Comments on: ‘imagin-indie’? asian-themed cinema moves on

By: Jim

Jim — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:32:07 +0000

An Uwe Boll festival? Are you kidding me? Has anyone else looked at “Downtown Independent” ‘s schedule? Snooooze. Wont be long before they move on as well.

By: Jim

Jim — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:07:58 +0000

Besides the choice of films that were shown, two other problems under the previous management were lack of promotion and lack of a traditional marquee. Hodgetts and Fung forgot to replace the old Linda Lea marquee with a new one, so you couldn’t look up or down Main from a block or two away and see what was playing. And as for promotion, the old management seldom if ever went around the immediate neighborhood with posters/postcards to so that those of us living within six or so blocks would know what was playing.

By: moviegoer

moviegoer — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 18:24:06 +0000

I saw that they are offering $5 tickets to anyone who lives or works downtown!! so stoked. The guy at the concession stand also pointed out that they lowered concession prices considerably. you now no longer need a second(or third?) mortgage on your soft-loft to go the movies.

By: Rich Alossi

Rich Alossi — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 08:24:08 +0000

Ben: For the record, I did delete/moderate a number of vitriolic/unintelligible/hateful comments.

By: Benjamin Pezzillo

Benjamin Pezzillo — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 05:40:55 +0000

Any new business is a challenge and, as several of the people posting here can personally attest to, an art business is usually more a labor of love than profit.

I do not believe there is ‘hate’ towards either the new or old operators of the theater in the comments here. I think people living Downtown and nearby in the Historic Core would really embrace a broader array of programming than ImagineAsian offered in the niche it claimed.

Particularly in rocky economic times, retail/service/consumer businesses will have to sway to what customers want if the want to be self-sufficient financially and even then some will likely close in the coming deflation.

I would hope the new operators would take note of the feedback here rather than dismiss it as hate.

Between OnDemand, NetFlix and direct Internet distribution, niche theaters are going to be a challenging business model. That’s note hate, that’s just the 21st Century.

I, for one, will make an effort to track what shows the new operators are running and will be glad to walk (not drive) to see movies I would otherwise go to see elsewhere outside Downtown.

By: Down Town Dirty Girl

Down Town Dirty Girl — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 02:16:39 +0000

Don’t be offended by my downtown slang, but F$#@ all you haters… This isn’t easy for them there. One they have to make a new name for themselves. All despite the negative reputation and bad programing of the previous Imaginasian. Two they have do it on no budget. People in some cases volunteering time. These people are film lovers to the core and anything that you want to see they will try and get. Talk to the people that run things there. They will let you check out the projection room, take you to the roof, and talk to you. They are like friends there. All the kids that work there are involved in film making. Anyone that wants to support and be a part of an art house should support. Seriously, they are planning a lot of events and any one interested should go in and contribute. Are you a musician, DJ, comic, magician, film maker, photographer, painter, chef… Whatever! Downtown Independent wants to bring the people together with art and culture. We are all a part of this, lets make a place we can come together in these times and express ourselves.

By: Mark

Mark — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 01:03:47 +0000

I do agree that the design of ImaginAsian isn’t up to par. I hope the new indie tenant does something change it a bit. Every time I see that place i think of pinkberry and all of the other yogurt shops with that exact same design. (side note - I have not actually been inside the theater)

By: Benjamin Pezzillo

Benjamin Pezzillo — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 02:11:00 +0000

I’m sorry nothing at the ImagineAsian ever caught my interest enough to make me catch a flick there.

The Vista languished for years before it got a renovation in the late 1990s (?) that included much needed seat replacement. The popularity of the Good Luck Bar seemed to help at one time as did the wisdom of the management to do 24/7 shows of the first Star Wars prequel back in 1999.

Bottom line is the Vista picks the movies it thinks are going to be the must-sees for the arty types in the business of Hollywood. A theater in Gallery Row could do well by mirroring the Vista’s picks as well as folding in documentaries and foreign films — think Vista meets the Sunset Five.

By: Rich Alossi

Rich Alossi — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 21:36:06 +0000

James can be forgiven for not having seen Downtown several years ago, much less ten years ago. Back then it was a much different place. Even in the past couple of years, my own block (Main and 6th) has been transformed.

Think these things are happening by chance? No way. It takes dedicated people who live and work in the community for these changes to occur.

Yes, tens of thousands of them.

By: Scott Mercer

Scott Mercer — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 21:33:06 +0000

James won’t accept the fact of 40,000 people living downtown because that fact does not jibe with his prejudices.