Independent cinemas call for funding support as Covid-19 wipes out customers

Adelaide’s last drive-in is no more and now cinema operators have revealed how close they are to calling curtains on their theatres too.

Regional cinema operators brought to their knees during the pandemic are pleading for help to stay afloat.

Gawler Village Twin Cinema owner John Thorpe has operated the venue for 32 years and says the last two have been the hardest he has ever experienced.

Mr Thorpe and wife Joy have sold two investment properties, deferred mortgage payments and had to stand down staff.

He said the venue was at risk of closure, its future depending on whether customers started coming back as more Hollywood films were released.

John Thorpe is concerned about the future of the Gawler Village Twin Cinema, which he has operated for more than 30 years. Picture: Brad Fleet

The business received a $35,000 payment through the federal government’s $20m Screen Fund and, along with other operators, is calling for more support. Mr Thorpe said the money, released in May, was “gobbled up instantly” on bills, and more funding would help businesses survive until customers returned.

SA Senator Rex Patrick has written to the federal government calling for the release of more money to help struggling operators like the Thorpes, as about half of the Screen Fund remains unspent.

Carol Burford closed her cinema in Kadina last month after struggling with dwindling patrons. “Cinemas still need more financial support and we need people to put their bums on seats,” she said.

In Port Augusta, local cinema manager Michelle Coles said just 85 people attended seven sessions of James Bond over the weekend.

“We’re fortunate that we’re older but we have to use our savings to keep afloat, keep paying the bills and keep paying our staff,” she said.

Lorna, Michelle and Deanna Wallis at their Mainline Drive-In in Gepps Cross, which is set to close in February. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“We see young kids get dressed up and go to the movies and we want that back – where else do they go?”

Coober Pedy’s council-owned drive-in will soon be the last remaining one in the state, after Wallis announced it will close its Gepps Cross venue in February.

Council administrator Tim Jackson said the attraction still drew tourists and locals, with about 50 cars turning up on evenings in the peak winter season.

However, he said it remained viable mostly because of low costs, as it was run by volunteers.

A spokeswoman for Federal Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said the Screen Fund provided a “vital lifeline” for independent cinemas during “unprecedented crisis”.

“With Covid-19 restrictions being rolled back, and states and territories opening up, and Hollywood movies now in cinemas, the business circumstances which created the need for this exceptional support are now in the past,” she said.

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