Outdoor Movies | Open Air Cinema | Backyard Theater » Afghanistan http://www.openaircinema.us/blog Outdoor Movies and Open Air Cinema with an Inflatable Backyard Theater Screen Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:19:40 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 U.S. Military Buys Portable Outdoor Movie Theaters http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/2010/military-buys-portable-outdoor-movie-theaters/ http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/2010/military-buys-portable-outdoor-movie-theaters/#comments Mon, 20 Sep 2010 16:06:33 +0000 Open Air Cinema http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/?p=9696

US Military Using Open Air Cinema Screens

US Military Using Open Air Cinema Screens

Open Air Cinema, a global leader in outdoor cinema equipment, today announced that several military and government organizations including the U.S. Marines, Camp Pendleton and the U.S. Embassy in , have recently purchased inflatable movie screens and other cinema equipment to boost morale, relieve stress and help build a strong sense of military community.

From the time movies were first produced, the armed forces have turned to them as a way to help the troops unwind and relax during peacetime and times of conflict. Today, Open Air Cinema systems can be found showing movies on ships, bases, forts and camps throughout the world.

“Outdoor cinema equipment that is portable, durable and easy to use is particularly appealing to the military for their Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) programs,” said Brandon Purdie, president of Open Air Cinema. “With our giant screens, bases and units don’t need to invest in a dedicated building to house a theater. Any open space, from the deck of an aircraft carrier to a field in Afghanistan, can be turned into an outdoor theater for either entertainment or training.”

The Marines recently purchased 13 Cinebox systems, each with a 16-foot inflatable movie screen and the US Embassy in Kabul purchased 15 Cinebox systems, each with a 16-foot screen. In July, Camp Pendleton purchased two systems with 30-foot screens.

The Cinebox system includes everything needed to host an outdoor cinema event including a projector, speakers, DVD player, sound mixer and a giant screen with a theatrical-grade projection surface to provide users with an excellent viewing experience.

Purdie continued, “Our troops have a tough job to do. We are honored to help support our men and women in uniform and feel proud that our equipment can be used to provide them with an instant venue for entertainment and relaxation.”

Open Air Cinema screens are made in the USA and can be purchased through the GSA. Open Air Cinema’s GSA contract is GS-07F-9650S.

For more information about Open Air Cinema and its outdoor movie equipment for home, corporate, government and military use, see www.openaircinema.us.

About Open Air Cinema

Open Air Cinema is the premier global supplier of outdoor cinema equipment. Open Air Cinema has taken its expertise in outdoor productions to produce the highest quality, most concise, easiest to use, theatrical-grade outdoor theater systems on the market. It is also a leading innovator in providing developing nations with educational outdoor screens and open air cinema equipment.

]]> http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/2010/military-buys-portable-outdoor-movie-theaters/feed/ 0 Kabul, Afghanistan: Film Aid International Introduces Outdoor Movies in Kabul, Afghanistan http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/2008/kabul-afhanistan-film-aid-international-introduces-outdoor-movies-in-kabul-afghanistan/ http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/2008/kabul-afhanistan-film-aid-international-introduces-outdoor-movies-in-kabul-afghanistan/#comments Wed, 15 Oct 2008 21:40:31 +0000 Open Air Cinema http://oac.nfshost.com/blog/?p=1345

Film Aid Brings Outdoor Movies to Kabul, AfghanistanIn February of 2002, FilmAid traveled to , on a trip to assess the viability of running programs in . While there, FilmAid screened the films the WIZARD OF OZ and CHILDREN OF HEAVEN to 450 street children in Kabul.

Below, is an essay written by a FilmAid volunteer Nina Teicholz on the assessment trip.

One hundred Afghan children squeeze themselves inside a small classroom outside Kabul; the lights dim, and a twister in Kansas fills the screen. It’s “The Wizard of Oz,” and for these children, ages six to 14, it is the first film they’ve ever seen. Before the screening, their teacher, a spirited woman in a red head shawl, has patiently explained the whole Oz story to them, so they’re able to follow the plot. Although the film is in English, the kids are utterly transfixed: their mouths hang open and they gasp with palpable shock when the film blooms from black and white into color. Out of respect for the local sense of propriety, a screening committee deemed the munchkins in frilly pink tutus inappropriate, and they were correspondingly fast-forwarded to avoid showing too much skin.

Not only have these children never seen movies, they have neither TV nor radio. Under the Taliban decree, they were never allowed even to see a photo of a woman–or a man pictured from the head down. All song and dance were outlawed. When Caroline Baron, FilmAid founder, asks the children to sing a song for her, she is met with blank stares. The children don’t know any songs.

In late February 2002, three FilmAid volunteers flew to Kabul to see if they could set up a program for people in Afghan camps (called the “internally displaced”), as well as refugees in Pakistani camps. Caroline Baron, a film producer best known for “Monsoon Wedding,” was accompanied by Michael Mailer, also a film producer, and Ed Beason, a logistician/filmmaker. Helping them on the ground in Kabul was Peter Bussian, information officer for the IRC, the New York-based group under whose auspices FilmAid has been working.

