"Cost of going digital hurts some small theaters"

 

Howard Molton, owner of Flat Rock Cinema, loads the film projector as he gets ready for Friday's showing of The Descendants. (Mike Dirks/TIMES-NEWS)

From the Times-News, a story on the Flat Rock Cinema and several other small theaters in the area on their move to digital:

Howard Molton, co-owner of Flat Rock Cinema, has received an outpouring of support from the community after he announced the business might have to close if he couldn't find a way to pay for a new projector....

"We've had a lot of people offer us money and people have given us money," he said. "We don't want to just be given a hand-out."

Instead, he is hosting a meeting at 11 a.m. Feb. 25 at the theater to explain the situation and brainstorm ideas.

"It's starting to get sort of critical," Molton said, adding that he wants to make the change in the next 90 days. He understands the financial reasons for changing the format, but said the change leaves him feeling a little nostalgic.

Mark Peddy, owner of Co-Ed Cinema in Brevard, said the conversion at his theater will take place in early March....

It's a hard time for small businesses looking for a loan to purchase the equipment, [Peddy] added. A lot of banks aren't lending money, but there is an option to lease the equipment from the bank and pay it off. "You have to be creative. You have to work at it," Peddy said.

Barry Flood, owner of Tryon Theatre, said he's still in the planning stage for finding a digital projector."I'm trying to find a used system that's affordable," he said.

Flood added that his theater runs movies six to eight weeks behind their premiere, and he can still find films in 35 mm. Flood purchased the theater in 1990, though it has been open since 1932....

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