. But can they really thrive in the face of fragmented,
private viewing of films and official unwillingness to treat cinema as
‘culture’ rather than as ‘commerce’?
Bio:
Ron Inglis is a cinema and arts consultant based in Peebles. A graduate
of St Andrews University, he ran the popular Union film society (600+
members) and worked during the summer vacations with the Edinburgh
International Film Festival. In the 1970s he developed the part-time
regional film theatre in Lancaster and in 1981 joined Edinburgh’s
Filmhouse as Deputy Director in charge of cinema programming. In 1988 he
changed direction and worked as a computer trainer but after gaining an
MBA in Edinburgh, he returned to cinema and the arts as an independent
consultant.
His work covers options appraisals, feasibility studies, capital project
developments, digital cinema implementation, strategic development,
marketing and audience development, and artform-specific audits in
England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland. He is an assessor
on funding programmes for Scottish Screen, the UK Film Council, and the
Arts Council of Ireland.
Since October 2008, Ron has been working as Director of the new
development agency Regional Screen Scotland which has responsibility for
the operation of the Screen Machine mobile cinema in north Scotland, as
well as the development of sustainable cinema activities throughout
Scotland outwith the four major cities
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