DECLARATION #7: The Duke Mitchell Film Club

We are ‘The Duke Mitchell Film Club’.

If this is your first encounter with us then that probably means nothing.  But stick around; let’s see if we can change that.

Established in August 2007, ‘The Duke Mitchell Film Club’ started its life as a personal attempt to inject some life into London film club scene which was at that point in time going through a bit of a drought.

Blessed with finding the most left-wing and hands-off venue as its’ first home in King’s Cross , ‘The Duke’ as fans call the night, tried to change what was the accepted norm of film clubs: it was time to explore cinema and do it in an interesting way.

‘The Duke’ ethos comes from one very simple fact: the joy and excitement of discovering cinema and all that cinema entails.

Do you remember the first time something made your heart beat faster as a kid in the cinema? Maybe it was ‘Star Wars’ or ‘Dr. Zhivago’ or something else entirely. Whatever the film, that feeling right there is the very reason we run ‘The Duke’.

Each night is individual.

Each night is unique.

We trawl through hours of film, trailers, adverts, shorts, Tv spots  and much, much more. We sit in darkened rooms and we watch and we discuss. This film over that one. Can we capture the interest with such a slot. It’s a collaborative and long process.

But the results are always brilliant. Good or bad. We’d never claim we always hit the mark. Sometimes we discover a true gem – we still remember the time we screened ‘Mort Un Dimanche De Pluie’ or re-discovered alongside all of you Australian gem ‘Next Of Kin’ with its’ Argento-esque set-pieces; hell we still have love in our hearts for everytime we sat through ‘Ben & Arthur’. Sometimes things don’t pan out we expected. But whatever happens, we care about every single piece that plays on our screen.
‘The Duke’ is unique because it’s a bespoke night. We hate the idea of asking people to donate 3 hours of their lives to us only to press play and walk away.

That, simply, is not good enough.

We create an experience: the forgotten experience of going to the movies. There’s a trailer reel, a short – a poster gallery and an individual soundtrack greets you when you enter the room. We run a quiz full of prizes and at the end there’s always a preview of some sort.

We make sure no-one feels like they’ve walked into a private party. We make an effort to make everyone find a space, to feel comfortable, to forget they’re in a pub.

‘The Duke’ isn’t just a film club. It’s our love affair with cinema laid bare for everyone to join in.

Won’t you come along?

As part of Scala Beyond, The Duke Mitchell Film Club will be screening:

• Wednesday 22 August | 7.00pm | Free  August Birthday Blow-out! King’s Cross Social Club, 2 Britannia Street, WC1X 9JE
• Wednesday 26 September | 7.00pm | Free The Duke Mitchell Film Club presents 16MM Night The Kings Cross Social Club, 2 Britannia Street, King’s Cross, London, WC1X 9JE

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