Ever since I was a kid, movies have been a big part of my life. One of the happiest memories is going to see Star Wars Episode 1 with my dad. My classes in elementary, middle, and high schools would have field trips to Summerfield and the Reading Cinema as a reward for good behavior or as part of a history or art class. So much of my pleasant memories have been spent around art galleries and playhouses, so it’s no wonder I ended up wanting to get into the arts for a living. The issue is the country hasn’t been too pleasant to the arts in recent years. Especially when it comes to movies and movie theaters.
For a time, there were four theaters within a short drive of Santa Rosa. Reading at Citama in Conrad Park, Roxy on the Block, the Roxy downtown, and Summerfield Park Theaters. Now only the Roxy remains open, but for how much longer? The Roxy on the block was closed down during the pandemic and never really reopened. Reading Cinema just closed 2 years back without much announcement, and is now on its way to becoming an Indoor pickleball court. The worst loss we will feel for generations, if we truly lose it, is the closing of Summerfield Park Theater. It started out as a park-side theater for Howarth Park in the 60s, and it would become an art house theater in the 80s, up until 2024, when it was announced that it was to be turned into a Planet Fitness.
A civilian coalition led by SAG actor Derek Stefan, along with the co-founder of the Civilian Coalition, Paul Seif, started a Change.org group to stop this. They delayed long enough for the property buyers to back out, but not long enough to prevent the leaseholder from closing the theater. The Citizen Committee to Save Summerfield Cinemas has been discussing finding Angel investors to reopen the theater as a live event and arts center. This was proposed six months ago.
I have been questioned not just about my support for saving Summerfield Cinemas, but for theaters in general. Why go to a movie theater when streaming is now a thing? Why this art form? Well, art has the effect of changing one’s view, and some art may not be commercially viable, as Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ have changed the landscape of TV and film production, not everything is meant for the TV screen or phone screen. I feel like having a building built for films is part of the craft; The speakers, the seats, a crowd reacting to the film and each other, it’s a unique experience that, unless you’re willing to spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars on home theaters and have frequent watch parties, then I don’t really see how Netflix replaces this.
I think what I most miss from the loss of the art of film was always finding something topical, but needed. On the last day that Sommerfeld was open, I wanted to see a film with my brother. We didn’t really know much about it beforehand, other than the name, “I’m still here.” A film about a family living in Brazil during the 1970s, a period marked by one of the country’s most severe dictatorships. The father is taken and disappears, the wife and their kids are arrested and tortured, and as the film goes on, the family goes through hardship after hardship.
It was one of the most intense films I think I’ve seen in recent memory, but it also gave an important message during these times. I just wish more people could see this film, or films like it. Especially as censorship increases in media companies, which might prefer self-censorship to protect profits, we truly need alternative venues to experience films that large theaters may be unable or unwilling to showcase. We need theaters not only for the experience of a Blockbuster, but also for the films that show the Injustices of the world and smaller stories that aim to inspire change.
