The Museum of the Moving Image

So… When do you know that you are getting old?

I’m sure that there are many answers for that question, but for me it was the moment when I saw an electronic game, that I used to play when I was a kid, as part of a museum’s permanent exhibition. Yes, that happened to me and be prepared because sooner or later it will happen to you…

This past weekend I visited The Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, NY, and played the original version of Mario the way that it should be played: in a Nintendo! And I kicked ass at it (I guess that these sorts of things are like riding a bicycle, once you learn you never forget).

An Atari, a couple of arcade machines and what some of my geek friends called Star Wars “action figures” also caught my eye because are not that far away from my own childhood.  But enough with this regression to the eighties and nineties: this blog post is about a very interesting museum that not only entertains, but also educates! Such a thing is possible, people. It really is.

When I arrived at The Museum of the Moving Image, I went directly to the second floor where different elements used in the production, promotion and presentation of movies and television shows are on display through the museum’s core exhibit Behind the Screen. Within this exhibit, the museum’s visitors can learn about what a director or producer of a movie does and how these professions have changed over time. Also, they will be able to take a closer look at the work of the professionals who design the film scenography and create the outfits and the makeup of the actors and actresses.

Additionally, this exhibition narrates the history of moving images through a collection of artifacts related to the movie industry that includes television cameras, projectors, television sets, sound recording equipment, old films, costumes and merchandise. On display are also “famous” pieces that many visitors would recognize in an instant: a Chewbacca costume head, a life-size replica of Linda Blair, used in the scene where her head rotated in "The Exorcist", and Winona Ryder's injured (prosthetic) leg from "Black Swam". A movie buff's paradise. 

 

An impressive feature at The Museum of the Moving Image are the interactive exhibitions and the fact that the activities created around them are designed to attract not only kids, but also teens and adults. In many museums, the “hands on” activities target the youngest members of the family and neglect other age groups in the process. In this museum this was not the case: I witnessed how many adults were engaged in almost every interactive activity that the museum offered.

I have to admit that I was totally engaged too: I filmed a (very) short film, changed the background music of a movie scene and learned how the music affects the atmosphere and the meaning of a scene, and even recorded some dialogues in a Marilyn Monroe’s movie. In fact, I was able to be the puertorican version of Marilyn for 20 seconds! Now I can rest in peace :)

                           

The Museum of the Moving Image is definitely a great example of how museums can use new technology to educate their visitors and stimulate their imaginations. This is a place that the whole family will enjoy, but it will be of special interest to people interested in media history, movies, museum studies, technology and, obviously, to Public History students.