The Cathay Cineplex in Handy Road, quite possibly of Singapore’s oldest cinemas, will stop operations from June 27, and assuming control over the space is a pop-up by free cinema operator The Projector.
The Handy Road outlet in the Dhoby Ghaut area is one of eight Cathay Cineplexes in Singapore. The last screening will be hung on a Sunday night, Jun 26.
In a statement, media company mm2 Asia, which runs the Cathay Cineplexes chain in Singapore, said the conclusion of the iconic cinema, near Dhoby Ghaut MRT station, is “part of the cost rationalisation process for its cinema operations”.
Mr Chang Long Jong, group chief executive for mm2 Asia, said: “The cinema’s closure was a business decision. Over the years, retail traffic demographics have changed. We have had to evaluate the commercial viability of operating two cinemas in the Orchard shopping belt within 1.5km of each other and within 300m of another multiplex.”
The company likewise works the nine-screen Cathay Cineplex Cineleisure outlet at the Cathay Cineleisure expansion on Grange Road.
He added that it will be “business as usual” at the chain’s different outlets.
The Handy Road area has been in activity beginning around 1939 and numerous Singaporeans have affectionate recollections of watching movies there. It was Singapore’s most air-conditioned cinema and is housed in a milestone building that is today a safeguarded national landmark.
The cinema premises at Handy Road is owned by Cathay Organisation and The Straits Times has reached it for input. It is perceived that the shops and restaurants somewhere else in the structure are not impacted by the cinema conclusion and will work typically.
From August 23, the space recently utilized by The Cathay Cineplex will turn into the most recent pop-up outlet worked by The Projector.
A statement from building proprietor Cathay Organisation said the space, to be named Projector X: Picturehouse, will be utilized for films, and live exhibitions, complete with a cocktail and craft beer bar.
The Projector likewise works with Projector X: Riverside, a pop-up cinema at Riverside Point on Merchant Road. Its really long-lasting premises are at Golden Mile Tower in Beach Road.
Ms. Karen Tan, the founder of The Projector, said in the statement that her team is “super stoked” to be at The Cathay, which she calls “an iconic grand dame with a storied past”.
The Projector pop-up is perceived to be brief, yet there was no remark from The Projector or Cathay Organisation on the span of the pop-up or the drawn-out plans for the space.
A spokesperson for The Cathay told The Straits Times: “We are studying plans for The Cathay to undergo redevelopment works. Given the prime location of the mall and evolving shopper demographics, we believe that a possible revamp will unlock the greatest potential for the mall.”
The conclusion of the seven-screen Cathay cinema comes in the midst of difficult stretches for the presentation business. The Covid-19 plague created setbacks for the release of blockbusters while social-distancing rules diminished seating ability to approximately 50%.
Recently, more modest chain Filmgarde Cineplexes announced the closures of two of its branches, at Bugis+ and Century Square.
With the facilitating of social removing rules on April 26 this year, business has bounced back “almost to pre-Covid levels”, as indicated by the mm2 Asia statement.
Mr. Chang said that “the cinema exhibition business remains a key part of our Group’s overall business strategy. Business for the cinemas has picked up significantly since the relaxing of Covid-19 restrictions”.
The company is investigating developments, for example, ideas for live exhibitions and e-sports. More information will be released soon, he said.
mm2 gained Cathay Cineplexes in Singapore in November 2017. The group currently works at eight Cathay Cineplexes locations in Singapore. In Malaysia, it works 12 locations under the mmCineplexes brand.
Mr Chang finished his remarks by expressing gratitude toward cinema patrons, studio partners, and suppliers for their support.
Screenwriter Michael Chiang, 66, who wrote the comedy Army Daze (1996), said that the film debuted at The Cathay cinema, as did his 2015 film Our Sister Mambo, a film inexactly founded on the 1950s Hong Kong comedy classic.
Created to mark Cathay Organisation’s 80th anniversary, Mambo features an end-credits dance arrangement filmed at the building’s entry.
“I am quite saddened, as the cinema holds great memories for me,” he said.
Moviegoers were likewise discouraged by the news.
Ms. Prachi Kale, 21, a university student who had studied at the neighboring School of the Arts, said: “It’s an iconic cinema, so it’s definitely going to feel like something’s missing around the Orchard area when I go there.”
