The latest movie theater news and updates
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January 7, 2015
“Alamo Drafthouse to explore subscription service” From San Antonio, TX.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, with three locations in San Antonio, soon will consider partnering with a New York City company that offers a monthly subscription service for film buffs.
(We’re not subscribers to this news service, but thought it was a must share none-the-less!)
The original article is available at expressnews.com.
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“Belmont’s Studio Cinema may be closing” From Belmont, MA.
The Belmont Studio Cinema, a fixture in Belmont since the early 1900s may be closing, according to owner Jim Bramante. A recent inspection by town officials discovered several code violations and the cinema’s license was not renewed. Bramante is not sure he will be able to correct them, however he is working with the town and has engaged contractors. “Our plan is to try and work something out – hopefully something can be done,” he said. “There’s a reason why we’re one of the last remaining independent single screen theaters,” he added, noting that it is hard to be successful in small scale cinema. “We tried to hold on as long as we could.”
Read the entire article at wickedlocal.com.
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December 24, 2014
Happy Holidays from Cinema Treasures
As another year comes to a close, we just want to thank you all for your continued support. Whether you’re off to see The Interview or another film — or spending time with family — we want to wish you a very Happy New Year! See you in 2015 and at the movies …
Ross, Patrick, and Ken
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December 22, 2014
“Secret Cinema reveals it showed The Great Dictator at protest secret screening, following Sony’s The Interview cancellation”
Secret Cinema has revealed that it showed Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator at a one-off secret screening on Sunday to protest against ‘the attack on freedom of expression’ represented by the Sony hacking.
Staged on Sunday at simultaneous events in London, New York, San Francisco and Rome, the 1940 film portrays fictitious dictator Adenoid Hynkel, a thinly-veiled version of Hitler. In London the movie was shown at the Troxy Cinema, while an additional event in Los Angeles screened The Red Chapel.
Over 2,000 people attended from across the five cities and at least £11,500 of the total proceeds will go to global free speech charity Article 19.
Read the entire article online at independent.co.uk.
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December 19, 2014
“Coming attractions: The rise of luxury movie theaters”
Next time you go to the movies, you might want to think about putting on a coat and tie.
As more high-end cinemas open in the region — boasting reserved seating, concierge desks, cocktails and fancy food — the experience is becoming less and less like an afternoon at the Bijou and more like a night at the Kennedy Center.
In fact, when ArcLight Cinemas unveiled its 16-screen multiplex in Bethesda last month, a place with a posh lobby bar and old-school ushers, but no box office, the company’s vice president of operations, Stephen Green, described the chain’s competition not as other movie theaters, but — wait for it — opera.
What’s next, printed theater programs?
Read the entire article at washingtonpost.com
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“Agawam Cinemas reopening delayed until end of January, owner says” From Agawam, MA.
If you’re excited about catching a holiday flick at Agawam Cinemas, you’ll have to hold your horses.
Kimberly Wheeler, who bought the cinema in September, said the theater is expected to resume screenings at the end of January. The 31-year-old Agawam resident had hoped to open the cinema earlier this month, she said, but unforeseen electrical work has delayed renovations.
“I really wanted to be open for the holidays,” Wheeler said Thursday. “That’s the stinky part of it.”
Former owner Sal Anzalotti closed the theater in May. Anzalotti, who ran the business from 1996 to 2014, said he couldn’t afford to convert the theater’s projectors from film to digital and had difficulty competing with large multiplexes in the area.
Read the entire article at masslive.com
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“Changing Skyline: iPic didn’t come, so now what for the Boyd?” From Philadelphia, PA.
All anyone had to do was say the word multiplex and the Boyd Theatre’s fair-weather friends abandoned the grand dame of Philadelphia movie palaces as if the place was on fire. Demolition of the art deco auditorium was sanctioned by the Historical Commission in March, and within days, wrecking crews were on the scene, supposedly for the Florida chain iPic.
Now we know it was all magical thinking.
Neil Rodin, the developer who said he was bringing iPic to Philadelphia, never followed through on his much-ballyhooed plan to buy the Boyd from its longtime owner, Live Nation. Meanwhile, iPic has problems of its own and lost its financing for the project, according to a source involved with the company. In late October, Live Nation quietly sold the theater at 19th and Chestnut to Jim Pearlstein and Reed Slogoff of Pearl Properties for $4.5 million.
Read the entire article at philly.com
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December 17, 2014
“New sign crowns Cameo Theater Building in Mills 50” From Orlando, FL.
As part of the Cameo Theater Building restoration a new sign has been installed on top of the building.
The sign was designed using the same font and lighting style of the original marquee after a historic picture of the Theater was found.
A small business façade improvement grant from the City of Orlando helped pay for the fabrication and installation of the sign.
The theater was built in 1939 and converted to offices for IBM in the 1950s. At some point, the original marquee was removed.
Read the entire article online at bungalower.com.
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“AMC Is Bringing Netflix’s Model to Movie Theaters in Boston” From Boston, MA.
Who said traditional movie theater chains can’t learn anything from Netflix?
Starting in January, AMC Theatres in the Boston area will let you attend movie showings for a monthly subscription—up to one movie a day, if you feel like it.
It’s not quite as cheap as Netflix, but still pretty reasonable—either $35 or $45 a month, depending on the package you choose. Attending just a handful of showings a month should make the pass pay for itself.
The service is being piloted in Denver along with Boston, with plans to add more cities in the future. It’s powered by movie subscription service MoviePass of New York.
More details at moviepass.com/AMC and in the news release…
Read the entire article at BostInno.com.
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“Russian Cinema Chains Call for Revising Rental Conditions” From Russia.
Russian cinema chains are calling on owners of shopping malls where their theaters are located to adjust rental contracts against the backdrop of the weakening ruble, which threatens to drive them out of business.
Several large cinema chains, including Cinema Park, Karo Film, Kinomaks and Formula Kino, have sent an open letter to mall owners, requesting that rental contracts, in which rent is normally stipulated in U.S. dollars, be revised and rent fixed in rubles.
The lion’s share of contemporary Russian film theaters are located in shopping malls. Now that the ruble has fallen off the cliff against the dollar, with the exchange rate plummeting as low as 80 rubles for one U.S. dollar on Tuesday, as opposed to 47 rubles a month ago, theater chains have trouble paying rent as their revenues from ticket sales are all in rubles.
Read entire article online at hollywoodReporter.com.