WHO, WHAT & MORE:
The Cinephiliac Dream

Cinephiliac began not as a website, but as an idea for the Greatest Film Rental Library in Brooklyn, NY. Dedicated to the preservation of film culture and the very best in connoisseur cinema, Cinephiliac was to rent DVDs not often available from larger chains and smaller "mom-and-pop" stores in the liberal, educated BOCOCA neighborhood. In response to this increasingly digital and on-demand era, however, this brick-and-mortar pursuit has been abandoned in favor of bigger, better, shinier, happier, greener cinematic pastures.

The heart, soul and synaptic firings of Cinephiliac belong to Brooklyn-based writer Aaron Hillis, an insatiable film buff and ongoing contributor to The Village Voice, Premiere, IFC News, Moviefone, and The Reeler. When his professional obligations have been fulfilled and motivation strikes, Cinephiliac becomes home to The Daily Dissolve: a blog about film, mostly. Untethered to the stifling format and style rules of editors lurking everywhere, Aaron brings his vast knowledge, experience and passions to this informal film forum, a chance for him to write about -- and poke a little fun at -- the past, present and future of his favorite medium.

Unashamedly, Cinephiliac will also be used as a tool of self-promotion for Aaron's previously and hyperbolically hinted-at endeavors. Besides his journalistic work, he is partner to Benten Films, a new DVD label designed for cinephiles to uncover lost masterpieces and future classics, with an eye on overlooked gems that deserve greater recognition. In cahoots with Benten, Aaron's co-directorial feature debut, Fish Kill Flea, made its world premiere at SXSW 2007 and continues to play on the film festival circuit.

When he isn't watching, ranting about, distributing, or making movies, or speaking in the third person, Aaron turns to other addictions: coffee, music, making others laugh, and fawning all over his amazing girlfriend fiancée wife.

(photo courtesy of Jennifer Loeber Hillis © 2005)

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