Maple Cinema to open in Blind River as a first run movie theatre

For the last three years, movie lovers in Blind River had to travel at least an hour and a half either west or east – but that is soon set to change.

The exterior of the Alain Bray Auditorium on Youngfox Road which with host the new Maple Cinema in Blind River. (Cory Nordstrom/CTV News Northern Ontario)Brad Beemer from Iron Bridge, Ont. has come to an agreement with the township to operate the movie theatre out of the Alain Bray Auditorium.

Beemer told CTV News that it all started this April, after a conversation with his son-in-law, a Blind River town councillor.

"I just asked him what they were planning on doing for the theatre. He said 'well, we're really looking for someone to run it,” he said.

“I thought 'well, that could be fun.'"

A lifelong movie buff, Beemer said he can remember the days of Blind River's original ‘Palace Theatre’ when he lived in the town from grades 3 to 5.

"I've always had a thing for movies, right from when I was a kid, and I always thought it'd be cool (to operate a theatre),” he said.

“I never thought I'd ever have a chance."

Blind River's Palace Theatre in 1976. (Image courtesy of Kirkwood - Mostly Books Blog/KIRKWOOD40.BLOGSPOT.COM)The new operator of what is to be called Maple Cinema already has a full-time job, owning a business that runs lab samples from clinics to local hospitals for testing.

Since coming to an agreement on a two year partnership with the municipality, Beemer said he has been extra busy.

"There's insurance, I've got things in place with Pepsi, I'm working on a supplier for snacks," he said.

All that hard work is going to pay off, said Blind River Mayor Sally Hagman, noting how much people across the North Shore have missed having a theatre in Blind River.

"I know that the big reunion is going to happen when the theatre opens again because it’s a great opportunity to see people,” she said.

“We know that kept us all in our houses and there's nothing like the big screen and popcorn that makes people want to get out of the house."

• Download the CTV News app now and get local alerts on your device
• Get local breaking news and updates sent to your email inbox 

Beemer said that the main projector needs some minor repairs due to its stagnant state of the past 3 years but he hopes it will be fixed in under a month.

He added working with a buyer's agent to get movies, he's filled out over 300 pages worth of contracts in recent months.

"I've got contracts with Walt Disney, and Warner Brothers and all that stuff,” said Beemer.

“I'm hoping to get the newest and greatest movies I can."

Beemer told CTV News he has yet to decide on which film will be first on the bill once Maple Cinema is ready for moviegoers – but he expects that the doors could be open as soon as the first week of September.