JOIN USMobile cinema gets an 'auto' touch
A 1,350 mm-edged cube has toured four Indian cities, unboxing and beaming Swiss and French art films. The box, designed to compactly enclose within equipment, a publicity kiosk, and seating furniture, is for projecting films in public spaces.
Designed and conceptualised by French artist Le Gentil Garçon, the cube is called the ‘Rick-Show’. It is a mobile cinema transported on a goods autorickshaw. “Being French, puns have a great importance and I realised that by changing a letter in ‘rickshaw’. It was an ideal name for the concept,” says Garçon.
Design aesthetics
Travelling cinemas, historically, were constituents of fairgrounds, just like circus tents and canopies. Mobility and ability to reach anywhere were critical factors that influenced Garçon’s design.
The project is also inspired by Japanese folk storytelling art Kamishibai or ‘paper theatre’. The small wooden theatre is operated by the storyteller who slides pictures and illustrates the story. “I have replaced the illustrations with a video screen,” Garçon says.
During his art residency in 2020 in Thiruvananthapuram, Garçon pondered over the idea. The Department of Design of the College of Architecture of Thiruvananthapuram, joined hands as Garcon monitored and guided on a distant mode from France.
A team of professors, and around 20 students took part in the production process. “We also engaged welders, fabricators, carpenters,” says Jith Joseph, the artists’ assistant. It took two and a half months for the student team to execute the vision.
The large cube is like a nesting gift box with four boxes within but these don’t fit into one another. These are 1,200 x 450 X 600 mm cuboids, each weighing approximately 50 kg, which make full use of the space in the cube, which has wheels at its base. With hinges between the other faces, it’s possible to unfold the structure into a stage 400 cm long and 130 cm wide. Tower bolts and a front-face padlock keeps the cube intact when it’s closed.
Three of the cuboids hold 35 foldable stools, fabric and circular skeletal iron structure of the canopy that holds the screen during projection. It also holds lights, cables, tarpaulin sheet, and electrical accessories. When unfurled, the canopy’s top forms the stage’s backdrop, which is 180 cm high. The fourth box holds the video projector, sound system and cabling, one media player and screen material.
Made of marine plywood, three of the cuboids double up as additional sitting pieces. One cuboid transforms into an information kiosk with a removable sign, removable and fixed lighting, and retractable support for posters. A UPS setup is kept as a backup. The shows run on direct electricity, or using rented generators.
And the vehicle…
A vital component is the rickshaw used for transportation of the box — a Piaggio Ape. “We used a rented rickshaw in Kerala that travelled with the box from Thiruvananthapuram to Kochi. In Pune and Kolkata the cube was offered logistical support,” says Joseph.
Rickshaw drivers were consulted while designing the project to understand the ideal weight. “Initially, the idea was to use a passenger-rickshaw, but it was technically not feasible. Also, keeping in mind the weight and transportation, design elements were consistently updated,” he adds. A semi-circular canopy, for example, became a polygon.
Last weekend, at Park Mansions in Kolkata, the project concluded after being part of the 4th Bonjour India Festival, a French government initiative. It returns to Thiruvananthapuram, hereafter. The project may be pitched for leading film festivals in future.
Other details
*The setup takes two hours and four people to install.
*The cube and all its components cost around Rs 5 lakh. The rickshaw is rented.
*The entire setup weighs around 750 kg.