Dim the lights, fire up the popcorn maker, and get cozy. The Cinema Club is having its second meeting of the year in Prothro – Yeager Room 204 on Feb. 6.  Although the movie remains undisclosed until the time of viewing, students are encouraged to participate and become official members.

Desireé Harris, biology sophomore and president of the club said, “If you want to relax and have a good time, come and watch a movie with us.”

The Cinema Club meets on a biweekly basis and costs $5 per-semester to become an official member. The money generated from member dues are used toward snacks or potential campus wide events. The club has grown from being just Harris and her four friends to more than 30 paying members. Jonathon Quam, mass communication assistant professor and Cinema Club adviser said he has enjoyed aiding and counseling the group throughout its progression.

“I’ve wanted to see a Cinema Club on campus since I started here, or rather a functioning, successful one. That’s why when it was brought to me with the opportunity to advise a new one, I jumped at it,” Quam said.

He said he firmly believes the club offers an educational value that is beneficial to our society.

Quam said, “There’s an inherent knowledge value. I firmly believe that we need to understand visual language and media language in everything that we take in. This is just another way to learn how to interpret different style of storytelling and film making and to understand visual language and the role it plays in our lives on a daily basis.”

During club meetings, members both view a film and discuss it.

Quam said, “Once the semester is in full swing, it will usually consist of a discussion of the previous film we watched. Sometimes we will bring in a guest speaker, someone to speak to the themes and stories within the previous film. After that first half hour, they will move into watching a film that is an hour and a half to two hours.”

Last fall Harris reactivated an outdated club, Mustang’s Movie Club. To transform the MMC, the club needed at least four active members, one advisor, and a training session. After nearly eight months, Harris finally met the requirements needed to restart a club on campus.

“It took us from January of last year until October to activate it [the club]. It was very difficult. We really had to redo the entire club, from the logo all the way to the name,” Harris said.

The Cinema Club offers an opportunity for students to come together in a simple and low-key manner. Gasmyne Cox, mass communication junior, has been a member of the club since its origin and said she enjoys the fellowship and discussion generated by the meetings.

“My favorite thing about the club is just getting together and talking about anything, having a good time, and watching a good movie,” Cox said.