Edinburgh’s iconic Filmhouse will reopen its doors later in the year, thanks to a £1.5m grant. The independent cinema, in the city’s Lothian Road, was forced to close in October 2022 after its parent company, the Centre for the Moving Image, entered administration. The doors are set to reopen this autumn, following a successful campaign, backed by actors, filmmakers, and cinema-goers, that saw the UK government come forward with funding.
Filmhouse Edinburgh Ltd, responsible for the campaign, plans to refurbish all three theatres, the café bar and introduce a fourth 22-seat screen, with a renewed emphasis on audience comfort, courtesy of funding from the UK government’s levelling-up fund, Screen Scotland, and City of Edinburgh Council. A crowdfunding appeal, which is close to its £300,000 target, will also contribute to the redevelopment work.
Talking about the development, Ginnie Atkinson, trustee for Filmhouse Edinburgh Ltd, said that whilst there was still some funding left to raise, the campaigners are confident that the remaining capital would be raised. She also said that “when we applied, the amount was aspirational” and that the historic cinemas required modernisation in terms of comfort and facilities.
Atkinson believes that the Filmhouse offers a unique cinema experience, which she hopes will help win back audiences lost to competing streaming services or other cinemas. Whilst it may not be open in time for the city’s annual Film Festival, Atkinson is optimistic that the cinema will benefit from Scotland’s 33% rise in cinema-going over the past two years. The organisation is still exploring options for pricing, including “pay what you can.”
The return of the Filmhouse cinema to Edinburgh will be a significant and positive outcome and will put the venue at the forefront of cities in the UK that offer diverse cinema experiences. David Smith, Director of Screen Scotland, commented: “That we will have the Filmhouse back, and better than ever, is a tremendous outcome and all credit goes to the hardworking team that held on to that possibility and made it a reality across the last 18 months.
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