What the Country Tells Us: The Place of the ‘Rural’ in Contemporary Studies of Cinema

Abstract

Cinemas have an important place in the social and cultural life of many Australian rural towns. They are valued as spaces around which residents of isolated communities can gather and interact, and have a role in mediating concepts of identity and in promoting positive emotional attachment to place. Rural cinema histories suggest these aspects of non-metropolitan movie-going have been significant since the very early days of this screen format. This article examines the role of geography in shaping the circumstances and meaning of cinema-going in contemporary rural Australia. It also explores the connections between modern and historical film attendance practices, which hitherto have been obscured by scholarly neglect of the rural. These interrelationships suggest a basis for rethinking the ways in which cinema audiences are categorised and studied.