The Revue Film Society, a nonprofit that runs the 112-year-old Avenue Roncesvalles movie theater, said at a news conference Friday that the court order ending its eviction has been extended until Oct. 30, when the court is expected to make a decision. Final determination.
“We are very grateful for the network’s outpouring of support over the past week,” said Grant Oyston, president of Film Society Review.
“It is evident that the network cares deeply about Revue Cinema and overwhelmingly needs it to remain on the network, operated as a non-profit organization, with the glorious programmers we have today. “
The theatre is threatened by ongoing tensions with its owner, Daniel Mullin.
The company said Mullin informed its board of directors last week that it would not extend its lease, after it expired on June 30. The theatre is a historic cultural establishment in Toronto.
Toronto City Council is considering designating the theater construction as a heritage site, Mayor Olivia Chow said Saturday. The theater’s front façade earned historic designation in 2006, according to the Review’s website.
SEE | Historic Toronto movie theater could close its doors:
Oyston is claiming the initial injunction granted on June 28, which prevented the owner, Daniel Mullin, from interfering with the company’s operations until trial.
According to Oyston, the company’s board of directors and the owner had been in verbal negotiations for months and appeared to be in a position to reach an agreement.
The nonprofit has operated the single-screen theater for 17 years, after Mullin purchased the building in 2006. They were the only tenant that time and have invested thousands of dollars in the renovation and interview, Oyston said. Training
La Revue opened in 1911 and first screened silent films. Oyston said its closure would be a major blow to both West Toronto’s cultural vitality and Canada’s independent film scene.
Oyston said Revue is one of the high-profile venues that showcases independent, Indigenous, and 2SLGBTQ films to a wide audience.
Ideally, the theater would like to reach a negotiated solution with Mullin, company treasurer Marc Priestly said. “We don’t need this to lead to litigation,” he said.
Although Mullin said he was looking to run the theater without the company’s board of directors, Priestly said that was unlikely.
The Revue’s staff and programmers have publicly and independently stated that they would not work for a for-profit version of the cinema, he said.
Additionally, the board owns many of the theater’s assets, he said, the projector, ticketing systems and social media accounts.
Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro suggested Mayor Olivia Chow save the movie theater in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.
@MayorOliviaChow Can you save REVUE, one of Canada’s most beloved non-profit cultural landmarks? https://t. co/59TrOEgoqB Nearly 20,000 signatures added https://t. co/uvT0DalW6dIf it’s not you, WHO can? OR HOW can I? @BhutilaKarpoche @viraniarif @gordperks
“Can you save REVUE, one of Canada’s most beloved non-profit cultural landmarks? »She wrote, tagging the mayor and posting a link to a petition that has more than 20,000 signatures. “If it’s not you, WHO can do it? or HOW can I?”
Several of Del Toro’s films have been filmed in Toronto, The Shape of Water, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, and the upcoming Netflix film, Frankenstein.
Of the director’s support, Priestly said it’s “surprising and comforting. . . to see other people of this caliber care about the programming we do and the important importance of Review to Toronto. “
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