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The Cinema Projectionist Archives hold a range of audio-visual resources documenting the working lives of cinema projectionists in Britain from the 1890s to the 2010s. Here you can find extracts from audio interviews with projectionists, videos, documents, magazine articles and possibly the world’s largest online collection of images of projection box. Navigate through the material by decade, theme, or type of material.
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19/07/2019
Projection box of Leeds cinema in 1964. Used with permission from Screen International.​​
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19/07/2019
Projectionists in projection box of London cinema in 1964. Used with permission from Screen International.​​
1964.06.04 - Plaza, Picadilly.jpg

19/07/2019
Projection box of London cinema in 1964. Used with permission from Screen International.​​
1960.01.07 - Empire, Leicester Square.jpg

03/07/2019
Projection box of a London cinema in the 1960s. Used with permission from Screen International.
1960.03.10 - Regest, Keighley.jpg

03/07/2019
Projectionist in the projection box of a West Yorkshire cinema in the 1960s. Used with permission from Screen International.
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03/07/2019
Projection box of a London cinema in the 1960s. Used with permission from Screen International.
1960.12.08 - Plaza, Port Talbot.jpg

03/07/2019
South Wales projection box in the 1960s. Used with permission from Screen International.​​
1962.07.12 - ABC, Southend.jpg

29/06/2019
Three projectionists in the projection box of a Southend cinema in 1962. Used with permission from Screen International.
Projectomatic advert (1956.12.06).jpg

01/11/2017
An advert for a Projectomatic automated projection machine.

Used with permission from Screen International.
Untitled-1.jpg

19/09/2017
Bill Pearson in the projection box at the Robin Hood Cinema, Birmingham (1967)
p43a.jpg

19/09/2017
This letter to Mrs Joan Pearson details some of the issues arising from the installation of the super-widescreen Cinerama projection system at the A.B.C. Bristol Cinema, Birmingham. In this instance it was felt that the size and weight of the film…
p18b.jpg

19/09/2017
Letter to Joan Pearson informing her of the closure of the A.B.C. Aston Cinema, Birmingham and her redeployment to the A.B.C. Sparkbrook, Birmingham in July 1969.
p18a.jpg

19/09/2017
A poem written by Joan Pearson on the occasion of the closure of the A.B.C. Aston, Birmingham in 1969.

Goodbye dear box 'this soon we part /
To leave behind a broken heart /
With no more laughter in our voice /
We have to go we have no choice…
p16.jpg

19/09/2017
Letter from the National Association of Theatre and Kine Employees (N.A.T.K.E.) providing details of the start of single-manning in 1969.
p13.jpg

19/09/2017
Members of the projection team - including Joan Pearson and D. Neale (chief) - in the projection box of the Aston Cinema, Birmingham in 1968.
p35.jpg

19/09/2017
A letter from the district manager of the A.B.C. cinema chain congratulating the team from the Robin Hood Cinema, Birmingham (lead by Bill Pearson) for winning the Projectionist Efficiency Competition, 1963.
Pearson 4.jpg

19/09/2017
Photograph of the projection team at the Bristol Cinema, Birmingham in 1962. From left to right: K. Patel, D. Brinkworth, Joan Pearson, D. Thom, K. Jones, J. Fielding.
p17.jpg

19/09/2017
Copy of a letter to Joan Pearson concerning her promotion to the position of co-second projectionist, includes details of wages.
Joan Pearson - A.B.C. Aston Cinema, Birmingham

28/09/2017
Joan Pearson in the projection box of the Aston Cinema, Birmingham in the 1960s.
film reel

20/03/2017
Projectionist Florence Barton describes an incident in Leicester where a deliberate act of sabotage was carried out in order to try and sack her.
film reel

20/03/2017
Projectionist Florence Barton describes the process of becoming Chief Projectionist at Scala, Coventry in the face of male competition.
film reel

20/03/2017
Projectionist Florence Barton describes the work that she was expected to do around the cinema.
film reel

20/03/2017
Projectionist Florence Barton describes getting the first Projectomatic automation machine in Coventry in the late 1950s. She also gives her unfavorable opinion of her male counterparts.
film reel

09/12/2015
Projectionist and cinema manager Phil Fawke describes the process of changing-over a film including replacing the carbon rods in the arc lamps.
film reel

09/12/2015
Projectionist and cinema manager Phil Fawke describes his morning routine and the process of cleaning the projection box.
film reel

09/12/2015
Projectionist and cinema manager Phil Fawke describes the process of repairing film damage.
film reel

09/12/2015
Projectionist and cinema manager Phil Fawke describes his experience of the arrival of digital projection, the changes in the number of projectionists over time, getting used to using the digital projector and the benefits of digital on picture…
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes a Welsh cinema with unconventional entry policies, comparing it so scenes from the comedy film The Smallest Show on Earth.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the process of rehearsing film to get them ready for screening.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes undertaking publicity activities, including borrowing an elephant from a visiting circus.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams provides an overview of presentation and showmanship in cinemas. He outlines how he was trained by the chief to uphold particular aesthetic standards and the impact that this has on the experience of the audience.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the process of selecting music to be played in the auditorium prior to film screenings.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams discusses the impact of working routines on mealtimes.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the process of making-up film prints ready for screening and breaking them down once finished.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the other duties carried out by projectionists outside the projection box including an accident where he fell through the ceiling of the cinema auditorium during a film screening.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the importance for projectionists’ work to be invisible.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the impact of promotion on his relationships with other cinema workers.
Feeling like a projectionist (Mike Williams).mp3

Projectionist Mike Williams describes the qualities required of a projectionist and the associated feelings that come with the job.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams tells the story of how he accidentally destroyed a print of A Woman in a Dressing Gown.
film reel

04/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes his relationship with his chief projectionist at the ABC (Olympia) Cardiff, Frank Saunders.
film reel

03/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams describes the projectionist’s duties when the film was on screen, noting the importance of checking films during screenings.
film reel

01/12/2015
Projectionist Mike Williams explains the process of changing over from one projector to another between reels.

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