Feb 29, 2024
And Just Like That, 10 Years
Feb 12, 2024
Monarch Theatre and the "Cinderella Bag"
In making the Monarch Theatre documentary, Your Cinema Needs You, there were obviously a lot of random things that I found that didn't make the final cut. There were also some entertaining cross promotions that unsurprisingly went out of fashion relatively quickly.
One such promotion that I found particularly funny was this one from 1957.
A local dry-cleaner was advertising the re-release of Disney's Cinderella and asked children to wear their "costume bags" to the cinema - essentially encouraging children to put dry-cleaner's bags over their heads to dress-up for the show. Shockingly, I couldn't find any examples of this "costume bag" promo ever running again, but just imagine how funny it would've been to see that theatre full of saran-wrapped children.
Feb 7, 2024
Monarch Documentary: Vintage Movie Listings
For the final screenings of Your Cinema Needs You at the Monarch Theatre in Medicine Hat, Alberta, I thought I'd create a page of vintage movie listings to keep these promos on theme.
Jan 28, 2024
Documentary's Success Pushing Need For More Shows
What was originally envisioned as a single premiere night grew into 11 screenings, the last 4 of which will take place at 7 PM on February 14th, 15th, 16th, and 17th. Any way you slice it, the success of this debut has created a new chapter in the history books for the Monarch Theatre, and has setup the introduction of Canada's oldest, surviving, purpose-built movie theatre for a national audience as the details for the wide release are organized for later this year.
I just wanted to once again express my thanks and heartfelt gratitude for all of the support you've shown me, my crew, this film, and the Monarch Theatre over the last few weeks. This feels like an ending and a new beginning all at once, and I'm excited to see what happens next.
Please join us for these final shows (in what I'm referring to as "the encore of the encore screenings") in the very building where it all unfolded. Full details and tickets here.
Jan 26, 2024
Finding Vintage Pictures of the Monarch Theatre
Following the sold out premiere screenings of "Your Cinema Needs You", my new feature-length documentary about the Monarch Theatre in Medicine Hat, Alberta, new vintage images of the cinema at this centre of this story have been found. Deb Yates, the daughter of former mid-century Monarch manager Fred Tickell, attended one of the premiere screenings and uncovered some previously unseen images from her family album.
I returned to the Monarch Theatre to directly compare some of these shots showcasing the candy counter full of Canadian-made Neilson chocolate bars, an Orange Crush display in the lobby, the mid-century seats inside the theatre, Fred Tickell walking down the street, and people dressed in their Stampede best waiting for the parade out front of the cinema.
Seeing material like this emerge after so many decades has been one of the joys of creating this documentary. More than half of the material that appears in the film was discovered through individuals just like this. So, when I have emphasized over the course of production that this is what elevated the story, this is exactly what I mean. You're getting glimpses into so many details that had never been released to the public before.
If you have the opportunity, you should come and experience this story from within the cinema where it all takes place. New screenings have been added at 7 PM on February 14th, 15th, 16th, and 17th. Movie tickets for the Monarch documentary available here.
Jan 20, 2024
Your Cinema (Continues) to Need You
New screenings of the Monarch documentary, "Your Cinema Needs You" are returning to the Monarch Theatre at 7 PM on February 14th, 15th, 16th, and 17th! Click here to purchase movie tickets to one of these newly added screenings.
In addition to an enjoyable night out and an opportunity to learn about a largely undocumented chapter of Medicine Hat's cinematic history (experienced from within the very building that it happened in) I also wanted to also point out some of the knock-on effects that your support of "Your Cinema Needs You" are having.
2. The extensive research that went into this documentary is already showing potential to aid in future grants, designations, and direct supports to further the plans for the Monarch Theatre's revitalization. The popularity of the documentary has helped to reveal new clues and contacts just from people talking about the movie and spreading the word (and this is before we've even finalized plans for the Canada-wide streaming release). This is a huge bonus in the roll that this documentary can play in the future, that honestly, we hadn't even really thought much about until the premieres happened.
3. Contrary to popular belief, this documentary was not "actually" a local production. A professional, feature-length budget had to be greenlit from out of province to even be able to dedicate this much time and energy to a film that involved a cast and crew of more than 50 individuals. None of the funding to produce this was local.
The reason I want to point this out, is because deciding to tell a Medicine Hat story that we believed would resonate with a wider audience (at this scale) was seen as a risk. The success of this project, the sold out premieres, etc. are all part of a proof of concept that show that taking these risks are worth it, viable, and something that needs to happen more often. Not just because these stories are culturally significant, but because they can be just as entertaining too! You've already helped to prove this!
In short, your support of Your Cinema Needs You is having a lot of impact outside of just Medicine Hat. There is a lot more happening behind the scenes then people realize, and it's opening a lot of doors that were previously closed.
