Thursday lunchtime Mediation received the following message from Secret Cinema: "Lords and Ladies, Dukes and Duchesses, Partisans and Plebians and the Claypool Foundation of Arts.  Secret Cinema in association with Nokia will take place this Friday 3rd of October at 8pm … Dress should be majestic and wondrous for this shall be an evening of wild, wild romance, honey song, long journeys, laughter and dance."

Last night Mediaton therefore duly popped along to Hackney for this month's secret cinema event.  their website observes that "the internet is changing the way way we watch films.  the secret cinema changes WHERE you watch film."

but the event goes far beyond screening in an interesting location.  the movie – which isn't revealed until the very last moment – is explored and teased from the moment you arrive…  key scenes, themes, characters and quotes are all on display in everything from the actors who greet you to the pre-screening entertainment.  it's brilliant.

but the best bit is when the movie starts, and you're sat watching the Marx Brothers' in A Night At The Opera – a movie you may never have otherwise seen, with a few hundred other people who similarly had no idea that was the movie they would be watching.  in a world of choice fatigue, it is a curious joy to have an evening of your time dictated and curated by others.

Nokia do well to be associated with the Secret Cinema organisation and movement.  they also do well to screen a short movie at the event which, rather than being an ad, shows established artists revealing what they would do for 96 seconds.  it's all in aid of promoting Nokia's mobile TV channel capsule 96 and it feels entirely in tune with the event.

if anything, Nokia could be doing more to create associations with the event…  rather than getting an email revealing the location, how much more interesting and intriguing would it be to get content and clues direct to your phone.  sophisticated flash-mobbing making the event even more engaging courtesy of Nokia.

thanks to Eva for the heads up on this, very appreciated.  Secret Cinema was a joy to attend.  get yourself along next month for a bit of mystery.

partisans queuing outside Hackney Empire

performers entertain before the movie starts

our compere for the evening

actors perform an iconic theme from the movie

Nokia's trailer for Capsule 96

performing a piece from the opera featured in the movie

a silent movie short

after all the teasing, the big reveal…