Silent Cinema Society

SILENT CINEMA ART & TECHNOLOGY

—is a community of, by and for everyone who is fascinated and entertained by silent cinema and its related talents and technology.

Whether it’s the history, the preservation, the machinery, the talent—or just curiosity and entertainment—that you are here for, welcome.

This website is just part of the commitment each of us has in keeping silent cinema alive. Some of us restore film and projectors, some provide live music at the organ or piano, and many boo, hiss and laugh from the audience as they are entertained in the fashion of the silent cinema era.

by Chaz DeSimone

Professor Rinaudo

“PROFESSOR RINAUDO” as silent cinema aficionados call him, has been my friend for fifty years, since junior high school. Back then Joe Rinaudo was collecting 16mm silent films and would put on shows for his friends.

Today he researches, collects, restores and exhibits silent films (35mm these days) on a hand-crank projector, usually with live accompaniment of theater organ or piano, as itinerant shows to audiences in churches and halls, just like it was done 100 years ago.

Twice a year Joe brings his itinerant show to the opulent Nethercutt Museum in Sylmar, California. He is invited regularly to hand-crank his 1909 Powers Cinemagraph for special screenings at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Oscars). Joe is also consultant and provider of restored films to the Library of Congress.

Please read the full story of Joe’s passion for silent film here.