In only a week, they had much to accomplish: to meet with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) who might be interested in becoming local partners with FilmAid, to assess whether movies could be safely shown in a devoutly Muslim country that had been at war for almost 25 years, to do two test screenings with children in Kabul and to check out the local infrastructure–including the size of the potholes in roads that FilmAid trucks would need to drive. Movie screens bolted atop flatbed trucks are FilmAid’s novel solution to showing pictures in refugee camps–mainly outdoors, under the stars.

Meeting NGO leaders turned out to be the easy part of the trip: everyone, it seemed, was starved for resources and entertainment. FilmAid spoke with local groups ASCHIANA (working with orphans and street children), SIEAL (a school-oriented group) and ACBAR (an umbrella organization), as well as several U.N. agencies, including UNICEF. All expressed a willingness to participate and help. FilmAid was also lucky enough to meet with Sima Samar, Afghan Minister of Women’s Affairs and something of an international celebrity, who said she was very excited about the project—“but not the romance and love movies,” she urged, “we need educational films, because the Afghans are so deprived.”

Ensuring the safety of moviegoers was harder to assess. In Kabul, peacekeepers are everywhere, and although the city appears in parts to be one big bomb crater, it generally feels safe. Even miles outside the city, Baron, Mailer and Beason stumbled upon some British special forces hiding in the turrets of an abandoned palace. They revealed themselves shortly after a shattering earthquake, measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale, shook the countryside. The soldiers leaned out from their tower and yelled down to Baron, asking her if she knew anything about earthquakes and what did she think–should they climb down from their turret? “I told them, yes, in my experience, there are usually aftershocks,” said Baron, and the English special forces took her advice.

Haplessness about earthquakes aside, foreign peacekeepers appear to make Kabul a fairly secure place for FilmAid. And despite years of a Taliban prohibition on the arts, movies now seem to face no opposition. “Obviously we still need to take precautions to ensure the safety of our audiences,” says Baron, “but my initial fear–that some fundamentalist might blow up a screening–thankfully seems to have been unfounded.”

What did become startlingly clear was how much the Afghans wanted—and even needed—a program like FilmAid.

As the kids spill out of a white minivan, they seem to be performing a magic trick: is it possible that the little van could contain so many children? There are three dozen, at least, or maybe four! They are arriving, along with nearly 400 other children for an afternoon FilmAid screening in an abandoned concrete barn. The kids overflow into old cow stalls—the floors covered with fabric. When Baron asks them what sort of movie they expect, few have seen any—and only one boy speaks up: “I want a fighting movie!” Instead of a Hollywood action flick, however, FilmAid screens “Children of Heaven,” an Iranian film about a little boy who shares his shoes with his sister because she has lost her own. Filmed in Farsi, the language is very close to the Afghan dialect, Dari, and the children have no problem understanding.

Showing pictures from other cultures fulfills one of FilmAid’s goals: to chip away at the often fatal misunderstanding between peoples. Movies are always selected in close consultation with local leaders. Some of the films are pure entertainment: Charlie Chaplin is always a big hit everywhere, as are most silent films. Other movies aim to educate in countries where news and information are almost entirely unavailable. In , for instance, where FilmAid is up and running, and as many as 14,000 refugees have attended a single showing, screenings address AIDS, health issues, conflict resolution and literacy. After a recent screening of “Mandela,” refugees stayed up half the night discussing this new idea–conflict resolution without violence! Kenyan screenings also address women’s issues in a country where domestic violence is rife.

Breaking down barriers for women and girls is especially important in Afghanistan, where women are still wearing the burka. Before the Oz screening, a group of schoolgirls talked shyly about the upcoming movie, and then it became apparent that they never actually expected to be invited to watch the film–that was for boys. Baron was delighted to tell the girls that, not only would they, of course, be included, but also that the film was a story about a little girl.

]]> http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/2008/kabul-afhanistan-film-aid-international-introduces-outdoor-movies-in-kabul-afghanistan/feed/ 0 Outdoor Movies http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/outdoor-movies-inflatable-screens/ http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/outdoor-movies-inflatable-screens/#comments Sat, 19 Nov 2005 04:48:51 +0000 Open Air Cinema http://blog.openaircinema.us/blog/?page_id=1778

Outdoor movies and inflatable movie screens have been appearing in locations all around the world. Over time we will be adding links to articles about outdoor movies and open air cinema events. These articles are listed according to the country where the inflatable movie screen has been set up or the country where the outdoor movie event takes place.

