1 of 5 | Tiny Pederson runs the Desert Historic Theater in Burns, Ore., featured in "The Last Picture Shows," in theaters Friday. Photo courtesy of Foghorn Features
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 7 (UPI) -- In The Last Picture Shows, in New York theaters Friday, director Rustin Thompson profiles small town movie theaters in the western United States. Theater owners discuss challenges facing cinema and propose solutions to Hollywood.
In a recent Zoom interview with UPI, Thompson said theaters have two of the three components necessary to survive. They already have theater spaces and filmmakers making films.
"The one thing we need to keep it going is the audience," Thompson said. "They have forgotten what it's like to be in a communal space with a big screen and great sound, in darkness watching this film and you can't stop it."
After July's openings for The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, mainstream Hollywood movies are doing well. However, that blockbuster mentality still limits the audience for theatrical screenings.
