Large cinema chains here may have incurred huge losses with barely filled halls during the lockdowns, but smaller players have suffered in their own ways too. Indie theatres have, for years, served a niche but passionate segment of the film community, says Nikki Draper, assistant chair of student life and alumni at Nanyang Technological University’s Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information.
“The Projector and the Asian Film Archive, which runs the Oldham Theatre, have done a great job of setting themselves apart from the larger theatre chains. They both offer unique viewing experiences, as well as ancillary activities that are meaningful and fun to their target audience,” says the faculty coordinator for the annual Perspectives Film Festival.
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“It would be a real loss to Singapore’s cinephile culture — as well as a more casual viewer — if we lose either of those venues,” adds Draper.
These players are overwhelmingly dwarfed by large chains here, and may even fly under the radar of those outside of the community.
Compared to The Projector’s three screens, Shaw Theatres boasts 65 screens islandwide and Golden Village tops the list with 104, as of 2020. Cathay Cineplexes, the chain up for sale by Catalist-listed mm2 Asia, has 64 screens here.
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Meanwhile, the 135-seat Oldham Theatre has just one screening room. The theatre is run by the Asian Film Archive (AFA), a subsidiary of the National Library Board Singapore (NLB). AFA receives an operational grant from NLB to run its programmes.
“At AFA, we are dedicated to sharing the uniqueness and appreciation for the rich heritage of Asian cinema through our curated programmes,” says Viknesh Kobinathan, programmer at AFA.
Last year’s “circuit breaker” prompted AFA to explore video-on-demand (VOD), streamed online for viewers. “It has proven to be an effective way for us to reach our audience. Even as screenings resumed, we continued to offer VOD programmes for our audience to watch the films at their convenience,” says Viknesh.
But after a year of lockdowns, audiences are in the mood for films. Viknesh points to the “immense response” for AFA’s Retrospective: Wong Kar Wai, organised in March.
All 31 physical screenings of the well-loved Hong Kong director’s films were completely sold out. “As part of the programme, we worked with local design studio Knuckles & Notch to design original enamel pins, stickers and risograph prints that were massively popular locally and internationally,” he adds.
The 135-seat Oldham Theatre is run by the Asian Film Archive (AFA), a subsidiary of the National Library Board Singapore (NLB)
“We are heartened to see that people seem to be enjoying the cinema experience, the idea of being in a darkened hall, watching moving images projected on a large screen. Even though there is a myriad of online content, I suppose there is still something very special and irreplaceable about viewing movies in a cinema,” says Viknesh.
Meanwhile, The Projector went on hiatus from May 31 to June 13 this year, putting its 21 employees on unpaid leave during the closure.
In response to tightening restrictions then, the indie cinema voluntarily shut the doors of its main theatres at Golden Mile Tower and at its pop-up at Riverside Point. The latter, formerly an abandoned Chinese nightclub, had just opened as a 48-seat satellite venue on April 30.
During the lockdowns, the cinema encouraged viewers to watch films on its Projector Plus streaming service, with movie rentals starting from $6 for a 48-hour viewing window.
Today, the cinema hosts comedy nights, drag shows and even “kitchen takeovers”, with guest chefs serving hungry patrons.
Audiences experience only a fraction of the work that goes into getting a movie into a theatre, says Draper. “While it might seem like it’s only the theatres and their employees who are impacted if those businesses shutter, it will have a ripple effect into other areas.”
“That’s what we mean by an ecosystem — one thing goes, then many other things and people experience consequences,” she adds. “Perhaps, the easiest [scenario] to imagine is what will happen to commercial real estate, and to businesses in these malls, if the 274 movie theatres islandwide are no longer in those facilities?”
Photos: Asian Film Archive
