Jason KingThe Verona Cinema is Expanding
September 17th 2010 23:11
:
I Still Miss The Academy
Category: Interesting
You've probably heard the recent travesty that the historic art house cinema, The Academy Twin in Paddington closed in June. Basically, a suitable agreement couldn't be reached between the cinema and the building's owners. It seemed that the owners weren't keen to undertake the extensive and costly upgrades the cinema needed to keep going. Shame on them - but just my personal opinion on this one, the Greek Orthodox Community that owns it also owns various other sites around Sydney and they have closed other art house cinemas over the years (think Valhalla in Glebe). BOOOOOO
But fortunately, as Palace Cinemas also operate the nearby Chauvel and Palace Verona cinemas, the original intention being that the cinema trio would complement each other, there is a plan. The Verona will now expand its screens from four to seven with the extra showings being similar to that at the Academy Twin. Palace's main focus is on art house; quality commercial, documentary or edgy independent filmmaking. The renovation plans for the Verona's expansion will be finalised in the next few weeks.
It's been a gloomy time for Sydney film-lovers with recent multiple cinema losses; we lost the Valhalla in Glebe in 2005 after twenty-five admirable years in the business. For a while there, it also was looking dicey for the Chauvel but it was given a reprieve. And finally The Academy closed it's doors - for my article on this see HERE.
The Verona's idea will definitely help to ease the cinematic loss of the Academy closing. The Verona's tagline is: share our passion. Something I look forward to doing. It will never repalce the loss of such a superb twin cinema but it will provide a larger multiplex dedicated to screening the lesser known, but mostly always better films that aren't mass marketed. It is like a lucky dip watching art house - some of them are as boring as all hell but a lot of the time they are hidden gems that take you to a new and better, less commercial, place.
Most of this article is with thanks to www.weekendnotes.com
But fortunately, as Palace Cinemas also operate the nearby Chauvel and Palace Verona cinemas, the original intention being that the cinema trio would complement each other, there is a plan. The Verona will now expand its screens from four to seven with the extra showings being similar to that at the Academy Twin. Palace's main focus is on art house; quality commercial, documentary or edgy independent filmmaking. The renovation plans for the Verona's expansion will be finalised in the next few weeks.
It's been a gloomy time for Sydney film-lovers with recent multiple cinema losses; we lost the Valhalla in Glebe in 2005 after twenty-five admirable years in the business. For a while there, it also was looking dicey for the Chauvel but it was given a reprieve. And finally The Academy closed it's doors - for my article on this see HERE.
The Verona's idea will definitely help to ease the cinematic loss of the Academy closing. The Verona's tagline is: share our passion. Something I look forward to doing. It will never repalce the loss of such a superb twin cinema but it will provide a larger multiplex dedicated to screening the lesser known, but mostly always better films that aren't mass marketed. It is like a lucky dip watching art house - some of them are as boring as all hell but a lot of the time they are hidden gems that take you to a new and better, less commercial, place.
Most of this article is with thanks to www.weekendnotes.com
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