Cinéclub podcast episode #15 is a conversation with Dan Erdman. As Dan mentions in the episode, his background is in archiving and preservation, and he works for the Chicago-based not-for-profit film and media archive Media Burn. You can find out more about them at their newly relaunched website, mediaburn.org. He also does a zine called Head Clog and, most importantly for this episode, he is the author of Let’s Go Stag: A History of Pornographic Film from the Invention of Cinema to 1970, published by Bloomsbury in 2021, and its this topic we’ll be focusing in the episode.
We discuss the challenges facing archivists and historians researching old stag films, the ‘variety’ context in which they were originally shown, the vital social component of a stag film screening, the factors that led to the decline of the stag film in the 1960s, and much more.
It was great talking to Dan: as I’m sure you’ll agree, he’s very engaging and funny and really makes this topic come alive. Please enjoy.
You can also find this episode on…
Shownotes
Info on Dan’s book, Let’s Go Stag: A History of Pornographic Film from the Invention of Cinema to 1970
Media Burn, the Chicago-based video archive Dan works for
52 pages w/ articles on cinematic representations of the German urban guerilla group The Red Army Faction, Claude Chabrol’s 1962 film The Third Lover’ and some pieces on punks in cinema. DIY and sold on a not-for-profit basis at a cost that just covers the cost of printing: £3.50 plus postage.
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