Together with SP Rotterdam and Stichting Wijkcollectie, Actiegroep Cinerama Moet Blijven organised a sold-out action evening on Tuesday 25 February that we will never forget!
The well-attended evening opened with the beautiful poem ‘Het Drama van Cinerama’ by Désirée van Blitterswijk. After that, we had the honour of hosting the Rotterdam premiere of the documentary ‘De Toekomst Is Failliet’, by Rotterdam filmmaker Suzanne Koopstra. Afterwards, there was a panel discussion and lively discussion with the audience about the future of the city and our cinema. Beloved Rotterdammers and main characters from the film, Bep and Tinus, gave a passionate plea for the preservation of Cinerama and advocated for the establishment of a foundation that can save the cinema.
As the icing on the cake, cinema Cinerama was awarded the title of “Echt Rotterdams Erfgoed” (Real Rotterdam Heritage) with an accompanying plaque for the facade. Echt Rotterdams Erfgoed is a collection of people, institutions and activities that currently play an important and connecting role in the city. The award emphasizes the unique contribution of the theater to the culture and community of Rotterdam. We thank Stichting Wijkcollectie for this wonderful honour.
Who owns the city?
Sabine Maertens (initiator of the petition and one of the spokespersons for Cinerama Moet Blijven) emphasized again that Cinerama is a successful cinema, but that this location in the middle of the city is looked at by real estate entrepreneurs, and they see more value if there was no cinema. The fact that according to the current building plans, a 100-meter high tower is allowed to be constructed. This is at odds with the words of the municipality in response to questions from council member Astrid Kockelkoren: ‘the Board advocates places with meaning and for attention to the existing in the development of the city. So yes, we would like to see a place like this (Cinerama), including with the film programming, to be preserved for the city. The building is also a municipal monument. ‘ On Tuesday, March 4, we have been invited to talk with the municipality about the future of Cinerama.
How do we save Cinerama?
The pressing question from the audience about how you can contribute as a citizen emphasized the importance of organization and donations. If you can contribute in any way with knowledge, ideas or network, we cordially invite you to email info@actiegroepcinerama.nl. We are busy setting up the foundation and we will soon share more about a large-scale crowdfunding campaign to become independent of cinema group Kinepolis and to be able to finance a well-deserved renovation of Cinerama. In this way, we will not only be preserved, but we will also be future-proof.
We would like to sincerely thank the more than 250 people who came to the evening. We feel enormously strengthened and supported to continue to focus on a bright future for Cinerama!
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