For Immediate
Release
August 14,
2012
The Paramount is a documentary about a community cinema in danger of demolition. The film follows a community activist as he tries to raise support for a new vision to save the Paramount Theatre in Saint John New Brunswick.
New Brunswick television production company Hemmings House Pictures is pleased to announce the broadcast premiere of The Paramount. The documentary will air on CBC television and the Documentary Channel.
The Paramount Theatre has sat vacant and decayed at the edge of Saint John’s King’s Square for almost a decade. The owner of the building has been planning its demolition. Mike McDonald is a lifetime Saint John resident who feels that if the building is torn down it will be devastating for the core of the city’s Uptown arts and cultural communities. This is a viewpoint that has caused mixed reactions in the community. The Paramount follows McDonald over a period of a few months as he tries to gain support and defend his vision.
Mike McDonald travels to other communities to learn about cultural infrastructures, heritage buildings, urban design, and the history of motion pictures. He travels to Bangor ME, Chicago IL, Los Angeles CA, and Ottawa ON, for a fact finding mission that he hopes will energize the community for one last fight to raise enough money to purchase, revitalize, and reopen the Paramount Theatre as 2nd run cinema and performing arts venue.
Producer and director Greg Hemmings feels that this is an important story to tell the world. “This is not a story about a small decaying theatre in a small city on the East Coast of Canada. This is a story of universal values that people around the world can relate to. I hope that this film will encourage people to look at their own communities in a different way, and appreciate the treasures that they have before they loose them. This is not a film to encourage people to save old buildings, but to appreciate, value and not take them for granted.”
Local historian Harold Wright sees this story as a reminder of the rich history Saint John had in the entertainment business over the years. “Tearing a building like the Paramount Theatre down is not just an architectural loss, it is also the destruction of an icon that represented an era where Saint John was a thriving port city with a lot going on. Rebuilding the Theatre would represent a move back in the direction of a prosperous city. Hemmings House did a great job capturing all sides of this story and it will be a great film to share to the rest of the country and beyond.”
The first broadcast of The Paramount will be exclusively aired on CBC Atlantic, Saturday August 25th at 8pm.
Watch The Paramount promo video here: https://vimeo.com/31338956
For additional information:
Greg Hemmings
506 639 6577
greg@hemmingshouse.com
www.hemmingshouse.com
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