Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Theatres Built w/Digital Already Closed

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Posted by Steve Kraus (Member # 476) on 12-08-2015, 12:29 PM:

Eric Hooper's thread about ex-GCC's made me wonder this: How many theatres that have been newly built with digital cinema that have already closed? One assumes a very, very small number but I guess we will see.

I had mentioned an ex-GCC that was only 15 years old and modern enough to be built stadium that AMC closed and replaced with a similar size theatre a few hundred feet away. But now the new plateau will be digital cinema. Years ago it might have been theatres designed around 1-projector platter operation.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 12-08-2015, 03:34 PM:

I know of theaters that were converted from film to d-cinema that later closed. I don't think there are any theaters here in Oklahoma that opened all digital that later closed.

A bunch of these theaters are on long term leases of some sort, 20 or 30 years even, with a different property owner. There may be some loop holes that would let a theater out of its lease.

It has been only 8 years (2007) since the movie theater industry began converting from film projection to 2K digital projection at an aggressive pace. That's really not enough time for a theater to go through an entire life cycle from first opening its doors to shutting for good. Some factors could make that happen though. Theater chain mergers could see a new owner shutting down a still new theater that is competing with another in their chain nearby. Theater properties could be bought for demolition to make room for some bigger construction project.

AMC Theaters is in the process of finalizing its acquisition of Starplex Cinemas. Here in Lawton Starplex runs the small Central Mall 12-plex. That theater is only 14 years old. Dickinson first opened it then it changed hands a couple times before winding up with Starplex. Considering how small the auditoriums and screens are in this complex I can't see AMC doing much with that place. They're converting a bunch of their theater auditoriums to recliner seating, but it would be a waste in there. I just don't know if AMC could get out of that theater's lease with Central Mall and build a new, larger location in the downtown area to better compete with the new Carmike location on the city's West side.

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 12-08-2015, 03:51 PM:

Studio Movie Grill Zona Rosa, Kansas City, MO
opened April 1, 2010 all digital
closed September 9, 2010

Posted by Ken Lackner (Member # 1002) on 12-08-2015, 04:16 PM:

^Um. What??

Posted by Buck Wilson (Member # 5885) on 12-08-2015, 05:55 PM:

I wasn't aware of that theater's existence and I live pretty close. Apparently it was a 3 screen theater/comedy club, then closed the comedy club and went to 8 screens, then closed. Wish I could've seen it.

http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/20340

Doesn't say when the 3 originally opened.

Following image from google street view, says it was from March of 2015.

From June 2012:

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 12-08-2015, 06:19 PM:

That is the wrong building. You want a block to the left of that.

Posted by Buck Wilson (Member # 5885) on 12-08-2015, 06:28 PM:

Oh my god, Adam! That's even more depressing!

I didn't know of either of those theaters! What's the other one then? Which came first? What happened?

Posted by Paul Mayer (Member # 355) on 12-08-2015, 06:58 PM:

Regal's Four Hills 10 went digital around Christmas of 2010 then closed in 2011 once it was decided that the new Regal Winrock 14 would be built a few miles away. The Four Hills location sat empty until 2015 when Icon Cinemas opened it again as the Albuquerque Icon 10.

Posted by Steve Kraus (Member # 476) on 12-09-2015, 11:54 AM:

"Went digital" means it didn't open that way and this thread is about theatres that opened with digital projection and have already closed.

Posted by Sam Graham (Member # 2889) on 12-09-2015, 03:36 PM:

quote: Buck Wilson
I didn't know of either of those theaters! What's the other one then? Which came first? What happened?

SMG Zona Rosa effectively failed because they couldn't get product. Their proximity to the nearby AMC Barrywoods 24 locked them out of first-run movies, a problem SMG apparently never considered, which doomed them instantly. In their brief existence they ran a really odd hodgepodge lineup of movies everybody had either already seen, or never wanted to see in the first place.

As far as I know, the comedy club was never a theatre.