Last weekend was the grand opening of the new cinema space on Portland. With just under 100 seats and an inky black Auditorium it’s a great destination to bring the community together under film and filmed theatre.
We began with last years favourite bear, Paddington, in glorious 4K Ultra. With plenty of haribo and popcorn to go round we almost half filled the theatre with excited kids and adults!
Then, after a brief pause to get a breath (and have a quick game of Fortnight on the screen), we re-opened with Paterson. A thoughtful film about a bus driver who is also a poet. An obvious different crowd for this one, which was the statement we wanted to convey. This space will be for everyone on the island, not just a children’s cinema. Paterson, whereas not in 4K (as a UK 4K release wasn’t available), was still presented in 4K upscaled from 1080p and looked just as good.
The plan is to have regular screenings but as we are operating as a cinema now, it needs a regular source of funding to purchase the licenses to be able to legally show the films. We hope to subsidise the costs through a sponsorship programme, where for £5 a month, local business can have a title card before the film and be added to promotions. We’re open to any other suggestions or offers for ideas, so do get in touch.
We will now be offering use of the projector for parties, whether it’s showing wedding videos or having a video game party but showing films on our equipment must be organised and operated by us. You can show whatever film you fancy to all your pals or work colleagues for a private party as long as the license can be obtained. The auditorium hire costs will reflect this. The licenses cost varies but generally we’d expect a premium of 100 pounds on top of the standard auditorium hire fee.
These are exciting times for the Royal Manor Theatre please do support us where you can either by attending events, helping out, or being part of one of the funding schemes.
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