A

B

C

D

E

  • East Timor – Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
  • Ecuador – Republic of Ecuador
  • Egypt – Arab Republic of Egypt
  • El Salvador – Republic of El Salvador
  • Equatorial Guinea – Republic of Equatorial Guinea
  • Eritrea – State of Eritrea
  • Estonia – Republic of Estonia
  • Ethiopia – Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

F

  • Falkland Islands (UK overseas territory)
  • Faroe Islands (Self-governing country in the Kingdom of Denmark)
  • Fiji – Republic of the Fiji Islands
  • Finland – Republic of Finland
  • France – French Republic
  • French Polynesia (French overseas collectivity)

G

H

I

J

  • Jamaica
  • Jersey – Bailiwick of Jersey (British Crown dependency)
  • Jordan – Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

K

  • Kazakhstan – Republic of Kazakhstan
  • Kenya – Republic of Kenya
  • Kiribati – Republic of Kiribati
  • Korea, North – Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
  • Korea, South – Republic of Korea
  • Kosovo – Republic of Kosovo
  • – State of
  • Kyrgyzstan – Kyrgyz Republic

L

  • Laos – Lao People’s Democratic Republic
  • Latvia – Republic of Latvia
  • Lebanon – Republic of Lebanon
  • Lesotho – Kingdom of Lesotho
  • Liberia – Republic of Liberia
  • Libya – Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
  • Liechtenstein – Principality of Liechtenstein
  • Lithuania – Republic of Lithuania
  • Luxembourg – Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

M

  • Macao – Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (Area of special sovereignty)
  • Macedonia – Republic of Macedonia
  • Madagascar – Republic of Madagascar
  • Malawi – Republic of Malawi
  • Malaysia
  • Maldives – Republic of Maldives
  • Mali – Republic of Mali
  • Malta – Republic of Malta
  • Marshall Islands – Republic of the Marshall Islands
  • Mauritania – Islamic Republic of Mauritania
  • Mauritius – Republic of Mauritius
  • Mayotte – Departmental Collectivity of Mayotte (French overseas collectivity)
  • Mexico – United Mexican States
  • Micronesia – Federated States of Micronesia
  • Moldova – Republic of Moldova
  • Monaco – Principality of Monaco
  • Mongolia
  • Montenegro
  • Montserrat (UK overseas territory)
  • Morocco – Kingdom of Morocco
  • Mozambique – Republic of Mozambique
  • For “Myanmar”, see Burma

N

  • Nagorno-Karabakh – Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (Artsakh)
  • Namibia – Republic of Namibia
  • Nauru – Republic of Nauru
  • Nepal – Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
  • Netherlands – Kingdom of the Netherlands
  • Netherlands Antilles (Self-governing country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
  • – Territory of and Dependencies (French community sui generis)
  • New Zealand
  • Nicaragua – Republic of Nicaragua
  • Niger – Republic of Niger
  • Nigeria – Federal Republic of Nigeria
  • Niue (Associated state of New Zealand)
  • Norfolk Island – Territory of Norfolk Island (Australian overseas territory)
  • Northern Cyprus – Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
  • Northern Mariana Islands – Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (US commonwealth)
  • For “North Korea”, see Korea, North
  • Norway – Kingdom of Norway

O

  • Oman – Sultanate of Oman

P

  • Pakistan – Islamic Republic of Pakistan
  • Palau – Republic of Palau
  • Palestine – Palestinian Territories
  • Panama – Republic of Panama
  • Papua New Guinea – Independent State of Papua New Guinea
  • Paraguay – Republic of Paraguay
  • For “People’s Republic of China”, see China
  • Peru – Republic of Peru
  • Philippines – Republic of the Philippines
  • Pitcairn Islands – Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno Islands (UK overseas territory)
  • Poland – Republic of Poland
  • Portugal – Portuguese Republic
  • For “Pridnestrovie”, see Transnistria
  • Puerto Rico – Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (US commonwealth)

Q

R

S

T

  • Taiwan – Republic of China
  • Tajikistan – Republic of Tajikistan
  • Tanzania – United Republic of Tanzania
  • Thailand – Kingdom of Thailand
  • For “Timor-Leste”, see East Timor
  • Togo – Togolese Republic
  • Tokelau (Overseas territory of New Zealand)
  • Tonga – Kingdom of Tonga
  • Transnistria – Transnistrian Moldovan Republic
  • Trinidad and Tobago – Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
  • Tristan da Cunha (Dependency of the UK overseas territory of Saint Helena)
  • Tunisia – Tunisian Republic
  • Turkey – Republic of Turkey
  • Turkmenistan
  • Turks and Caicos Islands (UK overseas territory)
  • Tuvalu

U

V

  • – Republic of
  • Vatican City – State of the Vatican City
  • Venezuela – Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
  • Vietnam – Socialist Republic of Vietnam
  • Virgin Islands, British – British Virgin Islands (UK overseas territory)
  • Virgin Islands, United States – United States Virgin Islands (US organized territory)

W

  • Wallis and Futuna – Territory of Wallis and Futuna Islands (French overseas collectivity)
  • Western Sahara – Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Y

  • Yemen – Republic of Yemen

Z

  • For “Zaire”, see Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • Zambia – Republic of Zambia
  • Zimbabwe – Republic of Zimbabwe
]]> http://www.openaircinema.us/blog/outdoor-movies-inflatable-screens/feed/ 0