That's a lot of good coming from people just showing up - and a really good sign for the future of the Monarch Theatre stemming from the success of a single movie. I can't say it enough - thank you for being there and thank you for making this happen!
Jan 19, 2024
February Screenings of the Monarch Documentary
Jan 12, 2024
The Last Remnant of the Roxy Theatre
Jan 6, 2024
Monarch Documentary: Movie Premiere A Success!
Jan 2, 2024
Monarch Documentary: Encore Screenings
With all of the evening shows now 100% sold out, we've just added a 3PM MATINEE on Saturday, January 6th. These matinee tickets are the last tickets available for this debut run of the feature-length documentary in Medicine Hat before plans for the Canada-wide streaming release move forward. This is one last opportunity (if you don't have your tickets yet) to see the film about the Monarch Theatre in the Monarch Theatre!
Book your matinee tickets here.
Thank you for the incredible response you've already shown this film. We can't wait to see you back at the Monarch this week for the encore shows!
Dec 31, 2023
Premiere Screenings of Your Cinema Needs You
It's been 3 days of laughs, cheers, tears, and a lot of nostalgia as the Monarch Theatre received the long-awaited reintroduction that she deserved, and the feature-length documentary finally got the climactic conclusion that we always dreamed would be possible after first learning of the theatre's closure back in 2021.
If I'm completely honest, I was never concerned that people wouldn't "like" the documentary. We'd done enough previews and test screenings along the way to know that even the casual movie-lover was likely to find something to sink their teeth into. What I hadn't prepared for though, was for quite this many people to actually LOVE it. And I mean, paragraphs long messages, tears in their eyes, personally recommending it to all of their friends, love it. That's something you really can't know until you're in the moment and you're seeing it unfold directly in front of you each night.
This was all a bit of lightning in a bottle. The timing of the production lining up with the closure of the Monarch was one thing, but then getting the opportunity to reintroduce Canada's oldest, surviving, purpose-built movie theatre by hosting the premiere screenings as part of the official reopening was all incredibly serendipitous. As I said in my premiere speeches each night, "I couldn't have scripted a better conclusion than this."
"Your Cinema Needs You" has the privilege of being the last screening at the Monarch in 2023, and will now also be the first screening of 2024 with the launch of the encore shows beginning on January 4th. I simply can't say it enough, but thank you to everyone who has made this possible. This has absolutely been a dream come true. Happy New Year!
Dec 21, 2023
Encore Screenings of the Monarch Documentary
Dec 17, 2023
Monarch Documentary: Souvenir Premiere Tickets
If you have movie tickets to one of the sold out premiere screenings of "Your Cinema Needs You" at the Monarch Theatre later this month on December 28th, 29th, and 30th, remember to grab a FREE souvenir ticket stub when you attend.
I personally love having souvenirs from my experiences, but with everything moving online, you rarely get the memento anymore. I thought I'd create some vintage inspired tickets to give guests something to share, to take a picture for socials, or just to mark the occasion. I'll also have a hole punch on hand so we can punch the exact date you attended the screening (if you want to).
The souvenir tickets are purely aesthetic, so unfortunately they won't get you in the door. But, I'll probably be handing these out as people line up at the Monarch before the show.
And if you missed out on this first round of screenings at the Monarch, stay tuned for news to drop about additional screenings coming this Thursday (Dec. 21).
Dec 14, 2023
Your Cinema Needs You Premiere is 100% Sold Out
Dec 8, 2023
Your Cinema Needs You on the Monarch Marquee
Admittedly, I'm biased, but I think this looks way better on the Monarch Theatre's marquee than "CLOSED" did. Movie tickets for the premiere of "Your Cinema Needs You" are moving quickly. Purchase your tickets here for the screenings on December 28th, 29th, and 30th.
Dec 7, 2023
Monarch Theatre Premiere: Purchase Movie Tickets
Dec 4, 2023
Monarch Documentary: Premiere Is A Go!
After last week's post about the seeming unlikelihood of Your Cinema Needs You premiering this year, I couldn't be more thrilled to announce that the Monarch documentary will officially premiere at the Monarch Theatre before the year is out! December 28, 29, and 30th to be exact. Now the real work begins to pull this together and rally the community.
Here was the teaser trailer from today's surprise announcement (see below). Tickets for the screenings will go on sale this Thursday with a direct link to the ticketing portal posted here on Editing Luke as well as on facebook.com/editingluke. I hope to see you there!
Oct 15, 2023
Vintage Monarch Theatre Movie Ad Prints: Series 2
This second collection is a follow up to the first series of vintage movie ad prints created as part of the production for Your Cinema Needs You about the Monarch Theatre in Medicine Hat, Alberta. Full details on this new collection here. Also, here.