RIP Glasgow's Coliseum

Some sad news from Scotland. Glasgow’s former Coliseum which opened in 1905 (originally as a music hall), screened Glasgow’s first talking picture in January 1929, was Scotland’s only Cinerama whose opening was covered by British Pathe News and closed as a cinema in 1980, suffered a very bad fire in the early morning of 25 May. The damage to the building was so bad that demolition work is underway.

In finding out more about this fire I had a skim through the Scottish Cinemas and Theatres Project’s website and browsing through the long list of cinemas at risk and demolished cinemas in Scotland was a sobering read. This prompted me to feel even more anxious for those cinemas who can’t afford digital and could be facing the same fate as so many of the cinemas listed on this website.

The bright side of this blog is the undeniable shift in attitude about digital by many independent cinemas in the UK who are now finally getting to grips with this format’s benefits and possibilities. But the shadow of the hefty price tag simply won’t go away.

Can Virtual Print Fees (VPF) deals and extra revenue from alternative content save the day? Well many UK independents can’t consider 3D as they are too close to a multiplex that already offers, or plans to offer, this content. And do many independent venues want to develop the 15 – 24 year old audience that most 3D films seem to be aimed at?  Of course live opera, theatre and sporting events can make a difference – I’m eagerly awaiting the Tour de France in 3D – but even if this can generate an extra £5,500 per screen per year, where does the initial capitol outlay come from?

As for VPF deals... to me, and many others, they simply reinforce the old model of domination by the major studios and completely smother the flexibility, independence and creative potential of digital. And they could ultimately be all talk and small print.

Since starting this blog Jim Huskey, Outside Sales Manager for Sonic Equipment Company in the US has got in touch. He’s working to encourage independents in the US to seize the day and act now with digital and in doing so embrace the bottom up way of working this format allows. To quote: “The day is arriving where studio content is not the only game in town…. theatres must begin thinking laterally. The seats, screen, sound system, and concessions are already in place. The heating and A/C are keeping the environment comfortable. The restrooms are clean. But without digital equipment, morning seminars, educational programs, or other content is not an option. Without digital, LAN parties lasting from the last showing until noon the next day are not in the mix. Exhibitors need to walk into their houses during off times and ask themselves, "how can I get more mileage from this facility NOW?"

I also like this from Jim: “Independents have to be creative and also must forge a relationship with their markets. Some donate free passes to be given away by disc jockeys - in return for on air recognition. Some deal directly with area schools to build interest through marketing campaigns. One manager shared with me how she got involved with the humane society, dyed a white cat pink, went out to area schools. She raised money and publicity for the humane society and packed her house for the pink panther movie”.

This is the glass half full attitude towards digital. The ‘We Think’ of digital cinema that I blogged about earlier. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sad to see the old cinemas derelict. The image that accompanies this blog is of the old Odeon cinema on Clerk Street, Edinburgh, an old art deco purpose built cinema that the Cinema Theatres Association have described as "the best surviving example of architecture of its time in the UK". Catch the story from the BBC here.

Now I’m as much in love with the golden era of cinema that this building embodies as the next person. And I hate to see these fabulous old buildings derelict, under threat and falling apart. But I know that they can never be what they were and that cinema as an industry has moved on. Digital is forcing us all to move again in a big way and perhaps this leap to the future can save some of old relics from the past. As we move from deco to digital perhaps creative thinking around this new format can breath new life and potential into the countless old cinemas whose dark auditoriums are currently filled with nothing but dust and memories. If it doesn’t, there are going to be a whole lot more demolition of old cinemas in Scotland and beyond.