ABSTRACT
Theoretical introduction outlining both the scope of the book and the larger theoretical implications, in dialogue with media archaeology, histories of sociability, useful cinema studies and laboratory science. The introduction makes the case for bracketing assumptions about arthouse cinema when dealing with the early history of film societies, showing that they arose from a much broader context of voluntary associations at a time when cinema became an urgent question on account of its mass popularity. Film societies came in many forms, but they all sought to influence the development of cinema by inculcating forms of sociability around cinema: teaching people not only what to watch, but how to watch, what to know about the cinema, and how to interact with film culture more broadly. Hence, a key argument here is that film societies need to be seen as productive frameworks, not simply the result of associations between pre-existing cinephiles.
