‘The 50s were gloomy times and films were an escape’: Researching Cinema Audiences Across Cultural Contexts
Monday, 25 November 2019, 10 – 11am 
A discussion led by Dr Sarah Culhane as part of the School of Creative Arts Research Forum.
Before the wide-spread adoption of television, cinema was an important outlet for entertainment, education and social interaction, but it was also a window onto the wider world. The generation of cinema-goers that came of age in the 1950s can offer a unique insight into the role that cinema played in the formation of personal, social and national identities. However, as this generation enter their 70s and 80s, and the tangible elements of cinema-going heritage disappear from towns and cities worldwide, our connection to this aspect of cultural history is becoming increasingly fragile.
This talk draws on research conducted as part of two collaborative projects that aim to preserve the memories of ordinary cinema-goers through oral history methodologies: the Italian Cinema Audiences project (AHRC, 2013-2017) and the on-going Irish Cinema Audiences project (CAROLINE/MSCA, 2018-2020). Using a comparative approach, Sarah Culhane explores the similarities, divergence and significance of cinema memories among Irish and Italian audiences of the 1950s.
Sarah Culhane is a CAROLINE Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at Maynooth University. In collaboration with Age Action Ireland her current research project, ‘Irish Cinema Audiences: Engaging older audiences and sustaining Ireland’s cultural heritage’, investigates the significance of cinema-going and film in the everyday lives of Irish people in the 1950s.
She holds a PhD in Italian studies from the University of Bristol. Her PhD research was conducted as part of the Italian Cinema Audiences project (AHRC 2013-2016). From 2017-2018 she worked as a Research Fellow on the Italian Cinema Audiences follow-on project, CineRicordi (2017-2018). CineRicordi is an online archive that allows users to explore the history of cinema-going in 1950s Italy.
Campus Location: Trinity Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute
Accessibility: Yes
Room: Neill Lecture Theatre
Event Category: Arts and Culture, Lectures and Seminars
Type of Event: One-time event
Audience: Undergrad, Postgrad, Alumni, Faculty & Staff, Public
Cost: Free
