Earlier this August, the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) had asked the public to pick their favourite indie cinemas to compete for their first-ever Cinema of the Year Award. The poll was entered by 130 cinemas, close to 100,000 votes were cast, and a shortlist of five has been announced.
BIFA has announced its final five nominees, giving the public the vote for the UK’s number 1 independent picture house. The winner will be announced on November 30 at this year’s BIFA awards.
The venues on the shortlist span the country, with cinemas in Bristol and Belfast, as well as smaller county towns like Lewes and Tywyn.
So, which cinemas made the cut for BIFA’s Cinema of the Year?
Thanks to a specially appointed jury and a public vote, the BIFAs have managed to round up five cinemas on the basis of their contribution to the community, to environmental sustainability, and to the pursuit of making cinema accessible for all.
And the nominees are:
- Depot Cinema, Lewes
- The Magic Lantern Cinema, Tywyn
- Montrose Playhouse
- Queen’s Film Theatre, Belfast
- Watershed, Bristol
Each of the shortlisted cinemas has unique qualities, a rich history and diverse film programming. Lewes’ Depot Cinema, for instance, used to be a Post Office garage in the 1930s; while the Magic Lantern in Tywyn was built as the Town Assembly Room in 1893. Now, the Depot and The Magic Lantern both flourish as community cinemas with some screens equipped with state-of-the-art 4K projection and Dolby Atmos sound.
The Montrose Playhouse started as a cinema in the 1930s, only to be shut in 1977 and the complex demolished after a fire in 1991. But then in a separate location in 2018, an abandoned swimming pool was turned into the second Montrose Playhouse a three-screen complex that proudly claims ‘created by the community for the community’.
Photograph: Queen's Theatre Belfast
Then there’s the Queen’s Film Theatre in Belfast that is located in the vicinity of Queen’s University, balancing its eclectic mix of mainstream and arthouse programming with promising undergraduate and postgraduate student films.
Lastly, there’s Watershed operating from former warehouses on Bristol’s dockside. The establishment is known for ‘Cinema Rediscovered’, what Sight & Sound calls ‘the UK’s leading festival dedicated to classic cinema’.
Can people still vote for the BIFA Cinema of the Year?
Absolutely. The second round of public voting is now open with the audience getting to choose the best cinema among the five nominees. Voting is open now and closes on November 25.