Madam Bernice Toh, 47, who works in the service industry, said: “When I was younger, it was a place I went to relax with my friends on my days off.”
While national serviceman Matthew Ng, 22, who recently caught sleeper hit Everything Everywhere All At Once there, said: “Catching a movie at The Cathay will always be a vibe I’ll remember.”
THE PROJECTOR POP-UP
Instead of The Cathay Cineplex, nearby free cinema The Projector will invite benefactors as a pop-up from Aug 23, announced Cathay Organisation.
It will be the third cinema worked by The Projector, after the ones at Golden Mile Tower and Riverside Point at Clarke Quay.
“Patrons of The Cathay and fans of The Projector can look forward to enjoying The Projector’s curation of films and live performances, complete with a cocktail and craft beer bar from Aug 23, 2022, onward,” said the company.
It added that the new cinema, named Project X: Picturehouse, is a recognition for the structure’s “arthouse cinema past”.
The Cathay Building was once the tallest building in Singapore. It used to house the Cathay cinema, which opened in 1939. It was additionally the primary public space in Singapore to be furnished with air-conditioning.
After Singapore tumbled to the Japanese in 1942, it became home to the Japanese Propaganda Department.
The building was gazetted as a national monument in 2003.
“We are excited to adaptively reuse the cineplex into an alternative space to experience film, live theatre productions, performing arts and live music, with that signature Projector stamp of diversity and inclusivity, right in the heart of the Bras Basah Bugis creative precinct,” said the founder of The Projector Karen Tan.
Recently, cinema Cineplexes announced that it is closing two of its cinema as it surveys industry patterns in the midst of the digitalisation wave.
Filmgarde’s head of cinema operations Sherman Ong added that the surge in online streaming platforms has “fundamentally altered global content production and distribution models as well as audience behaviour and media consumption patterns”.
The company additionally works on the nine-screen Cathay Cineplex Cineleisure outlet at the Cathay Cineleisure building on Grange Road.
He added that it will be “business as usual” at the chain’s different outlets.
The Handy Road location has been in activity beginning around 1939 and numerous Singaporeans have affectionate recollections of watching motion pictures there. It was Singapore’s most air-conditioned cinema and is housed in a landmark building that is today a safeguarded national monument.
The cinema premises at Handy Road is owned by Cathay Organisation and The Straits Times has reached it for input. It is perceived that the shops and restaurants somewhere else in the building are not impacted by the cinema conclusion and will work ordinarily.
From August 23, the space recently utilized by The Cathay Cineplex will turn into the most recent pop-up outlet worked by The Projector.
A statement from building owner Cathay Organisation said the space, to be named Projector X: Picturehouse, will be utilized for films, and live exhibitions, complete with a cocktail and craft beer bar.
The Projector likewise works with Projector X: Riverside, a pop-up cinema at Riverside Point on Merchant Road. Its really long-lasting premises are at Golden Mile Tower in Beach Road.
Ms. Karen Tan, the founder of The Projector, said in the statement that her team is “super stoked” to be at The Cathay, which she calls “an iconic grand dame with a storied past”.
The Projector pop-up is perceived to be impermanent, however, there was no remark from The Projector or Cathay Organisation on the span of the pop-up or the drawn-out plans for the space.
The conclusion of the seven-screen Cathay cinema comes in the midst of difficult stretches for the presentation business. The Covid-19 scourge created setbacks for the release of blockbusters while social-distancing rules diminished seating ability to approximately 50%.
Recently, more modest chain Filmgarde Cineplexes announced the closures of two of its branches, at Bugis+ and Century Square.
The company is investigating advancements, for example, ideas for live exhibitions and e-sports. More data will be released soon, he said.
mm2 obtained Cathay Cineplexes in Singapore in November 2017. The group presently works in eight Cathay Cineplexes locations in Singapore. In Malaysia, it works 12 locations under the mmCineplexes brand.
Mr. Chang finished his remarks by saying thanks to cinema patrons, studio patrons, and suppliers for their support.
Screenwriter Michael Chiang, 66, who wrote the comedy Army Daze (1996), said that the film premiered at The Cathay cinema, as did his 2015 film Our Sister Mambo, a film inexactly founded on the 1950s Hong Kong comedy classic.
Created to mark Cathay Organisation’s 80th anniversary, Mambo features an end-credits dance succession filmed at the building’s entry.
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