Popcorn Taxi is a joint venture between cinemas and different groups from within the Australian film industry, initiated by Sydney filmmakers Matt Wheeldon and Gary Doust. The aim of the venture is to provide a space to hold regular events based around film screenings in several small cinemas in Sydney and Melbourne, in Australia.
In Sydney screenings are held at the Valhalla Cinema, an old cinema at the end of Glebe Point Road which is renowned for showing independent and alternative cinema. Glebe is an area of Sydney known for alternative lifestyles; in addition it is quite close to the University of Sydney. In Melbourne Popcorn Taxi is held at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.
A feature of Popcorn Taxi is that it attempts to connect people involved in the film industry with cinema-goers. For example, Popcorn Taxi in 2002 showed preview screenings of director Alex Proyas' film 'Garage Days', followed by a question and answer session with Alex Proyas himself. This is a welcome addition to the cinema experience which has resulted in Popcorn Taxi becoming quite widely known in the film community throughout Australia.
Popcorn Taxi mainly screens on weeknights such as Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday and costs punters between $10 to $30 AUD a session, depending on the contents of the session being presented.
Other examples of people involved in the film industry who have participated in Popcorn Taxi include Wim Wenders (Buena Vista Social Club), John Seale (The English Patient), Rick McCallum (Star Wars), Bryan Brown (Dirty Deeds) and Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting).
Popcorn Taxi is supported by a number of companies and institutions including Film Victoria, the Australian Film Commission and Fox Studios Australia.
Sources:
- http://www.popcorntaxi.com.au
- http://www.film.vic.gov.au
- http://sydney.citysearch.com.au