It’s not that many months ago that Brad Beemer thought that, in the near future, he would be operating a movie theatre in Blind River which stood dormant since its previous operator passed away in 2021.
He never really thought about it until a family dinner in April when he asked his son-in-law Dan Middaugh, a town councillor, about what was happening with the closed theatre.
Middaugh informed Beemer that the town was hoping to find someone willing to operate the theatre and bring movies back to Blind River.
“We need someone to run it so you should do it,” Beemer said of Middaugh’s response to his inquiry about the theatre.
“It’s very nice. It’s a very good opportunity for a guy like me because the school is very fair with the rent and the town has been very helpful. It keeps the overhead very low to keep it viable,” he said prior to Tuesday evening’s movie.
The theatre is housed at Ecole Secondaire Catholique Jeunesse Nord off Youngfox Road and can seat up to 244 people.
The school rents the space to him and the town owns the digital equipment including the projector and speakers which Beemer rents.
Of course, what movie theatre would be complete without treats like buttered popcorn, pop and snacks of different sizes.
Beemer was busy working on replenishing the snacks after the kids who attended the Paw Patrol movie shown on the weekend munched down on treats.
He admits his decision to operate the theatre had its share of nay-sayers who felt there was no money to be made when he first considered it. After careful consideration he was confident it could be a viable business and a venue people in the area appreciated.
To help him out, Beemer has hired two grandchildren to take care of sales and the buttered popcorn which most moviegoers know and love.
Retired OPP police officer Wayne Bertholot volunteers time with getting people admitted and seated in exchange for a pop and popcorn, Beemer said with a slight grin.
Bertholot also showed Beemer how to operate the projector and get around the equipment in a rear room adjacent to the theatre seating area.
As part of preparations he did leading up to taking over the theatre, Beemer had to source out an agent to help get the movies needed to operate a theatre and found one who deals with some 200 theatre owners in Canada to find the most recent movie releases.
He then had to sign contracts with major movie producers like Paramount and Disney which required 50-page contracts to be filled out and signed.
With the work done, the theatre – under the name Maple Cinema – opened on Sept. 22 with the smash hit Barbie movie on the screen.
For the record, Beemer recalls the first movie he saw which was Bambi at the former Lake Theatre in Elliot Lake. He also took in movies at the former Palace Theatre which operated in Blind River.
Tickets are general admission $10, seniors 55-plus $7, children up to 13 years $7 and Tuesday show tickets $7. Movies start at 7 p.m.
The Blind River theatre, which operates Friday, Saturday, and Tuesday, is the only movie theatre between Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie.
Upcoming movies can be found at the Maple Cinema website at www.cinemaclock.com or their Facebook page.
“It’s been fun so far and I hope just keeps getting better,” he said of the two-year contract he has with the town. “It’s been good, it’s been nice and a good experience.”