exploratorium

The Cinema Arts Program

Approaching movies as an active viewing experience, staff in the Cinema Arts Program view the projection screen as a portal to investigation. We engage with filmmakers who create works that inspire the imagination and instigate conversation. Animation, documentary, poetic observations, and abstract visuals serve a broad spectrum of curious audiences while blending the methods and aesthetics of artists and scientists. Through our programming, we aim to provide an opportunity for visitors to explore the compelling people, places, and ideas that extend through the museum and beyond. Our collection of films and events offer a rich resource for public audiences, and also provide an important research collection for both our teaching programs and exhibit development teams.

Daytime Tickets
After Dark Tickets
Plan Your Visit

Upcoming Events
At Home: Prelinger Archives Home Movie Collection

Tuesday, January 7–Sunday, February 2, 2020

These selections showcase personal stories with universal appeal. From families traveling to far-flung landscapes to birthday parties for toddlers, these intimate films made by strangers feel quite familiar.

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1
Cinema Arts: Color Visions

Saturday, February 1, 2020 • Noon and 2:00 p.m.

In this collection of shorts, watch vibrant colors pop off the screen that reflect the pigments of the natural world, conjure saturated landscapes, and creatively display the rainbow spectrum. 

Feb
2
Cinema Arts: Color Visions

Sunday, February 2, 2020 • Noon and 2:00 p.m.

In this collection of shorts, watch vibrant colors pop off the screen that reflect the pigments of the natural world, conjure saturated landscapes, and creatively display the rainbow spectrum. 

Past Events
Saturday Cinema: Labor of Love

Saturday, March 31, 2018 • 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 p.m.

This gripping collection of shorts considers love beyond romantic love, and celebrates its everyday expression in work. 
After Dark: One Strange Rock and Nickel

Thursday, March 15, 2018 • 6:00–10:00 p.m.

Join us for an exclusive preview screening from National Geographic's new series One Strange Rock from award-winning filmmaker Darren Aronofsky and explore the versatility of nickel and watch a nickel electroplating demonstration.
Saturday Cinema: The Grand Moving Mirror of California

Saturday, March 3, 2018 • 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 p.m.

This exquisitely rendered painted scroll will unroll complete with live Foley effects and narration, imparting the thrills and dangers undertaken on a seaboard trip around South America to reach Gold Rush–era California.
After Dark: Extended Cinemas

Thursday, March 1, 2018 • 6:00–10:00 p.m.

Contemplate cinema’s continuum at After Dark. Traverse a timeline of motion-picture technology, from the earliest hand-drawn, hand-cranked experiments to cutting-edge experiences that aim—again—to redefine what cinema may be.

hand picking up peanuts
After Dark: Peanuts, The Humidors, and Labor of Love

Thursday, February 8, 2018 • 6:00–10:00 p.m.

Learn about life-saving, cutting-edge allergy research at Pairings: Peanuts and watch gripping short films at Cinema Arts: Labor of Love. Plus, hear The Humidors' eight-piece band stir up an infectious, polyrhythmic stew.
Reinscriptions for "Line Describing a Cone"

Saturday, January 20, 2018 • 3:00–5:00 p.m.

In this Prepared Projection Performance from artists Sandra Gibson + Luis Recoder, a reprojection and reframing of McCall’s work will be explored through projecting two prints of Line Describing a Cone in a cinematic experiment.
Obscurus Projectum

Saturday, January 20, 2018 • 11:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.

Simple, centuries-old technology reframes the recognizable San Francisco Bay in Sandra Gibson and Luis Recoder’s Obscurus Projectum, a temporary art installation transforming the Exploratorium’s Kanbar Forum into a giant camera obscura.
After Dark: Iron, Mechanical Paper Contraptions, and The Florestine Collection

Thursday, January 18, 2018 • 6:00–10:00 p.m.

Explore iron’s historical importance and amazing metallurgical properties at Everything Matters. Create mechanical sculptures from everyday materials. Join us for a rare screening of a charming, moving documentary recounting a story of love and loss.
Paul Clipson and Zachary James Watkins’ Black Field

Thursday, December 14, 2017 • 7:30 p.m.

Black Field intertwines Clipson and Watkins' inventive approaches to their crafts through an original, long-form film and live musical performance projected in glistening 16mm, with sound sonically diffused across the Kanbar Forum’s multichannel sound system.

Saturday Cinema

November 18, 2017 • 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 p.m.

As does the exhibition Curious Contraptions: Small Tales of Love and Mystery, this whimsical program of expressive short films explores the kinetic realms of cinematic tinkering. From the sublime to the frenetic, these lively animations capture playful creativity. 

Obscurus Projectum

Saturday, November 4, 2017 • 11:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.

Simple, centuries-old technology reframes the recognizable San Francisco Bay in Sandra Gibson and Luis Recoder’s Obscurus Projectum, a temporary art installation transforming the Exploratorium’s Kanbar Forum into a giant camera obscura.
Collisions

Saturday, October 21, 2017 • 11:00 a.m., Noon, and 1:00, 2:00, and 3:00 p.m.

Take a poetic VR journey to the homeland of indigenous elder Nyarri Morgan and the Martu tribe in remote Western Australia. Wallworth's invites participants to experience an alternative understanding of long‐term decision-making through the perspective of one of the world’s oldest cultures.

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