Don’t be thrown off by the name. There’ll be plenty of sound at this year’s Cleveland Silent Film Festival.
Talking, of course, will be in short supply. Music, however? Expect that in abundance.
Festival founder and director Emily Laurance, a trained classical harpist and musical academic, has put together an uncommonly harmonious series for 2025, one notable both for the features on screen and the artists accompanying them.
“Live music is important to me,” Laurance said, describing silent films as “incomplete” without music. “Fundamentally, in silent film, there’s this visceral, human response that goes deeper than words, and music is the perfect complement to that.”
In that context, consider the 2025 festival perfectly complemented. Each of the five films in the series, which began Sept. 14, at the Cleveland Museum of Art includes a live component, some combination of artists on hand contributing everything from sound effects to full orchestral scores. The festival finale even features a rock band.
The goal, Laurance said, is two-fold: to re-create a semblance of what viewers in the silent film era experienced, and to hook modern viewers on an art form gaining traction in this overarchingly digital age.
“People today are looking for less mediated experiences, and these films feel fresh, even though they’re old,” Laurance said. “I think people will be responsive to it. We just need something to get them in the door.”
Getting people in the door was the goal of the opening title, “Phantom of the Opera,” the original and – according to Laurance – best adaptation of the blockbuster story by Gaston Leroux.
Another entry from 1925 is next: “Lady Windermere’s Fan.” Based on an eponymous play by Oscar Wilde, the black-and-white film directed by Ernst Lubitsch will whisk viewers back to the Roaring Twenties with comedy and wit conveyed entirely through visual means.
Well, maybe not entirely. Much of the show’s success will also rest on the Cleveland Photoplayers, an expert ensemble led by pianist Eric Charnofsky, and the segments of authentic silent film music they’ll perform in time with the film.
“For me, what’s most exciting is experiencing the interaction of live music with film,” said Gabe Pollack, director of performing arts at the Cleveland Museum of Art. “It’s pretty powerful to see how your perception of the film can change depending on the music.”
A pair of short films directed by Rene Clair occupies the center of the festival. Both hail from the same time (1924 and 1925), and yet they could hardly differ more markedly from each other or the rest of the series.
“Paris Qui Dort” (“Paris Asleep”) is a sci-fi fantasy comedy about a scientist with a sleep-inducing ray gun, while “Entr’Acte” is essentially an experiment in Dada film, set to a score by the great Erik Satie. Both will receive lavish musical treatment courtesy of pianists Philip Carli and Charnofsky.
Some of this may sound familiar. Although the two Clair films stand perfectly well on their own, they work even better in tandem with “Rose Iron Works and Art Deco,” an exhibit now on display at the museum. Like the exhibit, a showcase of a remarkable Cleveland metalworking studio, the Clair films exemplify the spirit of innovation that fueled artists in the early 1900s.
Pollack called the exhibit a “natural tie-in” that deepens the impact of the films. “Any time we can relate film to the galleries, that’s a win,” he said. “It’s a way to energize people to attend the event and engage with the art, and have a richer experience.”
The 1925 theme continues with film number four, “Go West,” the classic Buster Keaton comedy about a drifter who takes up cattle herding. It also sustains the musical thread. An ensemble led by pianist Rodney Sauer will perform a score he compiled, and a local group called Radio on the Lake Theatre will provide sound effects.
So grand is the festival finale, it needed to be staged in a special venue. In the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, the festival will conclude with “Faust,” F.W. Murnau’s iconic 1926 film based on the Goethe tale of hubris and redemption.
No pianos or violins for this one. Instead, a band of silent film pros called The Silent Light will do the honors, infusing the film with various strains of heavy metal rock. It’s like nothing most people – Laurance included – have ever heard.
“I’m excited to hear what they bring,” Laurance said. “It’s going to be a bit more like a rock show experience. It’s a whole new level of excitement.”
In film as in many other disciplines, Cleveland “punches above its weight,” Laurance said. In addition to the Cleveland International Film Festival, the region hosts a steady array of other festivals celebrating specific film cultures and genres. Now in its third iteration, the Silent Film Festival fits into that ecosystem seamlessly.
Which is why it may have found a long-term home at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Not only does the museum have a long tradition of presenting film. There’s also the potential – illustrated by this year’s festival – to connect films to exhibits and tap into other art forms, such as music.
“In my mind, it’s almost a blank canvas,” Pollack said. “If they want to do more, we will. I’m pretty open. I think silent film will be a part of what CMA presents every year.”
PREVIEW
Cleveland Silent Film Festival
When: Sunday, Sept. 14-Saturday, Sept. 27
Where: Various locations (see listings)
Tickets: Visit clevelandart.org or cinematheque.cia.edu
7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19
Gartner Auditorium, CMA
“Lady Windermere’s Fan”
With the Cleveland Photoplayers
3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20
Gartner Auditorium, CMA
“Paris Qui Dort” and “Entr’acte”
Live music by Philip Carli and Eric Charnofsky
3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21
Gartner Auditorium, CMA
“Go West”
With Radio on the Lake Theatre
9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27
Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque
“Faust”
With The Silent Light
Editor’s Note: Emily Laurance was a student in The Land’s Community Journalism program.
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