A small cinema chain told how it is on the road to recovery almost two years after reopening post covid.
Founded in 2007, the Light Cinema has twelve cinemas around the country, and it all started with the one in New Brighton. After making the tough decision to shut their doors during the Covid-19 lockdowns, they have now been up and running again since May 2021.
Regional operations manager for the New Brighton venue Jamie Atherton said: “Because we were the first one that started, we’ve always been quite flexible in the way that we programme. We’re not rigid or set by a head office that’s far removed from the business.
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"We can react to programming needs, we can react to market needs. If we get feedback saying, ‘we’d like you to show this title’, or ‘why aren’t you showing this kind of content?’ whether it would be theatre, opera, ballet, we’re in a position where we can listen to people there.”
The Light Cinema regularly has celebs at the site, like Vicky McClure, from Line of Duty, and Rebel Wilson, who worked with the company while filming 'The Almond and the Sea Horse' in West Kirby. Eddie Izzard has also paid the venue a visit in the past.
The Wirral venue offers a range of accessible shows such as autism-friendly, dementia- friendly (which regularly sell out), baby-friendly, toddler time and silver screenings. They also serve handmade pizzas as well as other classic cinema snacks, and guests can enjoy a glass of wine with their film.
The dementia-friendly shows work in partnership with Iceland, which donates food vouchers, and Prezzo Italian will cook pizzas. Mr Atherton said of the dementia-friendly shows: “They’re usually really popular. It’s usually an old classic that evokes nostalgia and, where possible, it’ll have a musical feel, so we programme that in."
For these, they often put on live music, getting a singer performing music from the 40s, 50s and 60s. Mr Atherton said: “Lesley the manager at the site really goes out of her way to make those screenings sense special, putting print from decades gone by up to help with that nostalgia.”
Autism-friendly screenings are adapted so that lights are dimmed low to avoid sensory issues, sound levels are softened, adverts and trailers are removed and people are free to get up and move about.
Mr Atherton said: “We’re regularly trying to go above and beyond. For the release of ‘Dungeons and Dragons’, alongside Picturehouse Cinemas, we were the only two circuits in the UK to get the premiere which was a big deal for us and we were proud to get that.
“All 12 sites did sign language training for the evening of the subtitled premiere for this film, so they could welcome people and show them to their seats in sign, to make it more accessible.”
He added: “We try to make sure our teams reflect the people that we’re serving. Our teams have real autonomy and the capacity to influence what we do.”
Upcoming films include Mario 2D and 3D, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3, Reinfield, as well as alternative content like Hamlet Live from The Old Vic, Coldplay, Metallica and the Anime title Suzume subbed and dubbed.
Mr Atherton added: “Many people that started on day one have celebrated 10, 11 years with us. They enjoy serving the people that come through the doors.
“Cinema’s starting the recover. It’s had a tough time but films like Top Gun and Avatar have been some of the biggest releases of all time. There’s still a desire to watch big movies on the big screen, and I’d say, on The Wirral, we’ve got the biggest screen, so come watch it with us.”
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