‘The Sport in European Cinema Database: From Rogues of the Turf (UK 1910) to Russian Sport Cinema’

‘The Sport in European Cinema Database: From Rogues of the Turf (UK 1910) to Russian Sport Cinema’

with Dr. Seán Crosson

Wednesday June 7, 6pm (Irish time) / 7pm (CET)

All welcome at: uvic-cat.zoom.us/j/96387596986

Sport cinema has been among the most enduring and popular genres within American cinema; however, limited research has been undertaken as yet of the European experience. Though a less prominent feature of European cinema, the European sports film has had a long history dating back to the earliest Lumière brothers productions. This paper provides some initial findings from the research undertaken of European sport cinema as part of the establishment of an online database on the subject – now available at https://sportandfilm.eu/. The paper argues for the importance of these depictions as a significant component of European cinema providing sometimes unique insights into the development of sport and society across the continent. Some salient points regarding sport in European film (and the development of the genre) will be identified, with particular attention paid to the increasing importance of sport cinema within the Russian context and its role in grooming a domestic audience for the prevailing political discourse in that country, and military action in Ukraine.