

- The cinema as it was when it opened in 1932


In 2007 Cambridge Film Trust approached Sawston Village College with a view to supporting the return of a cinema to Sawston. There are clear historical reasons why re-establishing cinema in Sawston and in the former cinema building is important. The original cinema was established by Spicers Ltd, a local Sawston company, which also developed the Spicer-Dufay mosaic colour process in 1931 – Dufaycolour film, which was one of the first moving image colour film processes and so, in this way, there is an important association between Sawston and the history of British cinema.
In addition to this, Sawston is the largest settlement in South Cambridgeshire, with a population of ca 7500, and so having a cinema in Sawston provides a much-needed facility to serve the district and address, to a certain extent, the geographical imbalance in cinema provision. As well as providing a focus for young people’s leisure, it also caters for others with limited access to Cambridge, such as the elderly and those with disabilities. Furthermore, it is accessible, compared with cinemas in Cambridge, to families and those on low incomes as there are no expensive parking costs or bus fares to factor into a cinema attendance.
With the support of the Cambridge Film Trust, the project to bring cinema back into operation in Sawston was completed at the end of 2008. The project was funded by the UK Film Council, South Cambridgeshire District Council and Awards for All and, with this support, a new projection room was constructed and a new projector, screen and sound system installed. Today, Sawston Cinema is run by young people from the school and screenings are programmed regularly throughout term time.
Working with the Cambridge Film Trust
Sawston Cinema continues to maintain its close connection with The Cambridge Film Trust and, through this, has become a rural venue for the Cambridge Film Festival. At the same time, at Sawston Cinema Club, young people from the school engage enthusiastically in filmmaking, regularly screening their own films at the cinema too.
So, if you haven’t yet been to a screening at Sawston Cinema, we invite you to come along and join us, to enjoy the unique experience we offer.
