Welcome to cinememoir. Where film, time, setting, and memory intersect.
cinememoir is a place for people who love and feel changed by the films they experience.
A place for writers to share what films mean to them, to explore defining moments in their lives via the movies they watched, and to discover what films have meant to others, celebrating the impact of cinema — an artform originally imagined as a universal language.
It’s about stories. Trading stories and images, stimulating readers’ imaginations and inspiring them to see movies in a new way.
There are plenty of places to find reviews and cinema history or criticism, but this blog is different.
cinememoir is about personal experiences of film and life.
Thanks for coming. We hope that you enjoy the show.
Debra Mitchell - Editor & writer
Debra’s passion for film came from being a night owl at a young age and sneaking downstairs after midnight to watch old movies with her mom. In eighth grade Debra met one of her best friends when they got assigned to the same horrible home ec class and discovered they were both secretly reading books about Hollywood in the 30s. They immediately formed a production company – Metro-Younkin-Mitchell (MYM) — and began making hilariously bad Super 8 films. Growing up, Debra’s most beloved places were the Vogue repertory movie theater run by Marty Sussman, a dreamy ex-Hippie, and the groovy Showcase Cinemas where she spent every summer waiting in line for the latest Lucas/Spielberg release.
Debra dreamed of being a screenwriter and director. She graduated from Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music with a degree in film and television and proceeded to find no actual jobs in either of those things. She joined the staff of Actors Theater of Louisville where several of her short plays were performed and moved to Chicago where she worked for WBEZ public radio and Ira Glass’ THIS AMERICAN LIFE. Currently, Debra is writing plays and novels. But this is a chance to get back to the thing she loves most: film. She created this blog to share writing about all kinds of movies and how they influence us.
Contact: cinememoir@gmail.com.
Kevin Renick - Co-editor & writer
Kevin is a life-long movie buff, a former film reviewer for PlaybackSTL, and a current critic for the ZacharyMule pop culture site. He wrote the title song for Jason Reitman’s film UP IN THE AIR, and has landed two other original songs in movies. He has dabbled in movie memorabilia and owns an extensive collection of “glamour girl” stills from movies and television. Kevin appreciates most genres of film, from low-budget horror flicks to indie art films. His favorite actor is Viggo Mortensen, but he refuses to name a favorite film, stating that it took him ages to compile a list of “50 all-time favorite films.”
Kevin intends to keep writing about movies as long as there’s something to say. He’s written a compilation of “speculative” instrumental pieces geared to cinema and hopes to score a full-length film someday.
Contact: cinememoir@gmail.com.