Los Angeles film fans rejoiced last month with the news that the Cinerama Dome and Arclight Cinemas venue in Hollywood — which have been shuttered since the start of the pandemic — would finally reopen. Sony Pictures bought the Dome, which will be operated by Alamo Dratfhouse. The chain will also run the former Arclight multiplex adjacent to the Dome, once a haven for screening 70mm films (like, say, this year’s “The Odyssey”) on a 32-foot-high, 86-foot-wide screen.
Enter 26-year-old filmmaker and film student Ben Steinberg, whose grassroots campaign amassed more than 30,000 signatures dating back to the Twitter account he launched in 2021. Back in March of this year, he projected the faces of Decurion Corporation (which owned the theaters) owners on the front of the Dome and risked a citation — and the bold move, it turns out, nabbed Sony’s attention.
Armed with at first only a social media account, one California State University student’s efforts have helped raise awareness around the return of what was once the highest-grossing theater in the country.
On this week’s episode of IndieWire’s “Screen Talk” podcast, Steinberg sits down with co-hosts Anne Thompson and Ryan Lattanzio to talk about the campaign and what he plans to do next via his growing Save Your Cinema operation. Though he can’t say much yet, Steinberg is also spearheading the movement to revive the Bruin Theater in Westwood Village, a movie palace that dates back more than 90 years.
Elsewhere on the podcast, we also look at the latest film festival news out of New York and Toronto, including the world premiere of “Godzilla Minus Zero” at NYFF. It’s a smart move for a festival that can cater to both the rarified and wider tastes while preserving its legacy for the highest quality. We’re looking at a festival season sans American blockbusters, and so international tentpoles like the Toho franchise entry and even “Hope” in the Cannes competition suggest the action for big festival spectacle is coming from overseas.
We also talk about the future of the stars of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” Hollywood power couple Zendaya and Tom Holland. What’s next for them, and where should they go?
We also debate The Ankler’s proposition that George Clooney buy Warner Bros. Anne, meanwhile, addresses the question of whether Nikki Finke’s estate can sell her unpublished Hollywood tell-all, now titled “Hubris.” And should Warners step up and meet the demands of Gerwig and Baumbach in order to make the next “Barbie”? What’s making them hesitate?
Listen to this week’s episode below or on your preferred podcast platform.
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