For those who love movies
‘Pieni elokuvakerho’ – the little film club – is a unique service offered by Gilda. The club focuses on screening classic films of high quality, with a selection curated by film industry professionals. Tickets for these screenings are cheaper than usual, 10 euros, and each selected classic film will be screened three times.
Pieni elokuvakerho dates back 20 years, when Mark Lwoff and Vesa Virtanen, first-year students at the Department of Film at the University of Art and Design Helsinki, founded the club. Now it has been revived to provide a community for film lovers.
“We welcome all newcomers with open arms. Come experience classic films as they were intended to be seen – in a cinema, surrounded by other film lovers.”
– Mark Lwoff, film producer and Gilda board member
History
‘Pieni elokuvakerho’ was founded in 2001 at the Department of Film at the University of Art and Design Helsinki, by first-year students Mark Lwoff and Vesa Virtanen. The club met on Fridays in the Arabianranta school theatre to watch movies, screened almost without exception on film. ‘Pieni elokuvakerho’ was run under the auspices of the University of Art and Design Helsinki and Peter Von Bagh, and the weekly screenings continued until 2009.
The ‘Pieni elokuvakerho’ programme was not limited to a specific genre. The only criterion was quality: during a single season, you could see anything from John McTiernan’s Die Hard to Ingmar Bergman’s Cries and Whispers. Since the club members were mostly young art students, the after-film discussions often continued well into the morning hours.
Now, after more than ten years of silence, ‘Pieni elokuvakerho’ continues its mission. Those confident art students have turned into seasoned film professionals, so it’s a good time to return to the source of that passion, to find the flame that started many long careers, while celebrating the beloved art of cinema.
