Writeup of Arisia

[nohwhere-man.livejournal.com]

There's a very nice writeup of the con by the silent film organist (but not a fan), Jeff Rapsis, on his blog:

It was perhaps the most improbable silent film screening I've done yet: Buster Keaton's Civil War epic 'The General' (1927) as part of a massive annual science fiction and fantasy convention at Boston's Westin Hotel.
[...]
I said sure, not quite understanding what an unusual event this is. What was Buster's Civil War epic doing at a sci-fi/fantasy convention? It was primarily a matter of print availability, it seems, but the more I think about it afterwards, the more it makes sense. All silent film is a fantasy of sorts, and early railroad locomotives were the high tech monsters of their time, an original expression of the "Steampunk" mindset.
[...]

Comments

[noeltheone.livejournal.com]

I believe the accurate statement is "Arisia is the only SF convention in the United States that still runs _35mm_ film as part of its programming." There are still a few running 16mm, and a lot that have given up running celluloid altogether.