Watch and Learn: City Lights
Is there anything more satisfying than introducing your child to their new favorite movie? The experience is even sweeter when that film is one of your own childhood favorites. In our monthly Kids! series, we program some of our staff’s favorite films from when they were growing up and get to watch dozens of families enjoy these classics for the first time.
Due to the recent temporary closure of our theaters, we’ve had to cancel a few of these family-friendly screenings. With an outing to the theater temporarily unavailable, we’d like to share some ideas for bringing the fun of film into your living room.
Instead of heading to the theater, we’ve been streaming some of our favorite movies at home. This week, I thought of a classic Charlie Chaplin feature that will charm kids and parents alike: City Lights (1931). When we played it last summer at the Princeton Garden Theatre, the room was filled with children’s laughter. I was inspired by the movie to make a short silent film of my own and have put together a list of questions for families to discuss after the film.
City Lights is currently streaming for free on the Criterion Channel and Kanopy. It is also available to rent on Amazon Prime and iTunes.
The activity
Make a short silent film approximately 1–3 minutes in length. Bonus points if it is inspired by City Lights!
Directions:
- Download an app to shoot your film. Here, we’re using Silent Film Studio (compatible with Apple devices). You can also check out Vintage Retro Camera if you have an Android device.
- Watch the short introductory video they provide you with to get started.
3. Build a new project by using clips you already have saved to your phone, or shoot some new City Lights-inspired footage.
4. Give your film a title card and intertitles to tell your story.
Intertitle: A word, or group of words (such as dialogue or information about a setting) that appear on-screen during a movie but are not part of a scene.
5. Make sure your video clips and intertitles are in the correct order, then export the file for sharing. Congratulations, you’ve made your own silent film!
6. Send us your film or post it on social media and tag us. We’ll be collecting the finished products and sharing them for everyone to enjoy!
We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
An example:
Conversation Questions:
1. What part of the film made you laugh the most? Why did you find that part so funny?
2. Why is The Tramp so gentle and kind even though many are not nice to him?
3. The two people we see The Tramp spend the most time with are a girl who is blind and man who keeps losing his memory. Why do you think the filmmaker made that decision?
4. What meaning is the last scene of the film trying to convey?
Share your film with us
We be sharing the finished submissions so everyone can enjoy them! If you would like your film to be included, send it to us or share it on social media and tag the theater.Email: comments@renewtheaters.org
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