Foreign film series set for Hagerstown

July 15, 2010|By CHRIS COPLEY

Submitted photo,

The plan was simple: Show seven classic films on seven consecutive Mondays. Show movies that aren't generally available in theaters. Bring people downtown on a night that's often dark in Hagerstown.

So Monday Movies was organized. Movies will be shown at 7 p.m. Mondays beginning July 19, all screened at The Maryland Theatre in downtown Hagerstown.

"We're trying to revitalize the downtown," said Deb Fyodorov, member of a local committee that organized the film series. "There have to be more entertainment things to do downtown."

The Monday Movies series features seven classic, international films, released from 1938 to 1962. "Beauty and the Beast," a French movie produced in 1946, will be the first in the series. Six of the seven films will be shown in black and white. One is in English; the others are English-subtitled. Tickets cost $5 per person.

The organizing committee is a spin-off committee from the Creative Minds program.

Creative Minds is a coalition of artists, arts professionals, city officials and others interested in the arts, according to Cindy Blackstock, community development coordinator with the City of Hagerstown.

The Creative Minds committee explored ways to expand local appreciation for the arts, she said. Their first program was the classic film series.

"These are more than movies. These are pivotal films in film history," Fyodorov said. "These are hard-to-get films that make it perfect for the big screen."

Films will feature a printed program or speaker to give background on the production. The Maryland Theatre will offer concessions.

Organizers of the series include Fyodorov, a Hagerstown resident who is acting as creative producer for these seven films; Jay Constantz, executive director of The Maryland Theatre; Ann Bass, community development professional with the City of Hagerstown; and Julie Cantrel, art teacher at Winter Street Middle School in Hagerstown.

If this series goes well, Fyodorov said the group plans to bring additional films to Hagerstown.