Williamstown's Images Cinema Set for May 22 Reopening
Construction work on the main screen room at Images is seen through a hole cut for a to-be-installed projector.
"First Look," a two-week festival screening some of the biggest films of the last year, will usher in a new era for the century-old Spring Street venue.
The Oscar winner for Best Picture is just one of more than a dozen films that will be shown during the festival, which will run from May 22 through June 4.
"After a long, cold winter, we're so excited to fully spring back into action at Images," Executive Director Dan Hudson said in a news release. "What better way to celebrate with the community than by showing great films, some of which we have not yet been able to present?"
Images members will be able to see films ranging from "One Battle After Another" to "Zootopia 2" for free. Non-members will be able to attend for just $5 during the two-week festival.
The theater itself figures to be part of the draw.
After closing for renovations in October, Images will reopen with a new configuration, including a 70-seat main theater, an 18-seat second theater and a 15-seat lounge available for "intimate" screenings and events. The main screen will feature Dolby Atmos immersive sound and 4K laser projection. The second screen will have 7.1 surround sound and 2K laser projection.
The new main screen will have about half the seating capacity of the original single-screen theater, but the new configuration will create more flexibility for programming.
"We'll have an 18-seat micro cinema, which is roughly equivalent in capacity to our lounge space we've been using off and on as a first-run screening room," Hudson told iBerkshires.com earlier this year. "A lot of those programs that had been happening in the lounge, we're moving over to the smaller theater space.
"The lounge will be almost exclusively a cocktail bar, used for readings, artist talks, karaoke, things like that and as a space for folks to gather before and after movies — formal or informal film clubs, discussions about the movies, things like that."
Since the closure of the main theater for the rebuild in the fall, the Images Lounge has continued to be a venue for smaller screenings. This weekend, for example, it will be showing the 1972 Bruce Lee classic "The Way of the Dragon."
During a tour of the Images interior on Thursday, Hudson explained how the "micro cinema" is constructed to be completely separate from the main screen room. Describing it as a "box inside a box," Hudson said the 18-seat theater will be protected from noise coming from the main screen.
As part of the redesign/renovation project, all public spaces in Images will be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act after the renovation. And a newly installed Auracast Bluetooth system will allow hearing aids to connect directly to the audio stream. The theater seats have been upgraded, "featuring ergonomic support and materials engineered for long-term use in cinema environments," according to the news release.
Tickets for the First Look festival go on sale Tuesday, May 12, at noon at imagescinema.org. Starting June 5, after the festival ends, Images promises a summer lineup of "blockbusters and indie favorites."
But, more than ever, Images is positioning itself as a community hub after its redesign.
"One thing we're excited about is we're going to open the lounge for community use on Sundays and Mondays," Hudson said in March. "We will have information on the website about how people can request the use of the space for whatever they want — leading their own workshops or holding meetups or things like that.
"We're excited to further our mission of film as a way to build community."
Films in Images Cinema's "First Look" reopening festival will include:
Sinners
Frankenstein
Sentimental Value
Hamnet
One Battle After Another
KPop Demon Hunters (plus select screenings in Sing-Along version)
Train Dreams
Bugonia
Sirat
The Testament of Ann Lee
Zootopia 2
Marty Supreme
The Secret Agent
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