Seine-et-Marne. Why won’t the Nemours cinema have its fourth room?

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Judith Reynaud had warned, during the public meeting organized almost a year ago to present the renovation project of the Nemours (Seine-et-Marne), Méliès cinema: “It is certain that if you launch procedures, we will stop the project. We will sell the building, with the risk that you end up with a real estate project instead of the cinema,” she said.

Crux of the problem: the height of the new building which would take away light from the neighbors immediate cinema. It took almost a year of discussions with the architect and residents to decide on a new version. “We had planned to have four theaters, because we know that with only three, it’s a bit tight to show all the films. Even if the project respected the PLU, we did not want to alienate the local residents, this is why we opted for a project that will retain the existing hull« .

Clearly, the cinema will not be demolished and will retain its walls… But only its walls. In detail, this means a restructuring of the three rooms, all with better comfort, and a new entrance hall. Room 1, for example, will go from 260 to 180 seats, but more spacious. “We change the seats, the stands, the screens, the sound system… we change everything, explains Judith Reynaud. We are going to switch to laser projection which allows us to save money.” Rooms 2 and 3 will be “tiered” and not sloping.

You have to be reasonable

A new heating and ventilation system, inserted into the building, will also be put in place, and the waterproofing of the roof will be completely redone.

Exit the fourth room, a “relative” regret given the context: “ We know that attendance has fallen in Nemoursyou have to be reasonable. For other films, the public will continue to go to the Ciné Paradis in Fontainebleau, and for arthouses to the Ermitage. But we are going to keep the idea of ​​the Ciné Club in one of the rooms.”

The recalibration of the project therefore caused the project to waste time, but this time, the planets seem aligned. The building permit will be submitted, with a 7-month review period, before the work which will therefore begin in October 2025, and will require a total closure of the cinema for 8 months. To take advantage of this new Méliès, we will therefore have to wait until summer 2026!

But the Reynaud family, very attached to their cinema, will not let go of Méliès: “It is true that cinema today is obsolete, it does not have the comfort of multiplexes and renovated cinemas. He needs it.” The project is expected to cost between 2.5 and 3 million euros. The last renovation dates back to 1996, and room 2 was redone in 2001. It is really time for the Méliès to get a makeover.

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