Day for Night Magazine

Summer Films at Northwestern

Interview with Will Schmenner
By Jacob Nelson

Between fall and spring, Block Cinema director Will Schmenner and his student programming committee compose the quarterly film series with a very specific audience in mind: adamant film­goers who take the cinema very seriously. Consequently, you won’t find Block screening many obvious films throughout the academic year.

The outdoor summer programming is a bit different. And Schmenner is the first to admit it.

“It’s helpful for me as a programmer to be brutally honest with myself,” Schmenner says, “And to know that when you’re show­ing a movie outdoors what’s more important is that it’s outdoors, that’s more important than what the movie is.”

From late June to early August for the past six years, Block Cinema has projected a series of films on the wall of Pick-Staiger that faces the East Norris lawn. These films, which include The Simpsons Movie and Ratatouille, are more family-oriented than those shown during other parts of the year.

Block splits half of the six or seven movies shown over the sum­mer between newer movies released in the past year and older movies released decades ago.

Some deciding factors that limit the options for outdoor screenings are elements like action and profanity.

“No profanity,” Schmenner says in a tone that sounds like some­one’s learned from a mistake, “The sound carries.”

So what kind of films can entertain a broad audience without relying on action or profane language? Cartoons.

“Animated films work out well,” Schmenner says. “It’s good for outdoors; it’s good for summer; it’s good for families.”

Schmenner works closely with the student programming com­mittee in making each of his selections. But even with the pres­sure of these decisions, summer screenings offer Schmenner a re­prieve from Block Cinema’s regular operations when the schedule itself is much more regular.

“It’s a nice break where I get to be showing movies outside and not having to worry about the cinema on a weekly basis,” he says, “ “ That’s the benefit really.”