Bringing Movies Back to Broad St.

Date: July 5, 2016

To: All media for immediate release

Re: Bringing Movies Back to Broad St.

From: The Bijou Film Center

After having staged seven pop-up events (one, two, three, four, five, six, seven) and having conducted a membership drive that achieved its goal, the Bijou Film Center has parlayed its string of successes and good luck into a lease on the ground floor of 304 E. Broad St.

From here on the Bijou concept will no longer be a drawing on a napkin with no place to call home. The owner of the freshly renovated building, Matthew Bauserman, said this about the June 30th lease-signing to STYLE Weekly:

I'm so pleased to have the Bijou Film Center as a neighbor at the corner of 3rd and Broad. What James and Terry are doing is so exciting and there is no better home for them than the RVA Arts District. I couldn't ask for better than having TheatreLab, CodeVA, and the Bijou as my ground floor tenants - these folks are the real deal, who care about art, culture, education, and giving back to the community."

Since cinema pioneer Jake Wells' original Bijou opened in 1899, just five blocks to the east, the folks working to build The Bijou are delighted to have this opportunity to bring movies back to Broad Street. As soon as it's feasible The Bijou will begin showing films on a regular basis in its own location.

While it will start out with a temporary screen and folding chairs, in the fall we hope to install some of those seats that were donated to us by the owner of the building that once housed the Westhampton Theatre.

Although 304 E. Broad St. may not be where the Bijou Film Center concept will be fully realized, this starter-home seems like the perfect spot in which to incubate the non-profit film center's ambitious plan to become the hub of all things film in Richmond.

The first event in The Bijou's new space will be presented early next month. Need more information about the Bijou Film Center's history and mission?

For background go to The Bijou's website. Or its blogzine -- the Bijou Backlight. Or its Facebook page.

Contacts:

James Parrish: Email: jtparrish@bijoufilmcenter.org. Phone: (804) 564-3224.

Terry Rea: Email: ftrea9@gmail.com. Phone: (804) 938-7997.
Bijou Film Center, PO Box 4994, Richmond, VA, 23220.