For my Gold Arts Award presentation this Thursday, I’ll be arguing that Carlisle needs an independent cinema.  Carlisle is the only city in Cumbria, the third largest county in England.  In my opinion, the city desperately needs an arts hub which programmes independent and out of the ordinary films, whether these are documentaries, foreign films, classics, shorts or films by first-time directors – basically, anything that presents a different slant on cinema, and on the world, to what is commonly portrayed in Hollywood blockbusters.

I grew up in a remote hamlet on the Solway coast, and though the cinema in Carlisle was still half an hour’s drive away, it was the closest one to me.  For a while, I was able to go to screenings at the independent Lonsdale cinema, which first opened in 1931 and in its time hosted performances by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, as well as a commercial multiplex.  Unfortunately, the Lonsdale closed in 2006 and has since become derelict; the only cinema in the city now is the Vue cinema, which offers the standard blockbusters and little else.  Although the Tullie House Museum offers a programme of alternative cinema on Monday evenings, this isn’t nearly enough for a whole city.

Several towns in Cumbria do have thriving cinemas and arts centres, such as the Brewery Arts Centre in Kendal and Zeffirelli’s in Ambleside.  Keswick even has its own successful film festival.  Movements like ‘North West New Wave’ show there is interest in filmmaking and cinema in the North West, and the University of Cumbria, which has a campus in Carlisle, runs several film and media courses.  I’m certain that there is already an audience for an independent cinema in Carlisle.

However, there is a tendency for Carlisle to be neglected in terms of what it can offer culturally.  The Lake District, Newcastle and Manchester have all become strong cultural centres over the years, but Carlisle continues to be left behind.  As a result, I will be looking at what the benefits of independent film are, why Carlisle lacks an independent cinema and what one could do for the city.  I will argue that there is no reason why people in and around Carlisle should miss out on the chance to broaden their horizons and gain exposure to some of the most challenging, imaginative and thought-provoking films the independent sector has to offer.

Sources

http://www.independentcinemaoffice.org.uk/resources/cinemas/north-west

http://northwestnewwave.wordpress.com/

John Hurt advocates independent cinema in Keswick: http://bit.ly/1d21eCT