The experience of going to the movies — the smell of fresh popcorn, surround sound and a sense of community — came to a halt in Seymour when its only operating movie theater closed in December 2022.
According to bigscreen.com, the movie theater opened in May 1999 as Great Escape 8 Seymour. It was then sold to Regal Entertainment Group in December 2012 and renamed Regal Seymour Stadium 8.
Business Insider posted on its website that Regal’s parent company, Cineworld, has plans to close approximately 130 movie theaters in the United States over the course of its ongoing bankruptcy, according to a filing in March.
Coming through the COVID-19 pandemic, movie enthusiasts are now making their way back to the theaters, but where can Jackson County residents go?
The closest movie theaters are in Columbus: AMC Classic Columbus 12, 555 Creekview Court; and YES Cinema, 328 Jackson St.
Most people know about the AMC Movie Theaters chain, but some moviegoers might not be as familiar with YES Cinema and Conference Center.
Located in downtown Columbus, YES Cinema supports first-run films, independent, foreign and other nonmainstream films and their audiences. In addition, YES Cinema and Conference Center partners with Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center, a United Way agency that provides support for various community programs and services in Columbus.
Randy Allman, executive director of LCNFC, said the movie theater’s tagline is “Cinema with a cause,” which sets it apart from other theaters because YES Cinema is a nonprofit organization.
“We started Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center in 1994 and assumed ownership of YES Cinema in 2004,” he said. “Prior to that, it was Keys Cinema, which showed independent films, but there wasn’t enough attendance, so they closed their doors.”
Allman said the theater has always been in the same location but used to be in Commons Mall that covered that area but is no longer there. They are in the location they would’ve been if the mall was still there.
“When the mall was torn down, that opened up Jackson Street, which resulted in the theater lobby getting remodeled,” he said. “We lost quite a bit of space, but we have a beautiful lobby that was redone and fits in with the Columbus architecture, and we’re very proud of it.”
Allman said LCNFC had an opportunity to reopen the theater for two reasons. The first is to train people to be better employees and know what it’s like to work within the concept of a team, to take direction and improve their workplace skills, and the second is to generate additional income for the 30-plus programs supported by Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center.
Diane Doup, community outreach specialist for LCNFC, said YES Cinema serves as a training ground for people of all ability levels, including those with special needs.
“We strive to help our employees leave YES Cinema with strong skills,” Doup said. “Some employees stay long term, and some refine their workplace habits and move on to more substantial employment opportunities quickly. We pride ourselves on providing a top-notch customer service experience with our great staff.”
She said cinema staff members try to engage with customers when they can, and some have commented that they’ve come up from Seymour, so they appreciate that.
“We have events that go on opposite of times when movies are playing, including hosting school groups,” Doup said. “We’ve had some (schools) from Jackson County here and would love to have more groups come up, and we also host private events here.”
She said one of the most unique things about the theater is it’s a nonprofit and locally operated with all of the funds staying right there to help people in their own community.
The name of the movie theater is unique, too.
“The theater used to be owned by Keys Cinema, and they had a marquee that had individualized letters, and when we took ownership of the theater, we were a small nonprofit,” Doup said. “We didn’t have a lot of resources, so we tried to figure out what we would name it, and Randy had the idea to use the letters that were already there and to rearrange them, so we dropped the letter K, and it became YES Cinema.”
YES Cinema also is unique because it has a catering business. Also, beer and wine are sold at the theater, and it’s a very clean facility.
“Your shoes don’t stick to the floor, and we emphasize cleanliness because we’re not just a movie theater,” Allman said. “When a movie’s over, we have to clean the theater to an excellent quality because the next day, we might have a corporate group using the theaters or maybe a school group.”
He said the most popular movie they’ve recently shown was “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” and another big one coming up is “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” that starts Thursday.
“We also have our YESfest, an international film festival held annually in October, but the biggest movie we’ve ever had here is the ‘Columbus’ movie,” Allman said. “We had people come here from California, Arizona and faraway places to see the movie here in Columbus. Plus, the cast of the movie was here, too.”
He said YES Cinema has two screens and recently converted both of them to be equipped with laser projection, which is hard to get.
“We have completely digital laser projection and sound quality, so you’ll not have a better experience anywhere else,” Allman said. “We would love to be Jackson County’s theater of choice.”
Doup said they want Jackson County residents to know they are just a short drive away.
“They can come here to see high-quality first-run movies. There’s plenty to eat, see and do at YES Cinema,” she said. “While they’re here, they’re doing good for others because they are supporting the community programs, and we hope they come here frequently to visit us.”
Information about YES Cinema can be found on Facebook, Instagram or yescinema.org. Learn more about Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center at lcnfc.org.