Where you can escape from the world
Reimagining the magic of movie-going
Bryant Gomez has always been drawn to the movie theater.
It’s a space that allows people to escape the world.
It’s also the reason Gomez and DeHaven Barnes are teaming up on Duplex Cinema & Café — a chance to reimagine movie-going.
“Duplex has been a project we’ve been working on for over a year,” Gomez said. “Movie theaters have been hit hard by the pandemic. But with our model, we would have been able to remain open to at least serve food.”
The startup movie theater company is planning to offer a fastcasual cafè.
In addition, it will have a fullconcession drive-through acting as a fast food restaurant.
The pair is currently raising money from investors, with about 20 days remaining on the Mainvest platform at mainvest.com/b/ duplex-entertainment-llc-albuquerque.
The platform makes investing more accessible by allowing contributions as small as $100.
According to Gomez, the concept allows the full operation of each component — cinema, café and concessions — individually.
Gomez said that, when the project first started, they wanted to build a theater from the ground up.
As the pandemic put a chokehold on the movie theater industry, they decided to look at existing buildings.
One option is at the corner of Montgomery and Wyoming NE, where Hasting’s used to be located.
“That has a unique history that we’ve wanted to tell,” Gomez said. “We want to be able to bring people to an area that has been neglected. Similar to what Icon Cinemas did for the area out at Tramway. The only thing they built from the ground up was a big theater.”
Another option for the project is Cinemark Movies West, located near Paseo del Norte and Coors NW. The theater, which had been thre for more than 30 years, shuttered last spring.
Gomez said some see the movie industry as dying.
“You have to evolve with it and change the game,” he said. “Sixty percent of revenue is from concessions. We see that as a challenge and the evolution of the experience. There will always be people who want to see a film on the big screen. And there will always be people who want that taste of nostalgia with the concessions.”
With less than a month to continue raising money through investors, Gomez is optimistic about the project.
“The pandemic hindered our momentum, but we’re still optimistic about getting Duplex out there,” Gomez said. “For us, we want to become a hub for entertainment. By creating a concessions drivethrough, you can get the food you want, and either see a movie at the theater or go home and enjoy yourself.”