A movie short has been produced to trace the UK co-op movement’s use of film, coinciding with the 180th anniversary of the Rochdale Equitable Pioneers Society.
The short film, Co-operative Cinema: A Movement in Moving Image, premiered in Manchester on 5 December, at an event organised by the Co-operative Heritage Trust in partnership with Midcounties Co-op and Co-operatives UK.
The co-op movement has a long history of using film for promotional purposes, propaganda campaigns and member education, going as far back as 1899 – just three years after the first showing of moving film to the British public.
To celebrate this history, the Co-operative Heritage Trust invited filmmaker and Midcounties’ Young Co-operator Network member Ryan Bird to help select co-op films from the archive to share with the public.
But, said Bird, the materials he found inspired him to create a new piece of work. “I was fascinated by [co-operatives’] long history with film. The movement has been using film for education and advertising nearly as long as film has existed. I had to dig into the archives and tell this story.”
The film was screened alongside a selection from the archive, including 1939 Co-operative Wholesale Society promo Sam Goes Shopping, and more recent shorts produced by Co-operatives UK showcasing modern day co-ops such as Projekts skate park and Leeds Bread Co-op.
The films were followed by a Q&A with Bird, Jane Donaldson from the Co-operative Heritage Trust, and actor John Henshaw, who starred in the 2012 film The Rochdale Pioneers.
“I wasn’t prepared for how many of the people would have questions for me afterwards”, said Bird. “The audience seemed really interested in learning more about my thoughts on the contemporary movement.”
Co-operative Cinema: A Movement in Moving Image, will make its midlands debut at Birmingham’s Mockingbird Cinema in early 2025, and will be available to stream from the Heritage Trust’s website as early as January 2025.
