Lil’ Foxie & i are cinephiles.
Before i became an inventor and mad lab scientist, one of my former careers was as a movie usherette at a cinema in Philadelphia. Oh how fondly i look back on my days of ushing: welcoming people to the theater, serving them the delicious popcorn & treats, and of course seeing all of the latest films. To this day, i still get a rush when visiting a movie palace -- MOVIES!
During my time as an usherette i encountered the infamous: Francis Friel. He was the cinema’s manager and a film encyclopedia. There did not seem to be a movie this man didn’t see. Not only did he work in a theater selling movies to patrons, he wrote movies and made movies!
We had lost touch and life zoomed by. But it was MOVIES that has brought us together again. Francis has recently started a zine, Moviejawn which focuses on one thing: MOVIES. Past, present, or movies of the future are all featured in his monthly zine that represents writers from all over the WORLD.
Sundae Matinee loves to support our friends and their adventures! Tomorrow we will be sending a copy of Moviejawn to all our subscribers as well as details about The Cinematic Coloring Contest. Watch your mailboxes to find out how you can win some of the GRAND prizes. In the meantime read more about Francis and his zine...
Sundae Matinee (SM): What is your favorite sundae?
Francis Friel of Moviejawn (FF): I never ate sundaes much as a kid, but I remember always wanting that Reese's Pieces sundae they had at Friendly's. I have a very distinct memory of going to the Woodhaven Mall in Northeast Philly in the mid-80s and eating at Friendly's (probably after seeing a movie) and having a hot dog and really wanting that sundae, but I don't think we ever had it. But to this day I will probably always want that.
SM: Why did you start a zine and why focus it on movies?
FF: Well firstly, movies are all-important to me and always have been. I like art and books and comics and tv and everything else but I'm pretty much thinking about movies all day every day. I'd started reviewing movies on my instagram about a year ago now, and a friend suggested making an account just for my reviews, which I did in December of 2014. Before that I had a movie blog that I didn't really keep up with very regularly, but always wanted to do more with. I've got a few other friends who write reviews online (who are now writing for the zine) and they inspired me to just go for it and see who might want to go in on this project together. I got a great response and we kind of put the first issue out really quickly, I think just to show myself that it could be done. So now it's got some momentum and people are excited to be a part of it, which feels really good.
SM: How many writers do you have?
FF: Right now there is a core group of five, including myself, who will contribute content to every issue.
SM: Where can someone find the zine?
FF: I'm currently based in Asheville, NC and the zine is in a few stores here, but it's also available directly from me. I'm looking into hooking up with a distro at some point in the future, but for now I'm essentially self-publishing and distributing.
SM: Do you accept submissions?
FF: Yes! I am always looking for submissions and new contributors and help of any kind that people may want to provide. My email address is in the zine, [email protected]. Folks can send their work to that address or just write to me in general.
SM: What type of articles can readers expect to find?
FF: We'll feature regular reviews of new releases as well as older films, the August issue will have (among other pieces) essays on the work of the early 20th century Russian animator Ladislas Starevich and the actor Isabelle Adjani. But we are looking to publish all different types of things, from dvd and blu ray reviews, people's personal experiences with watching films, interviews with film critics and directors, essays on directors or genres of films, etc. Future issues will also feature some fun contests that I think the readers will really enjoy!
SM: If you could make a film about anything, what would it be about?
FF: I've always wanted to direct a small genre film, in the style of BLUE RUIN or CHARLEY VARRICK or something like that, but set in a movie theater, maybe about a projectionist.
SM: What do you enjoy most about movie theaters?
FF: I love that, out of all the art forms out there, movies are the one that we've all agreed to get together to collectively enjoy. We don't pay money to sit and read an entire book with two hundred other people, or listen to a cd or record together. But movies are the thing that brings everyone together. Everybody goes to the movies.
SM: Movie Palace or Video Rental store? Why?
FF: My response to this is that I love both for equal and separate reasons, kind of. I like a rental store with some personality. I just moved to North Carolina from Philly and was shocked to find that Video Stores are still a big thing down here. The ones here in Asheville are clearly run by people who love film and want to stock cool movies that maybe people haven't seen before. I love going in there and just looking at all the care that went into the different sections and looking at all the titles and making lists of things I have to see. On the other hand, a great Movie Palace with some heart will get me every time. I like going to the AFI Silver in Silver Spring, Maryland every chance I get. It's a three screen theater that is always running some kind of retrospective series or festival or something cool like that. So I'm torn. But I think when it comes down to it, I'll choose Movie Palace. The Big Screen Experience still can't be beat.
SM: Whats your favorite type of movie theater concession?
FF: I'm pretty easy. Popcorn and Reese's Pieces.
SM: Do you make films? If so, can readers find them somewhere?
FF: I've made a lot of films and worked on other people's projects. As of now there isn't one spot to see them, but a few of them played at the Philadelphia Festival of Independents a couple of years back and I used to run the Squaredance Film Festival with a group of filmmakers in the Allentown area back in the early 2000s and our worked played there as well.
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