Andrew Moore does not watch a lot of movies in the cinema.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Some might say this is unusual, considering he, along with wife Amanda, owns and runs the local Lilac City Cinema.
For the past 11 years, it has been the same. Mr Moore and his staff open the doors at 8.30am, check the till, stock up and ensure all the technology is working.
Mr Moore admits to doing a bit of everything – cleaning, maintenance, serving food – but says his favourite part of the day is speaking to customers.
“I tend to spend more time talking to customers, especially the regular customers,” he said. “I know what’s going on in their lives and they know what’s going on in my life. I’ve built up friendships.”
The decision to take on the Lilac Cinema started with his father, who, in his younger days, was a runner in Sydney.
Working with multiple cinemas, he delivered reels between Mascot and the city, and about 15 years ago took over a cinema in Campbelltown.
Today, cinemas receive their film off a DCP (digital cinema package) for download, which is transferred in a media unit and sent to multiple projectors.
Mostly mainstream movies are chosen, but Mr Moore said he and his wife try to add different movies including homegrown, independent films. The Last of the Mohicans from 1992 he describes as “exceptional”, having stuck in his memory.
“I believe the cinema will always have a space because you get the atmosphere,” he said confidently, in response to how modern-day streaming sites plague the film industry.