Coming to a Cinema Near You

It may come as a surprise to some that our cinemas will soon be following our television in having a “digital switchover.” Yet as Hollywood heads ever more in the direction of digital projection – speeding up distribution and cutting the costs of prints – how will this impact on the small and the local cinema?
The driver of the digital revolution in film is not just the blockbuster – though digital projection speeds up possibilities of innovation such as 3D – for art films and arthouse cinemas such as our very own Cornerhouse it can also provide better access to a wider range of films. After all, where you’re relying on a “physical print” of a 35mm film, you sometimes have to take your turn if there’s not enough copies in the country. Also, the real advantage of digital projection is that the quality of the print doesn’t deteriorate. In an age of HD televisions in the home, and blu-ray DVDs, the scratchy film print may be romantic, but its not what the consumer wants or expects.
One of my best ever cinema experiences was seeing a 70mm restored print of “Vertigo” at the Lumiere on St. Martin’s Lane in London, yet that, like so many of our more individual picturehouses is no more. We can mourn the passing of Withington’s Cine City, or even Oxford Road’s venerable Odeon, but without the necessary investment – in comfortable seats, Dolby surroundsound, and yes, digital projection, even the best-loved cinema can become a relic.