Film buffs may have a reason to skip that Memorial Day picnic this year and spend some quality time indoors instead. The annual Cinevent Classic Film Convention assembles this weekend for the 49th time, bringing vintage films and collectibles to the Renaissance Downtown Columbus Hotel (50 North Third Street).
“It’s a celebration of classic film,” said Michael Haynes, Cinevent Chair.
“My father was one of the three founders of Cinevent,” he said. “It’s older than I am, so I guess, depending on how you look at that, you can say I’ve been involved my whole life.”
Cinevent proper runs Thursday, May 25 through Sunday, May 28, with a pre-show double bill screening at the Wexner Center for the Arts. The film center will screen new 4K restorations of You’ll Never Get Rich (1941) and Her Man (1930) Wednesday evening, May 24 at 7 p.m., in conjunction with the festival.
Then, on to the Renaissance.
Haynes attributes the popularity of the screenings in part to the novelty of watching older films – movies long ago relegated to the realm of home entertainment — with a crowd, as they were originally meant to be seen.
“We have a committee within the convention that makes the screening selections,” he said. The list of films to show is based on prints in the collection, narrowed down to focus on films people can’t easily find on television.
“We try to balance that with having a good mix of genres, good mix of ages of films,” he added. “And we do have a fairly big screen. That’s something else that’s a little different than sitting at home.”
“The dealers room is where people come from all over the country to buy and sell all manner of film collectibles,” he said. “Everything from movie posters to books to movies on DVD or 8 or 16mm film – if it’s film related, you name it, it will probably be here.”
Which is the bigger draw?
“There are some people who come and don’t watch a single movie – they just shop the dealers room or socialize with friends,” he said.
“For a lot of other people, it’s seeing the movies in a group setting. It’s one thing to watch it sitting in your living room, but it’s another thing to watch it with an audience of 80 or 100 or 120 people,” Haynes says. “And with the silent films, we have live accompaniment, so that’s something you can’t get sitting at home.”
Haynes thinks the social aspect of the convention may be its biggest draw. That’s what keeps him involved.
“For me, it’s much more about keeping the event going,” he said. “The number of people who talk each year about how much it means to them, that means something. A lot of the conventions like this have slowly been fading away.”
“There are people who’ve been coming to this event for decades,” he said. “But also every year there are new people showing up who get to experience it and have a good time.”
Cinevent registration fees depend on duration and day. Information can be found online at www.cinevent.com.
Tickets for the Wexner pre-show double bill are $6. Purchase tickets at wexarts.org
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