Who at Stellenbosch University hasn’t heard of the Pulp movie theatre? A space to relax between classes, the perfect place for a date and somewhere where you can find a bag of popcorn when you forget (or don’t feel like making) your lunch. But who sits in the director’s chair, so to speak, for one of the university’s most beloved societies?
Lara Odendaal, Pulp Film Society’s chairperson, sitting next to the cinema’s own in-house bar. PHOTO: Supplied/ Lara Odendaal
“I’m a classic girl. I like a popcorn and a craft beer from the bar…,” says Lara Odendaal, Pulp Film Society’s chairperson. This is her favourite snack combination to buy when she goes in to watch a movie at the Neelsie’s Pulp Cinema.
“…and with LOTS of popcorn spice. Like afterwards my tongue shouldn’t have any feeling left. Then I know it was a good one.”
Usually Lara doesn’t start with a plan to go to the cinema. The decision often takes place in the last five minutes before the movie starts. Then it’s a rush to her car. A hurried drive to the Neelsie. A run into the theatre.
A middle seat is best, according to her. It isn’t nice being off from the centre. Watching a movie alone is rewarding, she says. It allows one to focus on one’s own experience. That way you don’t have to worry if your companion is appreciating the movie as much as you do.
I think, what makes Pulp so unique, is that it caters to everyone
After the movie, Lara often catches up with the staff who work at pulp – familiar faces to anyone who frequents the Neelsie.
“Normally I go to my movie and then afterwards have like a half hour chat with the staff. They really feel like my family in Stellenbosch,” says Lara.
Small town girl
Ceres, Western Cape, the town where Lara grew up. PHOTO: Leaza van Wyk
One of her first memories is when her mother took her to see The Jungle Book as a child. Lara shares her appreciation for movies with her mother.
“I remember when we were little, on her birthday, she would go to Cape Town for the whole day and watch like four films in Cinema Nouveau. I was so jealous! I had to stay in school, and she could go and have this whole day,” says Lara.
Growing up in Ceres, there were no nearby movie theatres for Lara. Owing to the town’s small size, Lara saw movies as a chance to get an alternative perspective.
In 2018, Lara saw an advert for the position of secretary at the Pulp Film Society. She didn’t have any residence commitments at the time. She believed it would be an opportunity to be part of something on campus.
What Lara wasn’t expecting was that halfway through her term as secretary, the committee’s treasurer would disappear from the society.
She then found herself stepping up to the position of treasurer, to fill the gap left behind.
“It was really a big, big challenge,” Lara says. At first, she found it an even bigger challenge than the academic challenges she faced as a BCom management accounting student.
What the new position did allow her, however, was a glimpse behind the scenes. Particularly at the society’s finances. As a BCom honours student, and a lover of films, Lara says she was very interested in it all.
Movies and the entertainment industry
Lara and a friend dressed as Tweedledee and Tweedledum from 2010’s Alice in Wonderland for Pulp’s Halloween event. PHOTO: Supplied/Lara Odendaal
Does she love movies? “A LOT, obviously!”
Our very own Pulp chairperson has even had some experience with the silver screen. Should you remember when Netflix’s “The Kissing Booth” was being filmed on the Rooiplein last year, you may notice Lara in the background in some of the carnival scenes.
Though she has no intention of being in front of the camera professionally, Lara enjoyed the experience of seeing how a movie’s production runs. She hopes one day that she could be a part of the industry.
“I’m not really interested in being on the screen, but one day to be able to be in charge of the budget of a film or something like that would be really cool,” she says.
The Pulp Film Society
Lara became chairperson of the society in late 2019. As chair, she can lift the curtains on some of Pulp’s campus mysteries. Although the film society is a Stellenbosch University society – the biggest on campus with 1 698 members – the movies are selected by the owner of the cinema, Werner de Swart.
Students gathered at Pulp cinema on Valentine’s Day. PHOTO: Supplied/Lara Odendaal
The theatre is split between the Pulp Film Society (PFS), run by Lara and her committee, and the Pulp Cinema, owned by De Swart (who rents the theatre from the university) with its own members; which explains the non-student looking members of the audience at your movie.
As for the infamous hike in the popcorn price of early 2020, Lara says, from her BCom perspective, it had to go up at some point. She is aware of what gets said about it on campus. To only go up now to R15, after maintaining the same R10 price [AG4] for roughly ten years, is impressive.
The society hosts events throughout the year, such as the Oscars evening and Lara’s favourite, the Halloween party.
Students enjoying one of the Pulp Film Society’s Rocky Horror party. PHOTO: Supplied/ Pulp Film Society Facebook page
She says the events give the members an opportunity to connect with each other. It isn’t exactly convenient to get to know your society members when your main activity is sitting quietly in a dark room…
That being said, Lara’s favourite Pulp moment happened in one of the theatres, during a screening.
While the theatre was showing the season finale for the series “Chernobyl”, loadshedding managed to work its magic.
After several pauses, stops and starts, the audience became understandably annoyed. But this didn’t stop them rallying together.
“When it finally started working, it was so amazing. All of us kind of bonded with our irritation, because of the pausing. It was just really nice, and everyone cried during the end,” she says.
The students and the cinema
“I think what makes Pulp so unique is that it caters to everyone,” Lara says. There are parties and events for the extroverts, but the theatre can also be a place for students to relax after the bustle of campus, she says.
In Lara’s first year on campus, the Neelsie, with its crowds of people, was overwhelming for her. The peace and pleasure of a good movie during her lunches offered her a respite. “It helped me, and I was able to meet so many cool people through it,” she says.
Pulp’s plans
The Pulp movie Cinema in the Neelsie, on the Stellenbosch University Campus. A rare glimpse of what it looks like empty without queues for coffee and popcorn. PHOTO: Supplied/ Pulp Film Society Facebook account
Lara is excited about the plans for the remainder of her term as chairperson at Pulp. Although she hoped that the Halloween party would go ahead as planned, they will only be screening Halloween-themed movies this year.
There is even talk of a potential outdoors cinema in Pulp’s future.
Although her honours in management accounting keeps her busy, she is happy to be back at Pulp.
“Some days it’s a bit intense, but it pays off,” she says.
Now that Pulp is open again, perhaps you may catch a glimpse of the society’s chairperson.