Mapping of a Medium in Decline
Types of Cinephilia (Bonus)
12 Web 2.0 Cinephilia
Centering on auteurism and other kinds of special interest. A rather general, unsystematic aversion to mainstream filmmaking, especially Hollywood, is the norm. Aside from that more openminded than most other types. Special fondness for certain types of "rare to find" cult movies. Traditional accounts of cinema history are accepted, annoted and expanded rather than overturned. De facto dominance of english language filmmaking seldomly questioned.
As a field of cinephile discourse completely outside of institutional boundaries and also explicitly, at times polemically, anti-institutionalist in its rhetorics. Tendency towards building its own ptp-, sometimes blog-based institutions with at times exclusionary and hierarchic mechanics. Entry by way of enthusiasm works for the most part, though. Often back-door connections to cinematheques and other institutions.
Basically everyone, though predominantely approaching middle-age (by now) and male. Not all that much new blood. Students and enthusiasts probably dominating. Politically generally unalligned but predominantly leftish, with a large anti-establishment subset present. Quite a few tankies, too.
Technically heirs to certain types (much smaller in numbers) of video pirates and underground print collectors, but not really anything comparable to it in previous generations.
Not much writing through "official" channels. The little that appears for the most part obscurantist, idiosyncratic and often quite ambitious. For a while part of the blogosphere, by now most outlets dead/defunct.
