DCM Close Up with John Cunningham of West Coast Cinemas

This week DCM Close Up talks to John Cunningham, General Manager at Greenock’s West Coast Cinema about the role of his cinema in the community and shares some of his favourite things about the industry.

How did you end up working in cinema and what do you love about it?

My father was a projectionist, so I spent a lot of time growing up in and around cinemas. I trained as a projectionist in 1988 working in independent cinemas including the Glasgow Film Theatre. The rest is history as they say.

What’s unique about your cinema?

What we offer is a local independent cinema where our customers feel valued and listened to. Our programme ranges from mainstream to slightly art-house. We do a lot of work with local groups, from up and coming filmmakers to autism and parent friendly screenings.

Please tell us about any special events or screenings you run at your cinema.

We regularly have parent and toddler screenings, as well as autism friendly shows. The one special event that sticks out for me is the charity event we ran with the local motorcycle club, raising cash for Dreams Come True, a charity for terminally and seriously ill children. The film was Easy Rider.

What excites you most about the future of the cinema industry?

With digital and the growing market of event cinema, there has never been a better time to work in the cinema industry. The flexibility which digital offers allows us to put together a fantastic programme of events for our customers.

What is your favourite movie and why?

The Shawshank Redemption. I thought it was a great adaptation of the Stephen King short story. The performances of Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman were great.

What film role would you like to play why?

Han Solo. We’re all big kids at heart!

What do you think are the most iconic cinema ads and why?

Levi’s 501. Made my buy a pair!

Is there anything else that you would like to add about your cinema or yourself? 

Our cinema has positioned itself as the cinema of choice for Inverclyde. What we offer is different from the multiplex and our customers love it. We offer a friendly personal customer centered service where all our staff buy into what we are doing.

We all love film and love talking about film with our customers – what they like, what they don’t like and what they are looking forward to seeing next.

John Cunningham, General Manager, West Coast Cinema Greenock

DCM Close Up would love to put the spotlight on YOUR cinema in a future issue. To be covered in this feature, please contact Rebecca.Rau@dcm.co.uk.