Foothills residents looking to leave the comfort of their couch to catch a good flick on the big screen won’t have far to go.

The Town’s Cultural and Historical Services is introducing a Thursday night classic film series starting this week at the Rotary Performing Arts Centre (RPAC), which will feature films from around the world.

“It’s cheap and it’s a good time to get out and see a film in high definition with excellent sound,” said Okotoks’ cultural and historical services team leader Allan Boss, adding the cost is just $2. “It’s like your home theatre times 1,000.”

The centre’s new high quality Lumens 5,000 projector was first tested with the presentation of Charlotte’s Web during the HarvestFest Pie Baking Contest last fall.

When more than 50 people attended Boss knew Okotoks was ready for a classic film series.

“I did a masters degree in film production and I’ve seen thousands of films,” he said. “I’ve got a pretty good idea of what’s interesting and what’s not.”

Running with a St. Patrick’s Day theme, this month’s line-up consists of Irish classics including the romantic drama “Once” on March 7, Irish musical “The Commitments” on March 14 and classic comedy “Waking Ned Devine” on March 28.

“When we choose our films we are putting it around our team and seeing what would fit well and what would serve our audience well and making choices from there,” said Boss. “It’s a good opportunity to come down… and check out some great films.”

Boss said the film series moves away from Hollywood new releases and offers movie lovers an opportunity to enjoy some classics. Shows start at 7 p.m. with alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and snacks available for purchase in the kitchen.

“We are not trying to make money from this, we are trying to serve the community and we are trying to get people into RPAC,” he said. “It’s a small intimate venue and a great place to check out all sorts of activities. We are looking at keeping it going as much as we can when it’s not otherwise booked.”

If Thursday night movie night becomes a hit Boss said the series could see weekend extravaganzas and a summer film series geared for families.

“Eventually, I would like to try to expand it to different markets,” he said. “It would be nice to do some art films, some stuff that’s more on the critical side of things and see how that takes off.”

To learn about upcoming films at the RPAC go to www.okotoksculture.ca

Comments

The Okotoks Western Wheel welcomes your opinions and comments. We do not allow personal attacks, offensive language or unsubstantiated allegations. We reserve the right to delete comments deemed inappropriate. We reserve the right to close the comments thread for stories that are deemed especially sensitive. For further information, please contact the editor or publisher.