Secret Cinema

"The fact is that we're in a state of overload continuously, telling everyone everything – either on Twitter or on Facebook. We have created something here where we don't tell people anything and there is something in that – it works." Fabien Riggall, creator of Secret Cinema

The tagline for Secret cinema is on pretty much everything they do, "Tell no one". The concept is that instead of simply going to the cinema, watching the movie and leaving without really feeling any sense of involvement, Secret Cinema provides you with an entire experience, from as soon as you buy your tickets, to interacting with "characters" from the film, and watching the film itself. The idea is that, once signed up, you receive emails or letters that are all highly secretive, telling you what your costume should be and where you should meet. You receive a number of clues as to what film you'll be seeing and on the night, the location of the screening is turned into scenes from the film. Participants are encouraged to fully engage themselves in the experience,and sometimes have "missions" to complete before the screening! There are actors playing characters from the film and a lot of people's reviews I've read say that everyone gets so into it that it's hard to tell who is an actor and who is the audience. A couple of examples I found was of the classic 80s film "The Lost Boys" which Future Cinema, a separate branch of Secret Cinema put on in London.

Grandpa's house!

David the vampire

Canary Wharf/Santa Carla

(I found all these photos on a review of the event here and there are more reviews of other Secret Cinema events there.)


Future cinema turned Canary Wharf into Santa Carla for the weekend, complete with the carnival, boardwalk, vampires lair and "Grandpa's" house. Over 8000 people took part, 100 actors performed and it took over 79 tonnes of sand to make the California beach. For people who love film, this would be the perfect event, problem is, Future Cinema doesn't run in Glasgow. For a city with massive cinemas like Cineworld and the IMAX cinema, as well as the Glasgow Film Theatre and The Grosvernor, why would something like Future Cinema not do well here? I hardly think it would be for lack of an audience; the amount of media students alone in the city centre who would love this would be plenty and it would also generate jobs and experience, especially for media students like myself.


Secret Cinema, the main difference from Future Cinema being that the films are kept secret until the last minute, even did a screening in Kabul, Afghanistan in December, simultaneously with a London screening. The company also wants to expand to New York, Paris and Berlin. So why not Glasgow?! It would make for a totally different way of watching film and instead of just spending a few hours in a cinema, it's a whole experience that you would never forget. For a city like Glasgow that's so full of culture, it's pretty disappointing that it isn't even on the radar for Future/Secret Cinema. Glasgow does have a varied film scene, but as far as I've experienced, nothing like this.


"Secret Cinema is a growing community of all that love cinema, and experiencing the unknown. Secret audience. Secret film. Secret locations. Secret worlds. The time is now to change how we watch films."