LOS ANGELES — The sound of 35mm celluloid film running through a projector might not be familiar to most moviegoers these days, but until about 2010, this is what films were shot on and how they were presented to theatrical audiences. Many still love the format, including the founder of The Secret Movie Club, Craig Hammill.

Hammill came out of film school and decided to start "The Secret Movie Club" to create a space for movie fans who love the analog 35mm format and miss that sense of community that's lost watching content on personal devices.  

Hammill said many of his film school buddies told him, "If you want to make a movie, you should learn exhibition which is this part of it. Showing movies, building audiences and the way that life is. Weirdly, this thing became my full-time gig."

The Secret Movie Club recently presented the first three films in the Indiana Jones saga, all on glorious 35mm film. Unlike digital formats, film is shipped in reels and assembled by highly skilled projectionists. For many, the texture and feel of light shining through celluloid are truly cinematic and an experience worth preserving in our digital age.

"I love film, and I love showing on film," Hammill said. "And I just don't want someone to say you can't do it."

But, film can be delicate, and it often requires preservation and restoration. The Secret Movie Club screenings raise awareness and help reconnect people with the fading format.

"It's a tool," Hammill said. "[Not keeping 35mm alive] would be like telling a painter you can't use oils. It would be like telling a writer you can't write on a typewriter or by longhand."

J Angel Sierra was in line for "Raiders of the Lost Ark," which was the very first film The Secret Movie Club screened when it launched back in 2016. Sierra said he loves seeing movies that were shot on film, presented the way filmmakers intended. 

"[The Secret Movie Club] is keeping 35mm alive in a time when it is a rare privilege granted to modern filmmakers," Sierra said. "This is why, honestly, I stay in LA. It's the only place I can get it and see a lot of stuff that I missed growing up."

The Secret Movie Club presents films in several venues, including the historic Million Dollar Theater in DTLA. In addition to English-language Hollywood fare, The Million Dollar historically was a hub for Spanish-language cinema and live performers from Mexico. The Secret Movie clubs often screens Spanish-language and other international classics from the likes of Federico Fellini and Ingmar Bergman and more recent American classics such as "The Incredibles."

For those looking to expand their cinema experience, the club is almost like a mini film school, and as people begin venturing out again, Hammill said he hopes audiences will return to support the theatrical experience once again.

"As you feel comfortable, go back and have that experience," Hammill said. "Because movie theaters, there's nothing like it!"