A cinema for ED?

[Michael Palaeologus]

By night, a cinema. By day, an M&S Food.

All it needs is a basement car park and wholefood market and everybody is happy.

[dds29]

Yes please!

We go to the Ritzy, Clapham and Greenwich at present, but would certainly patronise an ED cinema.

Why is there no response to the Police station suggestion? That seems the perfect answer.

Also, the Lexi cinema sounds like a good model.

[ellieaness]

I love the idea in principle - a great example is Rich Mix in Bethnal Green, which also has a bar, live music, comedy and hosts debates and talks AND can be hired for events but to my mind the fact that ED is hardly a 'hub' would suggest a problem.

Brixton as an example, although the cinema has helped massively with the gentrification of the area, has always had a busy high street with high street name shops and a big department store, a tube station etc and ED doesn't have this. the top end of Brick Lane where Rich Mix sits is a hugely popular destination, it's also close to offices in Shoreditch and the Northern part of the City, so footfall is naturally higher.

[kittenheels]

Oooh how very exciting! I'd love to see a cinema in East Dulwich... although having just moved over the hill to Honor Oak Park, where the high street has a few lovely sites up for grabs at the moment - I'd like one there even more.

[kabekay]

Rich Mix has a very hard time making ends meet, and is publicly funded, so may not be the best model...

All sorts of surprising things turn out to work after all, and I hardly think the OP is suggesting opening a cinema as a Get Rich Quick scheme. I agree with the multi-use crowd, for what it's worth. The Goose is Out people, and the crowd who do the open air cinema in the Dulwich park in the summer, might have some good knowledge on the matter!

[JeanieB]

In the meantime what about Peckham Plex - it's independently owned now and has some interesting stuff on as well as mainstream. Also, check out freefilmfestivals.org to see details of our very own free film festival held in September, now into its 3rd year. You can vote for the film you'd most like shown at Nunhead Cemetery this year.

[ellieaness]

kabekay Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Rich Mix has a very hard time making ends meet,

> and is publicly funded, so may not be the best

> model...

>

> All sorts of surprising things turn out to work

> after all, and I hardly think the OP is suggesting

> opening a cinema as a Get Rich Quick scheme. I

> agree with the multi-use crowd, for what it's

> worth. The Goose is Out people, and the crowd who

> do the open air cinema in the Dulwich park in the

> summer, might have some good knowledge on the

> matter!

Hey, only their patron not their accountant. it was regularly packed for key films though and a nice idea in principle.

[henryb]

You would have to have one screen that played Treacle Jr, like, all the time. Obviously.

[DulwichFox]

This is much like the Tattoo Shop thread that never was...

Everyone saying how they would love one and it would be a winner and they would use it. ???

A dozen or so people going to the Cinema once a week is not going to keep such a project going.

20 - 30 people paying ?10.00 7 nights a week might just cover the running costs.

Fox

[Sue]

kabekay Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

>

> All sorts of surprising things turn out to work

> after all, and I hardly think the OP is suggesting

> opening a cinema as a Get Rich Quick scheme. I

> agree with the multi-use crowd, for what it's

> worth. The Goose is Out people, and the crowd who

> do the open air cinema in the Dulwich park in the

> summer, might have some good knowledge on the

> matter!

xxxxxxx

We certainly know how not to start a Get Rich Quick scheme :))

We'd be delighted to see an alternative venue open in or near East Dulwich though - we have been unable to find anything suitable to replace The Ivy House, which was a fantastic space and size for our "medium sized audience" gigs.

That's medium sized in numbers, not in height or girth, obviously, which for us is around 100 people.

So a multi-use space would be great. But there was a thread on here a while back suggesting an Arts Centre type place which could incorporate a space suitable for music gigs/cinema/art exhibitions etc, and cold water was thrown at it from all directions as I recall (though my memory is crap so I may be recalling wrongly).

Sue (Half of The Goose Is Out!)

ETA: We'd be very happy to discuss possibilities with the OP or indeed with anyone else re a new local multi-use space, but we'd have no capital to put into it. We also need somewhere licensed to sell alcohol.

[minder]

Remember there was a cinema on Grove Vale then it was the Palace of Peace, now it's flats.

