Ken Eisen has been integral to the arts community in Waterville since the inception of Railroad Square Cinema. In the late 1970s, Ken Eisen and a group of friends felt that something was missing from Waterville. Eisen and the others loved film, but in a time before the internet, DVDs, and even VHSs, it was nearly impossible to find a way to watch anything but first run commercial films without driving to Boston. Eisen wanted more. He and his friends wanted foreign language films, repertory films, and history of cinema. So rather than being passive and waiting for change, they acted, and created a theater that would actually play those films—Railroad Square Cinema.
Eisen continued to work at Railroad Square Cinema after its creation, working on programming, and continues to work with the theater today. Over time, the Railroad Square has moved from being a repertory theater to a first-run art theater, and now has three screens as opposed to its original one. It has become a staple of the Waterville arts community, and out of it have developed a number of other important events and organizations.
Possibly the most important of these is the Maine International Film Festival (MIFF). Eisen and others invested in the film community decided to take a shot at creating a film festival in Waterville, and it began in 1998. Eisen believes that festivals bring out an excitement about film in people that is hard to find on a regular day. People get “turned on by the whole medium in a way they don’t for the rest of the year.” People go to the festival with no plan, no idea what film they want to watch, and experience kinds of films that are new and exciting, films that they never would have seen otherwise.
The first year of MIFF was not as successful as its creators wanted it to be. The crowds weren’t quite as big as they had hoped, the films weren’t quite as good. But after a few years, with some luck, impressive guests—Terrence Malick, a reclusive director who had never before attended a film festival, came in one of MIFF’s first years—and, most importantly, “a lot of work,” the Maine International Film Festival has grown into something much, much bigger. Now, it is the only festival of its size in northern New England, and has garnered worldwide recognition.
The film festival and Railroad Square have both become integral to the arts community in Waterville, a community that Eisen seems to appreciate. He thinks that the natural beauty of central Maine plays an important role in the arts in the town, saying that “people feel that, and that feeds into the arts, and vice versa.” Eisen, too, has played an important role in the arts in Waterville. Railroad Square Cinema and MIFF—both of which he played a primary role in creating—have become prominent in Waterville. The film festival is also beneficial for Waterville’s economy, bringing in money for the town and therefore getting considerable recognition. Still, Eisen says, “that’s not why it’s worth it; it’s worth it because it brings soul to the area.”