Community Cinema Project for All Saints
..and more comfortable seats too...! 
The Town Council has decided to directly manage popular cinema at its much-loved All Saints Centre, in the town centre.
Councillors hope to reduce the costs for operating the council-owned community arts and youth centre, based in a characterful old decommissioned church, in the centre of town. A commercial company currently shows popular “blockbuster” films at the Friars Walk venue, while a local film club shows art-house and foreign-language films.
There are also plans to install 100 retractable, tiered seats on the ground floor, the replacement of seats on the balcony and the replacement of other seats – a response to the long-acknowledged complaints from users of All Saints that it wasn’t all that comfortable!
By taking over popular film screenings itself, the town council envisages a potential annual benefit of more than £20,000 assuming average audiences of only half the venue's capacity, and with no increase in ticket prices. Movies will continue on a regular basis for a wide variety of audiences, as now, including the latest releases.
The council is also to join with local disability group The Oyster Project to run a traditional kiosk service, selling confectionery, popcorn and drinks for each screening.
The plan was approved at a recent Council meeting, after hearing the recommendations of a steering group of seven councillors, which had been asked to look at reducing the current cost of operating the All Saints Centre.
Councillor Dr Mike Turner, a former Mayor of Lewes and the chairman of the steering group, said: “Lewes Town Council sees the main benefits of this move as feeding profits back into the community, while maintaining the role of All Saints as a much-loved place to watch popular films – saving filmgoers from travelling to Uckfield; Brighton; Eastbourne, or Hailsham - and reinforcement of the Centre as a community asset- as originally stipulated by the church authorities when the building was given to us. We also listened to the customers who find the seats uncomfortable!”
Film programming, hire, publicity and screenings will be organised for the council by Lewes Film Club, a local voluntary organization that is celebrating its 25th birthday this year, who will continue with their complementary programme of classic and Art House films.