LOCAL HERO

Each month, Empire puts a much-loved indie picture house in the spotlight

CHAPTER

Programme Manager Claire Vaughan on Cardiff’s haven for fans and filmmakers CHAPTER.ORG

What’s your cinema’s history?

We’re a mixed-arts centre that is located in a residential area in a former school. The girls’ changing rooms became our first cinema room, showing 16mm. Education is still at the heart of what we do. We support local filmmakers too.

What’s special about your cinema?

Most of our staff have been here for over 30 years after starting as teenagers — they have a huge level of expertise. We’ve also got a couple of ‘new’ staffers who have been here for ten years [laughs].

Share a memorable moment...

We did an immersive screening of Vincent Price horror The Tingler. Director William Castle told audiences, “You too will feel every shocking sensation!” So, we put feathers on fishing lines and tickled the back of our audience’s necks. There was laughter and screaming in equal measure.

How does the community play a role?

When you come to Chapter, you really feel like you’re part of the world of film. We encourage everyone to take part in discussions and talks with filmmakers, and the community is welcome to have a go at filmmaking here too.

What’s been happening during lockdown?

We offer up-and-coming filmmakers a chance to showcase their work monthly for free via Chapter Movie Maker. Past alumni include Eternal Beauty director Craig Roberts: we’ve known him since a teenager. We also curated an extensive online programme, and did watch-a-longs and online discussions which kept all our film community close.

What plans are you making for the future?

As part of our 50th anniversary celebrations, we’re looking at setting up an outdoor cinema area to increase our capacity. As we’re in Wales and it rains all the time, we’re trying to think of some imaginative ways to get around that.