Cinema Walk 3rd Yokohama Cinemarin, Isezakicho, Yokohama
"When you watch this movie, you become Mirai Moriyama. Regardless of age or gender, you can all relate to him and your heart will be filled with emotion."
That's what Atsuko Yahata, manager of Yokohama Cinemarin, told me about the poster for a movie I had been interested in. It wasn't that it was interesting or that I empathized with the protagonist's feelings, but that it was a movie that "made me become Mirai Moriyama." At the same time that my interest in the movie was piqued, I could feel Yahata's love and passion for movies.
Looking around Isezakicho, where I hadn't been in a while, I noticed that some of the familiar shops had been replaced with new ones. However, there was still a corner that felt like a slice of Showa era scenery, with the same atmosphere. Attracted by movie posters and retro signs, I went down the stairs to the basement and found Yokohama Cinemarin.
The renovated interior is bright and clean, with a white base. The reception desk is directly in front of you as you enter, and is surrounded by movie posters and colorful related goods. If you walk a little further and turn around, you'll see a movie trailer playing on a projector on a part of the wall that protrudes from the ceiling. It's an exciting device that makes you feel like you've found a hidden track.
This cinema has one screen with 102 seats and uses a projection system that combines digital and film projection. Another big attraction is the high quality acoustics.
Cinemarin's history dates back more than 60 years, to 1954. During the heyday of film and theater, when there were nearly 40 movie theaters lined the stretch from Isezaki Mall to Bashamichi, Yoshimoto Kogyo started the theater as "Kagetsu Movie Theater." In 1963, "Kagetsu Movie Theater" closed, but the following year it was renamed "Isezaki Cinema Theater" and reopened under a new manager. In 1986, the manager's son took over, and while the parent company remained the same, the theater changed its name to its current name, "Yokohama Cinemarin," in 1989. At one time, it mainly showed Nikkatsu Roman Porno and all-night screenings, but around this time it began to screen mainly Shochiku films.
Having survived the changes and remained in the film town, Yokohama Cinemarin was hit with the next challenge in 2014 when the wave of digitalization hit. Although they had planned to continue screening films with a projector, no film movies were being made at all, and they were in danger of closing down.
At that time, the current manager, Mr. Yawata, received a phone call.
"Yahata-san, didn't you say you wanted to open a movie theater? Actually, a certain movie theater is about to close. Do you want to take it over?"
When the person in charge of maintaining Cinemarin's projectors was thinking about how to keep the place open, he remembered Yawata, who was active in a film club. Yawata had no experience in running a company, but when he was told that he had to give an answer immediately because he had been keeping the building owner and the previous manager waiting, he was inspired and made a bold decision, saying, "Well, we have no choice but to do it!"
When running a film club, it takes time to move large amounts of money, so Yawata decided to act on his own. It was a challenge that would likely drain all of his assets, but he received support from all his brothers, who said, "It's a contribution to culture, so why not?" and in 2014, he became the president of the new "Yokohama Cinemarin." This is such a dramatic turn of events that it seems like a movie could be made about it.
When she first became the director, she left negotiations with distribution companies regarding major productions to experienced staff, but with the desire to "have face-to-face relationships with people at film distribution companies," she began to negotiate and acquire films herself. At first, she had practically no experience or relationships, so she couldn't acquire the films she wanted, and there were often gaps in the screening schedule, but she would say, "I have special screenings!" and fill the gaps by arranging many special screenings herself.
"There were an unusually large number of special features during that year. We tried doing a special feature on Seijun Suzuki, a special feature on Ren Osugi, and so on," Yawata recalled with a laugh. This strategy worked, and people started saying, "Cinemarin seems to be good at special feature screenings," and the number of films they could take gradually increased.
As you can see, special screenings and events are Cinemarin's forte. When I asked about the war special that they hold every summer, I got the following response.
"Even before I took over the cinema, my film club had been showing peace films in the summer. I think it's also the role of a cinema to provide people with an opportunity to take a fresh look at the wars of the past. I do this every year with the hope that people will learn about history from films. I intend to continue doing this in the future."
Cinemarin is not just a place to enjoy movies, but also a place where you can learn and make new discoveries through movies. It even provides an opportunity to experience the Isezakicho area.
Yawata says he wants to hold more community-based events, and has already collaborated with neighboring businesses in various ways. When there was a Taiwanese movie special, he held a ticket stub discount campaign at a nearby Taiwanese restaurant, and for the upcoming jazz movie special, he plans to collaborate with a jazz bar. He said that these events and collaborations can only be held because Isezakicho is a good "town for the common people."
"Isezakicho is a town for the common people. The long-established clothing stores that were there originally are disappearing one after another... It was originally a town for kimonos. That's a little sad, though. But for people who come here, it's not Yokohama Station, it's not Minato Mirai, it's not Motomachi, it's Isezakicho, so I think that makes it easy to get here. People from other places come here thinking, "There's a shopping street like this in a place like this, there are lots of people walking around, and I wonder where all these people came from. That makes me really happy."
As we were leaving, we looked at the posters of the films that were to be screened, and I asked him what he keeps in mind when choosing films. He told me, "I don't deliberately choose films that reflect the social nature of the time, but in the end, many of the films I choose do reflect the social nature of the time."
The movie experience at Yokohama Cinemarin is entertainment, learning, discovery, and encounter. I hope you will take the stairs down to this underground space, disconnect from reality for a moment, and experience the dreamlike moment that only Cinemarin can offer.
Cinema Walk No. 1 "Cinema Jack & Betty" is here
Cinema Walk No. 2 "Cinema Novecento" is here
