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Film famine to finish for Queen City

The long commute to Castlegar for local film junkies may be coming to an end.
10088westernstar02_01CapitolTheatre
The Capitol Theatre could soon be satisfying Nelson's film cravings.

The long commute to Castlegar for local film junkies may be coming to an end.

During a board meeting of The Capitol Theatre, the group decided it would acquire a new film projector.

“No matter how you look at this it’s going to be a great thing for the Capitol and for Nelson,” said Capitol Theatre executive director Neil Harrower.

The projector will cost $8,000 plus an additional $2,000 for the peripherals but Harrower said the theatre predicts that it will make back the money quickly.

“We’re not attempting to replace the Civic,” he said. “Not that I know what is going to happen there.”

The question around the future of the Civic Theatre has gone unanswered for some time, but the Capitol is hoping to help fill the gap.

“One idea is if you look at the Royal Theatre in Trail, they have live concerts from the Met and the Bolshoi Ballet and put these on in a series, much like we have a series of live theatre,” said Harrower.

Unlike the movie theatre in Castlegar or the old Civic, the Capitol is not going to be showing first run movies, but hopes the projector will become part of the overall arts experience at the Capitol.

“Having the projector is less about being able to show movies… We can’t shut down the theatre for two weeks to show Batman. But we are going to be able to offer to people in the community who have movies that they would like to show a projector that is hardwired into our system,” said Harrower.

The Capitol is hoping to unveil its new projector and a new main drape – that they are also hoping to purchase – at a premiere of The Tall Man, which was filmed in Nelson and Salmo.

Harrower is also hoping for film festivals, and perhaps a screening and celebration as the 25th anniversary of the release of Roxanne.