Edinburgh Filmhouse: Former cinema building sold for $3.28 million

The building, which used to house Edinburgh’s popular Filmhouse Cinema, was sold for £2.65 million (US$3.28 million).

The identity of the buyer has not been confirmed, but local media reports say the building has been sold to pub operator Caledonian Heritable, which owns The Dome, Ryan’s Bar and the Theater Royal in Edinburgh. The company could not be reached for comment on the matter.

The Filmhouse building on Lothian Road in central Edinburgh was unveiled in November when the curators responsible for the Center for the Moving Image, the charity behind the Edinburgh International Film Festival and a second Filmhouse venue in Aberdeen, appointed trustees .

A CMI statement at the time said a “perfect storm” of rising costs and falling admissions caused by the pandemic had been exacerbated by the current cost-of-living crisis. All three institutions immediately ceased their activities and employees were laid off.

A total of 16 bids were made to buy the Filmhouse property, including two that would have reopened the building as a cinema. One such offer included a proposal from Gregory Lynn, the Scottish owner of the Prince Charles Cinema in London’s West End. Even a group of former film employees couldn’t raise enough money to make an offer.

The local press reported that trustees intended to sell to the highest bidder and a preferred offer had been received from Signature Pub Group, one of Edinburgh’s largest hospitality companies, which had drawn up plans to convert the cinema into a movie restaurant. Signature later withdrew its offer after failing to obtain an alcohol license for the building.

The proposed sale of the Filmhouse building has attracted the attention of several industry figures, including Oscar winner Tilda Swinton.

In a rare public statement given to Deadline, Swinton, who lives in Nairn, Scotland, described the Filmhouse Cinema as an “invaluable cultural resource” for the city of Edinburgh that deserves “to be in the hands of legitimate cinematographers , what their future.” The promotion and legacy of cultural film in Edinburgh and beyond.”