Rialto cinema moving to Factory

By ANNE GIBSON

Rialto Entertainment and Village Force will be anchor tenants in a new up-market seven-screen Rialto complex in Newmarket on a site once occupied by a bread factory.

The complex - five luxury theatres and two specialised DVD auditoriums - will be part of a new entertainment and leisure complex called The Factory, with restaurants and shops.

It will be developed by Arthur Morgenstern's Morning Star Enterprises of Auckland.

The Factory, on the corner of Kent and Osborne Sts behind the existing Rialto complex on Broadway, will retain many of the brick facades and village-like features.

But the shift could pose problems for the cinema companies.

Newmarket Property Trust chief David Keys noted that the cinemas were tenants in the trust's building and had a lease on the Rialto Shopping Centre which ran for another four years.

No escape clauses allowed for them to get out of paying the rent any sooner, he said, even though the shift to the new buildings was due in a year or so.

Kelly Rogers, managing director of Rialto Entertainment, and Joe Moodabe, chief executive officer of Village Force Cinemas, said the new centre was an exciting development for the Rialto business, which had been successful at showcasing alternative art/boutique movies to the cinema-going public for the past decade.

The Rialto had cornered a market in premiering art-house movies and the Auckland complex was the first of its type to open, Rogers said.

The existing screens had served the Auckland public well over the years, but had now reached the point where changes in technology and cinema design meant that a revamp and upgrading of services and presentation for cinema patrons were priorities, Rogers said.

The Morning Star development - with restaurants, cafes, other leisure activities and direct carpark access - was a chance for Rialto to hold its position in the boutique cinema market, Rogers said.

The existing Rialto's carparking area is in a separate building.

Joe Moodabe said Rialto had a strong and loyal following from patrons who liked intelligent, thought-provoking movies which were different from the mainstream blockbusters in the large complexes.

Rialto has been successful at building a niche market with art-house, independent and foreign films such as Gosford Park, Lantana and Monsoon Wedding.

The new auditoriums will feature stadium seating for unhampered vision, wall-to-wall screens and the latest in comfortable seats and surroundings.

The projection and audio technology will also ensure the best screen presentation possible. Building is expected to start in September, and take 12 months.

The Rialto Group joint venture operates 18 screens throughout the country.