The Identity

Overview

An identity for your film events is at it's best when it is binding all the different parts of your screening efforts together and not so much when it is indistinguishable from you yourself.

Bestowing an identity with a name and a logo upon your screening events helps to engage an audience, it conveys a level of thought and organisation higher than a single person does. If a stranger asked you to come watch a film that they, Dave, was putting on you might umm and err a bit but if you see a poster for a screening of the same film presented by The River of Bees Film Club, well, how could you resist?

A Name

There are two ways you can go with the name for your film screening identity, specific or general. Specific names tend to have a more factual basis, often taking in a geographic location or a thematic idea such as:

• Portsmouth Film Club
• Yeovil Cinema Society
• Lights, Camera, Acton
• Hull Cinephiles
• The Yul Brenner Film Club

General names can take in a more abstract feeling, like band name, where it can give some inference as to the type of film that is generally screened or can denote a certain outlook that is reflected in the film choices.

• The River of Bees Film Club
• Image Flickers
• Phones Off!
• Sketchy Light
• Mirrors and Magic Lanterns

These are just examples. Yours can be much better.

If you decide on a specific name then be sure to research other film clubs and organisations in the area. Not only do you want to avoid treading on other people's toes but you also don't want to risk possible confusion with your audience. If you don't check in advance you could end up only being Grimsby's second (or third) best cinema club that screens dystopic musicals.

General names can feel more personal and denote a reference to something but will also suggest what other branding choices you can make. For instance if The River of Bees film club would seem to suggest a logo or titling that has some play on water, stripes, buzzing or dripping in some fashion.

While the name is important and hopefully will be with you through many screenings, it is worth having one eye on these latter decisions when you go through your options.

A Theme

Some film clubs have a theme, some do not. Choosing a theme for your screenings can have it's benefits and it's limitations.

A theme can help to define what it is that your screenings are all about. If you show 1970s Kung-Fu movies in Hull you will probably have the benefit of being the only club in town that does so, but does Hull have much of a captive audience for your niche genre. Perhaps dialing it back to just films containing martial arts might allow film choices that appeal to a wider audience. Or perhaps your passion for 70s Kung Fu will convert the locals to your passion. This is what you will need to consider for this type of theme.

Not having a theme can certainly be more liberating, you are free to pick a romantic comedy for this screening, an obscure Anime delight for the next one and a VHS slasher flick delight for the one after that. This is certainly easier for you as a programmer, you can pick films you are already enthused about and that enthusiasm will help sustain you through the organisation fo your screening. But it can be harder to build a consistent audience. The more diverse and eclectic your screenings the narrower your repeated target audience will be, till eventually the only person that comes to every screening is you (though, really, that will be the case anyway).

Building a repeat audience certainly helps with your screening plans and needless to say venues like to see people coming to your screenings, so seek to balance your screenings between the films that you can gget passionate about screening and those that , generally, others might like to see. There's more on building an audience in our section on The Audience.

A Logo

Every part of your screening (that you control) should either have your screening name on it or the logo for your screening name.

If you settled on a long name such as Dr Phantasmagoria's Eclectic Electric Celluloid Shutter Show then your logo is not likely to have the name in it. As such a visual link between the two is desirable so that potential audience members link the two things together, rather than thinking of them as separate entities.

If however you name is short and snappy, Rolling!, for example then, dependent on some design choices, your name and logo may end up being one and the same.

However you end up with a logo, doing it yourself, through a friend or comissioning someone to design something for you, factor in the final uses for your logo as early as possible. Of course you will want something that can go on flyers and leaflets but there are also social media profile images to consider, banners, perhaps your own website, merchandising or anything else. At worst you may end up with two or three variations on the main logo but providing they stem from the same single source and these different endpoints have been considered your branding will remain intact.

A Presence

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A Style

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Summary

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Screeners

Resources

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Resource Set 2

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