Do you remember 16 mm films? Do you remember when movies came in “cans” more than a foot wide? Do you remember them stacked high, like giant slices of a log cake? Do you recall when showing a movie required a projector with a giant reel and that the whole thing took up 3 square feet of space? Do you remember coming to the library for a movie?
The widespread use of 16 mm film has declined, with the new digital technology in various forms but in its heyday, it was a popular format for educational movies and television programs. More fragile and less expensive than the 35 mm film used for movies in high end movies in theaters, it had its place in libraries and home.
Well into the 1990s Meekins showed movies on its very own 16 mm film projector, a large item tucked into a small, compact space. Do you have a story about watching a movie at Meekins listening to the whirr of the projector as the film transferred from one reel to the other? Share your memories in the comments. Daria D’Arienzo, Meekins Archivist. #throwbackthursday; #tbt.
Posted to Facebook 1/23/2025
