The iconic Rio Cinema in Dalston is the oldest community-run cinema in London. It has been an important cultural space within the area’s diverse community for many years. Back in the 1980s, the basement of the Rio was home to a darkroom and lab for a community-funded street photography group called The Tape/Slide project.
The project was set up by the Centerprise Bookshop (opposite the Rio) and provided an opportunity for young people to use professional photography equipment and document the highs and lows of life in and around Hackney. The team was active throughout most of the 1980s and documented the many protests and campaigns that arose throughout the politically turbulent decade. In addition to protests, the team documented the culture of the times and the day-to-day life of people going about their business.
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Looking at the images, it really hits home how quickly society has changed. Images of children playing out in the streets or in amusement arcades, the hustle and bustle of traditional markets and shops that once ruled the high street. It seems a far cry now from the hyper-connected lives that many of us live today.
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Adam Woodyatt The Rio “The archive was discovered in various boxes and a battered filing cabinet about four years ago when we were clearing out the basement of the Rio to build the second screen”.
There has been a cinema on the site continuously since 1909, operating in various guises and under several different names as a silent cinema, a news and cartoon cinema, a continental arthouse cinema, and then as an adult porn and live striptease burlesque theatre, when this looked like closing in 1976 the local community stepped in to take over the lease”
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
“The initiative was led by groups that were based at the grassroots Centerprise bookshop, which was opposite the cinema on Kingsland High St. The bookshop was bursting with many varied community groups who saw the cinema as a great potential space for films, theater, and live music. The basement spaces were also seen as a perfect location for youth training. This initiative took the form of a music recording studio and rehearsal space for girls only, as well as a photography club with full darkroom and editing facilities.”
Rio Tape Slide Newsreel
“The photography group trained local young people and unemployed individuals, giving them photography and reporting skills. The results were converted into glass slides and shown on screen at the cinema as a local news item. The group, known as the Rio Tape Slide Newsreel, covered everyday life in Hackney, events and protests of the era, and local interest stories between 1983 and 1988.”
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
“Following this, the project was largely forgotten for over 27 years until we found the filing cabinets and boxes of slides four years ago. We began detective work to find out their history and started the restoration and digitisation process. Our goal was to bring this amazing archive of Hackney life back into the public eye for use as a reference tool and educational resource, just as it was originally intended. We have been in contact with some of the original team who lead this project, and they are very excited to see it back in use.”
Gallery
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Photo © Rio Cinema Archive
Thanks to Andrew Woodyatt from the Rio Cinema.
You can view the ongoing archive via the Rio Cinema Archive Instagram page
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- Article first published
- June 19, 2019
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