3TONcinema

Since 2009, 3TON has been making an effort to collect, exhibit, and appreciate 16MM films from the 20th century. By examining, sharing, and repurposing the contents of the hundreds of archival reels in our possession, we seek to to continue the work of a vibrant Bay Area ‘found-footage’ tradition that stretches back to the work of film artists such as Bruce Conner, Jerry Abrams, and Chick Strand. The films in our stacks, dating mostly from the 1930s through the 1980s, are primarily ephemeral productions: educationals, newsreels, sponsored films, public service announcements, etc. The forgotten sounds and images on these ‘orphan’ reels constitute an entire cultural/historical universe waiting to be further mined and deconstructed by the media archeologists of this century and beyond.

3TONcinema

Since 2009, 3TON has been making an effort to collect, exhibit, and appreciate 16MM films from the 20th century. By examining, sharing, and repurposing the contents of the hundreds of archival reels in our possession, we seek to to continue the work of a vibrant Bay Area ‘found-footage’ tradition that stretches back to the work of film artists such as Bruce Conner, Jerry Abrams, and Chick Strand. The films in our stacks, dating mostly from the 1930s through the 1980s, are primarily ephemeral productions: educationals, newsreels, sponsored films, public service announcements, etc. The forgotten sounds and images on these ‘orphan’ reels constitute an entire cultural/historical universe waiting to be further mined and deconstructed by the media archeologists of this century and beyond.