March 13, 2021 – Cinemapolis, downtown’s member-supported independent movie theater, is now reopened for private movie showings for small groups. This week, Cinemapolis launched a new Private Movie Party program at the cinema where movie buffs can reserve one of the five screening rooms at the theater to enjoy their favorite film with up to 15 guests.
To make the experience complete, a selection of items from the Cinemapolis concession stand will also be available to pre-order up to 24 hours in advance of the party reservation.
Rental space rates start at $250 for up to 2.5 hours in a screening room, with a discounted base rate of $200 for Cinemapolis members. Private Movie Party reservations for the month of March are now available at Cinemapolis.org.
You can now rent Cinemapolis theatre space for your own small group, private movie parties.
To ensure that these parties comply with all state and local guidelines for a safe return to the movies, Cinemapolis has instituted enhanced health and safety protocols aligned with the CinemaSafe program.
The enhanced health and safety protocols include
- Improved air filtration and fresh air intake for each theater’s isolated HVAC system,
- Frequent disinfection of “high touch” surfaces, complete disinfection of each screening room before and after each use,
- Hand sanitizing stations throughout the cinema.
- All staff and guests will be required to wear face masks when entering the building.
- Party guests in the same pod may be seated closer than 6 feet in the theater, but attendees are asked to keep 6 ft of distance while interacting with staff.
- Partygoers may only remove face coverings when seated and enjoying concessions in their screening room.
- Cinemapolis’ famous popcorn will be available, but all concession purchases must be preordered to reduce face-to-face contact with cinema staff.
For the first month of the program, party hosts must provide their own Blu-ray or DVD to screen. Negotiations are underway to add a rotating selection of newly released films as an option in future months.
Brett Bossard, executive director of the cinema, is overjoyed to welcome patrons back to the downtown fixture.
“After almost exactly a year of being closed in response to the pandemic, our entire staff is eager to dip our toes back into the water and offer up this very safe option for our Cinemapolitans to enjoy movies the way they were meant to be seen—on the big screen.” Bossard adds that many loyal patrons will also be excited about another new addition at the theater: “During the closure, our bathrooms have received a much-needed facelift and now include all-new, hands-free automated fixtures,” Bossard says.
Pending updates to state guidelines for movie theaters and the return to a regular release schedule of new films, Cinemapolis will re-open for regularly scheduled public screenings at some point this summer.
For more information about Cinemapolis’ Private Movie Party program or its other movie-watching options, visit cinemapolis.org.
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About Cinemapolis: Cinemapolis is a non-profit media arts organization, encouraging central New York residents to explore the power of film to entertain, educate, and to celebrate the human experience. Attracting on average 75,000 patrons annually, it is Central New York’s premiere art house cinema, presenting a year-round program of first-run independent, international, and locally produced films alongside special programming to engage and enrich the community. Programming at Cinemapolis is made possible in part by support from the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency, the Tompkins County Tourism Program, and the generosity of hundreds of member “Cinemapolitans.” For more information, visit Cinemapolis.org or contact Executive Director, Brett Bossard – brett@cinemapolis.org.