There was also a cinema where Nandos is now in Camberwell (I remember queuing up) then it turned into a big jeans warehouse.

Can't think of a big enough empty building now to house a cinema in ED, but it would be a great idea.

[StraferJack]

David Carnell pointed me to

this place

in Peckham which, while on the small side, appears to be along the lines of what's being planned above

I would love something like the Roxy in ED but, as ???? has pointed out many a time, the units are just too small and the footfall isn't enough

Anywhere which might be big enough - such as the old video shop, now the charity shop next to the Palmerston - is asking for stupid amounts of money per annum

And much as plenty of people support the idea on here, a similar thing happens when Inside 72 is discussed on here. Plenty of ardent supporters, just not enough of them in there spending their cash to sustain it

[DulwichFox]

How to Start a Small Business...

Take over a Large Business. Sit back...

... and watch it Collapse.

Fox.

[Alec John Moore]

According to this

http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/business-theory/strategy/business-failure.html

one third of new business start ups fail - so that means that two thirds succeed. They point out that the key reasons for failure include poor marketing, cash flow etc. It's also interesting to note from other research that most start ups are individuals trying to turn a hobby into a business and these are often business types with low capital and running costs.

The problem with a multi use arts centre, Sue mentioned the previous thread on EDF, is that they have large capital and running costs. Being the Arts they need to be subsidised by the state and that is less likely to be possible in today's economic climate. However, bars seem to do well enough in ED so maybe the way forward is Montpelier or Roxy but with an existing venue in ED such as the Mag. I know it has Cinema Paradiso but I get the sense that what people want is something more regular and more cinema-like. I know, easy enough for me to say sitting here at my 'puter but to refer to The Times 100 website, if the right type of research is done then an entrepreneur should be able to find out what the barriers to "cinema-going" are for the target audience in ED and take on the creative challenge of dissolving those barriers to make going to see a film possible as well as desirable.

[Otta]

It's a lovely idea, and I wish you well, but I'm not sure where you'd put it. It's all very well saying "put it on the foxtons site", but that rather large and wealthy foxtons might have something to say on that.

[shirleyb]

great idea as Peckham Plus always leaves me with sticky popcorn all over my shoes from the disgusting carpet! if it is anything like the picture house in greenwich it will be be fab !

[Sue]

StraferJack Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

>

>

> And much as plenty of people support the idea on

> here, a similar thing happens when Inside 72 is

> discussed on here. Plenty of ardent supporters,

> just not enough of them in there spending their

> cash to sustain it

xxxxxxx

I don't think Inside 72 closed because of lack of customers, it was for personal reasons.

[DulwichFox]

Always plenty of people say they will use it, great idea...

Like the people who Post in the wanted section.. and you post that you have one they can have for FREE..

And you PM each other.... and can't be arsed to show up...

You can always Rely on people to be Unreliable...

Fact of life..

Foxy

[edygirl]

Great idea!

[stacey-lyn]

A big (tu). We spend quite a bit of time in Amsterdam and this is our local.. It would be fantastic to have something similar in ED within walking or bike riding distance for all ages. Will watch this post.

[omz]

Second that the movies on Haarlemmerstraat was our local, ED is full of filmy types, go down a storm.

[cashewnut]

Brilliant idea. If you do it well it could be really popular. The Rex in Berkhamsted is a great example. It's a small town but the films sell out months in advance cos the cinema is so lovely. The bar's open throughout the film and seats in the stalls have tables. Check out the picture of the queue in 'Gallery'.

http://therexberkhamsted.com/

Does have the massive advantage of being in a restored art deco cinema though...

[Alec John Moore]

Another way of measuring filmgoing interest amongst the ED public would be to have an overview of what exists currently:

http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?6,899966

Alec

[decords]

I am another in favour of this and if the Wetherspoon spot in FH came up it would be brilliant!

[DulwichFox]

decords Wrote:

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> I am another in favour of this and if the

> Wetherspoon spot in FH came up it would be

> brilliant!

Errhh. The Wetherspoons spot used to be a Cinema but closed down because nobody used it.

Just like all the other well established cinemas...

Fox