Studio City Gets a Movie Theater Finally—Again
The space that used to hold Aura Nightclub is expected to be a theater for hire, possibly opening in two months.
Studio City is set to get a movie theater again finally since the classic Studio City Theatre turned into the Bookstar Barnes & Noble bookstore 20 years ago.
Maurice Safizadeh, owner of the space that held the Aura Nightclub, confirmed Monday night that the club is closed and the space will be used for theater screenings.
“There will not be anything else like this in the area,” Safizadeh said. “It will hold about 230 people.”
Ray Franco, architect for the project and self-professed film fan, said, “This will be something that is new to Studio City and a unique place to see a movie in a nice setting where you can be served food and have a drink.”
Franco said the place could open, under a different name, within two months. The space at 12215 Ventura Blvd. also has a stage and tables. The only place similar to it, Cinespace on Hollywood Boulevard, recently closed. It was opened for private events, but also held regular indie film and classic screenings for the public. The only theaters that exist now in Studio City are at the CBS Radford Studios lot, from where the area got its name.
“This is a place that could be for someone to show a series of shorts, or have a film festival," Franco said. "If you produced a movie in Europe, you could show it here and have drinks and food. The place has a liquor license.”
Studio City doesn't have a movie theater for the public. From 1939 to 1991 the Fox Studio City Theatre operated as a movie theater that had 880 seats. The box office and Deco style remains in tact when it was transformed into a retail space and bookstore.
Franco and Safizadeh are president and vice president at the Studio City Improvement Association and at their last meeting, fellow board member Art Ginsburg lamented that Studio City needed a movie theater again. The board discussed possible locations of a three or four-screen Laemmle Theater in Studio City that could be housed in a space like the CVS location or the Bookstar.
Loly Perez-Hinojosa
8:08 pm on Tuesday, July 12, 2011
OMG! what a wonderful and unique idea, it's about time we have a theater in Studio City -- I think you have a fabulous idea and you will triumph with this idea more than you. Good Luck, Loly Perez-Hinojosa
maria dziubla
10:18 pm on Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Yes! Bring it!
Teresa Spindel
9:04 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I am very happy about this.
Sean Saulsbury
10:23 am on Thursday, July 14, 2011
Luckily Studio City is close enough to two of the best movie theaters in the country: Arclight Hollywood and Arclight Sherman Oaks. That's not too bad.
V. Rosenthal
2:36 pm on Sunday, July 17, 2011
While I would love a local movie theatre, even a single screen, I really don't want to lose BookStar! I have grown to love the service; the personnel enjoy helping, and it is a truly nice place to browse, or just run into to 'grab a read'. On the other hand, do we really need 2 CVS's?
Richard Niederberg
6:49 am on Saturday, August 13, 2011
And if your tastes include LIVE Theatre, I built the Ventura Court Theatre at 12417 Ventura Court many years ago, and it still presents shows in an intimate setting.