The Norden Farm cinema is the only cinema in the area with such an eclectic offer. From world cinema to art house and documentaries - the programme is unique. As an independent we get to choose exactly what we think will be interesting to our audiences - there’s no big mogul machine forcing our hand to take blockbusters if we don’t rate them! But if we love them – like Jurassic Park - then there’s no snobbery, we’ll show them. We just love great movies. Movies that absolutely deserve to be seen on a big screen so you can fully experience every minute detail of photography and sound. Things completely lost if you watch on tiny phone and laptop screens with rubbish sound.
Experiencing film together, screened as the director intended is a thrill that can’t be created sitting on your sofa at home, however comfy. It’s the difference between lounging in your onesie or putting on your metaphorical lippy and getting your sparkle on. Velvet seats, theatre atmosphere and a perfectly poured gin & tonic combine for my perfect cinema going, together with that warm fuzzy feeling of being surrounded by other people who really and truly love cinema. No-one is on their phone or chomping on popcorn here. They are engrossed, transported, taken away from the everyday into other worlds.
I love how the different screening formats reach out to different communities and how The Farm is home to them all. Whether it’s the Bring Baby screenings – filled with new parents who make new friends as they gather before and after the film with a free cuppa. Or the Talking Tables events where people can discuss the film together using talking points put together by our film lead and total movie buff, Alex led by our volunteer table hosts. The Relaxed screenings, where the house lights are left on low, and you can move around during the screening for people who are on the neuro divergent spectrum or who just prefer a less formal cinema experience. Or the socially distanced screenings for those who are concerned about distancing and feeling vulnerable with Covid 19.
A matinee screening of something extraordinary after lunch in the Café Bar with friends and a cheeky glass of rosé. Ballet in the evening, live and direct from the Royal Opera House where your view is from front row in the stalls. A family film in the school holiday leading onto a mug of the best hot chocolate in town and a game of Buckeroo (help yourself to games and books in the Café Bar, anytime) and maybe while you’re here for the most extraordinary movie moments, you’ll see other stuff going on and become intrigued. Maybe you’ll join the Guitar Club or book in a Flamenco lesson. Maybe you’ll buy a ticket to see Harry Hill live in the theatre or to see some New Orleans jazz from Don Vappie? Cinema at Norden Farm is just the start.
Jane Corry
Chief Executive and Artistic Director
[!events:film::Browse the film line up below]