Brinton film collection draws crowd to Ainsworth

AINSWORTH — A crowd gathered last week to see a collection of silent films older than anyone in the room, as the Brinton Surprise show presented works over 120 years old, miraculously salvaged from a basement in Washington.

Michael Zahs, who saved the works and was the night’s master of ceremonies, said it was a delight for share the stage with Red Cedar Chamber Music, which played commissioned accompaniments for the films that had no soundtrack of their own.

“They’re the best chamber music group in the country, and they’re playing with the oldest movies in the world,” he said. “You can’t see what you’re going to see tonight anyplace else in the world … I think a lot of people don’t realize the quality of things we have here in Ainsworth.”

Zahs encouraged the audience to consider the context of the collection.

“Some of these films are over 120 years old, put yourself back that far … some people had never seen a projected image,” he said. “It is perfectly OK to be wowed.”

Red Cedar has performed the show around the world, including a film festival in Bologna, Italy, where it drew a crowd of thousands.

“It’s opened some real doors in retirement for me, it’s been fruitful,” Red Cedar Board Chair John Hagarty said. “The music is world class, these are world-class musicians living right here in Iowa.”

Red Cedar Artistic Director Carey Bostin said the show was a labor of love.

“It’s very labor-intensive, it takes a lot of time … so that the show is as seamless as possible,” he said. “I’ve spent at least a hundred hours on interacting with the films and trying to figure things out, studying it. This is not a typical concert project … it’s multimedia.”

Bostin said the format offered an unparalleled glimpse back through time.

“What sets it apart is the richness of the collection and the extraordinary nature of the story,” he said. “Anybody who’s interested in early films knows this story, anywhere in the world, so Frank Brinton’s story suddenly becomes really important … Other people are doing this kind of multimedia presentation pretty frequently, but the story is in the collection, really.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com