Guerilla screenings use blank walls as screens |
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Stranded at the Drive-In,
Branded a Fool,
What will they Say Monday at School?
Thus sang a forlorn John Travolta as iconic Danny Zucko in the 1978 box office smash GREASE.
In truth, Drive-in movies stopped being a significant factor at the nation's box office long before Travolta's 1978 musical lament. Still and all, America's love for the drive-in movie experience continues to this day. A new movement, the Guerilla Drive-In, is trying to resurrect and re-invent the drive-in movie experience for the 21st Century, one screening at a time.
Your grandfather's drive-in theaters with god-awful concession stand food and tinny sound speakers may be a relic of the past, but its 21st Century incarnation, the Guerilla Drive-In, is becoming all of the rage – from sea to shining sea.
The Guerilla Drive-In phenomenon is a grass roots movement that re-creates the simple joys of the American drive-in theater experience with a few 21st Century twists.
Guerilla drive-ins turn building walls and empty warehouses into impromptu drive-in movie venues where independent filmmakers can self-distribute their work. Sometimes filmmakers simply project their wares onto the outside wall of a blank building, or onto the walls of empty warehouses. Other times, patrons of the arts sponsor the screenings by allowing their private 
12 has been a Guerilla Drive-In favorite |
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property to be used as drive-in venues. One such arts supporter claims, "When you go to Europe you see a whole different appreciation of film as both an art form and a cultural event. I am proud to have the film on the side wall of my body shop. This is our small way of contributing to the culture."
Disenchanted with the commercialization of film festivals and the limitations of cookie cutter distribution, independent filmmaker Lawrence Bridges is one movie maker who has embraced the guerilla drive in phenomenon. He is self-distributing his award-winning feature film 12 in a series of guerilla venues. As Bridges puts it, "Art belongs to the people and 12 is my gift back to the city of Los Angeles. It's a rolling installation and tribute to my home city, despite the fun it makes of it."
At the forefront of the Guerilla Drive-in surge is MOBMOV (Mobile Movie). Self-described as "the drive-in that drives in," MOBMOV members transform dark, empty spaces into impromptu drive-in theaters.
Organized over the Internet, the MOBMOV movement thinks of itself as being composed of "movie mercenaries who bring free movies to the community, providing a new, wholesome night-time use for the forgotten areas of America's towns." And the group does it legally (mostly), getting permission from independent filmmakers to screen 
Guerilla screenings aka Sidewalk Cinema |
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their offerings at no charge.
MOBMOV actively seeks new members who like watching and supporting great independent movies. They also encourage Match-Flickers who want to meet others in their community interested in bringing back the drive-in to join their ranks (visit mobmov.org). Beyond presenting free movies to culture-hungry communities, MOBMOV is for anyone who is weary of long lines, endless on screen advertising, and high ticket prices at the multiplex. MOBMOVERS think of their operation as Guerilla drive-in – and then some.
Other Guerilla Drive-In groups claim that part of their mission is "to reclaim public space and transform the urban environment into a joyful playground."
Visit guerilladrivein.org/startyourwn.html for step-by-step instructions on how Match-Flickers can start their own guerilla drive-in. The six major steps include:
1) Picking a Location
2) Choosing the Movies
3) Getting the Word Out
4) Showing the Movie
5) Equipment You'll Need
6) GDI and the Law
Internet searches for Guerilla Drive-in screenings can give you access to the day, time, and location to enjoy this surging phenomenon at a spur-of-the-moment drive-in venue near you.
This summer, Match-Flickers, don't be stranded at the drive-in, guerilla or otherwise. Instead, like GREASE'S Danny Zucko, find yourself some SUMMER LOVIN'.
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| The Business of Show |
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Does advertising, public taste, or overindulged stars determine a movie's box office fate? Christoper Stone explores what's going on behind the box office.
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| Christopher Stone |
Christopher Stone is the author of the international best seller Re-Creating Your Self. With Mary Sheldon, he co-authored three highly successful hardcover books of guided meditations.
He is a member of the Writers Guild of America, West.
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