By ATSUSHI OHARA/ Staff Writer
January 11, 2022 at 18:25 JST
Ritsuko Iwanami, the manager of Iwanami Hall, in Tokyo in February 2021 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
Pioneering art house theater Iwanami Hall, located in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward, will close its doors for good on July 29 due to financial struggles brought on by the pandemic.
It made the announcement on its official website on Jan. 11.
“Iwanami Hall has judged that it has become too difficult to continue operating the theater as the new coronavirus infection has impacted and drastically worsened our financial situation,” the website said.
The hall opened in February 1968. It was initially a multipurpose facility, but it became an art house theater after it began the “Equipe de cinema” (Film team) movement in 1974, where it would screen unsung film masterpieces.
“Iwanami Hall is a kind of legendary place, supporting Japanese film culture for so long,” said Yuko Iwasaki, the managing director of the Japan Community Cinema Center, which consists of small theaters across Japan. “The hall’s brand has gained strong trust from spectators, film creators, movie distributors and small local theaters. It is just so shocking.”
Iwanami Hall has shown 271 movie masterworks from 65 countries and regions since it opened.
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