Santa Fe-based writer and film historian, Jeff Berg, will be in Silver City on Sunday, November 11, at the historic Light Hall Theater on the Western New Mexico Campus. The program begins at 5:00 p.m. Tickets will be $8.00 at the door. This 90-minute presentation contains clips from scenes shot in New Mexico from 1900 to 2015, including some you may know of, such as ‘The Milagro Beanfield War.’ Other lesser-known works include one of the first sound films made in the state, ‘Way Out West,’ with Laurel and Hardy, and ‘Becoming Eduardo,’ (partially shot near Silver City).

After each capsule, Mr. Berg offers tidbits about the film. Audience participation is strongly encouraged. There is plenty of comedy contained in the clips. Berg is the author of two books on New Mexico movies, both from Arcadia Press, ‘New Mexico Filmmaking’ (2015), which is a history of some of the over 800 movies shot in part in New Mexico, and ‘Historic Movie Theatres of New Mexico’ (2018).

Light Hall was built in 1927 on the grounds of the New Mexico Teacher’s College. Charles Light was the first president of the New Mexico State Normal School in 1895. The brick building (library and lecture hall) was designed by the renowned architectural firm of Trost & Trost of El Paso. The building has been re-purposed multiple times. The auditorium is a state-of-the-art movie and performance space.

This event is brought to the community thanks to the efforts of WNMU Office of Cultural Affairs, Marketing Department, A/V Department and the Silver Screen Society.