With the seemingly endless number of activities offered by Trinity, it is easy very easy to miss out or not know about very entertaining clubs, one of those lesser known being Trinity’s very own Film Club. The Club is co-moderated by Mr. Alex Dotsey and Mr. Tyler Harris, two English teachers at Trinity. I was able to secure an interview with Harris and get an idea behind the curtain of what goes on at the Film Club.
Films are easily one of the most influential forms of media of the modern day, they can influence our beliefs, attitudes, and even our perception of the world around us. Harris and Dotsey understand this, and as well as funny movies or movies packed with action, there are very serious movies shown in film club which have very strong messages to convey.
Throughout my interview with Harris, he answered my questions with years and years of experience in understanding films and the effects that they have on viewers. When asked about what established Harris’s love for movies, he told the story of the first movie he ever saw (“Space Jam”). “All I was seeing was just colors and sounds of Looney Tunes happening, but I was glued to the screen. All the other kids around were running around and doing dumb stuff like kids do during movies, especially kids’ movies, but I was glued to the screen at one year old. And so I like to say, ever since then, it was a match made in heaven.”
At its face value, the goal of the film club is to watch movies, but it means more than if you look into its core. When I asked Harris about what happens in film club, he provided that, “There is a huge, huge history of movies and tons of different other genres that a lot of students probably haven’t even skimmed their toe in. And so Mr. Dotsey and I try to show them movies that they have probably not been exposed to before, things that they would probably like.” And when asked about what the clubs aim was, Harris added “we’re aiming to show movies that are engaging but also educational in some way as far as the history of cinema is concerned and the idea that movies can be deeper than just Spider-Man swinging through the streets.”
When asked if Harris’ love of films influenced his choice to become an English teacher, he gave quite an insightful reply: “We see everything through the perspective of narrative storytelling, and that’s what movies are. And so English, as far as English is concerned, being an English teacher is more than just teaching books. It’s teaching things like philosophy and theology and psychology and history.”
With all of the movies viewed in film club, there must be a way to decide what is chosen, and it turns out that not all of the movies are just picked by Harris and Dotsey, Harris added that “We like to have the guys send some options to us. We create a poll on Microsoft Forms, and then we send it out, and the guys can vote on what they want to watch. So it actually kind of gets heated sometimes. Like last year we had a big competition between the most recent trilogy of “Planet of the Apes” films versus some “Mad Max” films, and “Mad Max” ended up coming away with the win in that regard.”
The film club mainly takes place under the roof of Trinity, however there are exceptions to every rule. When asked about whether the film club ever goes to see movies outside of Trinity, Harris informed me that “once every spring we take the Film Club on a field trip to either Baxter Avenue Theaters or Tinseltown or St. Matthews Cinemark. So last year we went to go see ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’. Not a great movie, but it was a good time. So that’s kind of what we look for at the movie theater. It doesn’t have to be some three and-a-half-hour arthouse movie. It’s usually going to be a good time, entertaining movie.”
To wrap up the interview, I asked Mr. Harris who the film club was for, and who should join. “This club is for anyone who appreciates, loves, or even likes the feeling of turning on a movie, kicking back, and just enjoying themselves. And it’s a really, really good opportunity for students in the Trinity community to come together through their love of art and cinema. I mentioned this earlier, but movies are much more than just a light on the wall.”
Trinity’s Film Club has a lot to offer and is a club anyone can join. It is best summed up by Harris: “No one is on the fence about joining film club. You either join it or you don’t. And the guys who do don’t usually regret it. And if you are on the fence, then just join!”
