Old theatre enjoys renaissance

Located on Zhongzheng Road in Hsinchu City, the Image Museum, or “Yu-Le House” (Entertainment Hall) as it was known in its day, was built in the Japanese colonial period. Built with a combined style of classical Roman and Arabian architecture, the hall was opened for use in 1933, and renamed Kuomin Theater after it was returned to the Republic of China in 1945. It remained in use until 1991, when it finally succumbed to the onslaught of the burgeoning videotape rental industry.

At the National Arts Festival held by the Council for Cultural Affairs in 1996, an event called Windy City Affection (風城情波) was raised in the deserted and forgotten plaza of Kuomin Theater. The event succeeded in rekindling the memories and emotions of Hsinchu people, giving birth to the Image Museum. The museum was officially opened in 2000, to be used as an image display space for the promotion of film heritage and education.

In addition to showcasing movie projectors classed as national treasures, a whole host of other old movie equipment can also be found at the Image Museum, which is literary bursting with antiques; the museum could indeed be considered a microcosm of Hsinchu film culture. A combination of reawakening the consciousness of local residents and the firm determination of local government departments has helped to inject new life into this once abandoned old building, successfully transforming it into a widely renowned movie museum. It is hoped that other precious gems lying forgotten in the nooks and crannies of Taiwan, will be similarly uncovered and their dazzling brilliance revealed once more.

Old theatre enjoys renaissance

URL:https://www.peopo.org/news/283669

(以下為中文對照)

老戲院也有春天

照片

位於新竹市中正路的影像博物館，是日據時代的「有樂館」，其建築形式融合古羅馬與阿拉伯建築風味，於 1933 年開幕啟用，台灣光復後更名為「國民大戲院」，直到1991年錄影帶出租業興起，戲院經不起市場考驗而停業。1996年文建會「全國文藝季」，在荒廢閒置的國民戲院廣場，舉辦「風城情波」系列活動後，成功召喚了新竹市民的記憶與情感，而催生了影像博館整建，於2000年正式開館，做為電影文物展示及教育推廣的影像空間。

電影博物館除了展示國寶級的放映機外，還陳設許多拍電影的老器材，每一樣都是古董，這博物館彷彿是新竹電影文化的縮影。一棟荒廢閒置的舊建築，能成功打造成遠近馳名的電影博物館，除了當地的居民的意識覺醒外，也需要公單位的決行魄力，才能讓國民戲院擁有的第二個春天，台灣各角落尚有許多蒙塵的珍珠，期許它們能再現光芒展風華。