The Ultimate Picture Palace (UPP), Oxford’s only independent cinema, has been shortlisted for Cinema of the Year at the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA).
Nominated by the British Independent Film Awards, the cinema on Cowley Road, is one of five contending cinemas. The cinema is in the midst of a legal battle with its landlord, Oriel College, to secure its tenancy.
In reaction to being shortlisted, the UPP told Cherwell: “We’re absolutely delighted. To make the final five, from more than 70 cinemas across the UK, is a huge achievement… We’d like to thank everyone who nominated us, who visits the cinema and has supported our campaign to protect its future.
“The UPP exists because of the people who care about it. We’re community-owned, supported by more than 1,200 shareholders made up of locals and film lovers, and everything we do is driven by a belief that independent cinemas matter and that community matters.”
The BIFA’s Cinema of the Year is the only award celebrating UK cinemas at the heart of their communities. The award is decided by a public vote of 50,000, which decides the shortlist and nominees alongside a jury of industry professionals.Other finalists this year are Abbeygate Cinema in Suffolk, Campus West in Hertfordshire, Hippodrome Cinema in Scotland, and The Kinema in the Woods in Lincolnshire.
Open seven days a week in an Art Deco single-screen auditorium, the UPP screens a mix of foreign-language and classic films. With nearby suppliers like Missing Bean and G&D’s Cafe, it offers locally-sourced drinks and snacks before the film.
One voter featured on BIFA’s website said: “I’d gone on my own, but the UPP has such a strong sense of community that I felt like I was in a room full of friends.” The UPP collaborates with student initiatives like the Oxford University Filmmaking Foundation and aims to connect individuals and communities through social inclusion.
After its last owner, Becky Hallsmith, passed away in 2018, the UPP became community-owned through a fundraising initiative. Their screening of Hamnet with Dame Pippa Harris, the film’s Golden Globe-winning producer, BAFTA CEO, and longtime fan of the cinema, helped the UPP gain attention.
The building needs repairs, which investors refuse to fund because of the current lease’s 2037 expiry date. It would need a lease of at least 20 to 25 years to secure funding. In 2025, a National Lottery grant was withheld from the UPP as it did not meet the lease conditions. The UPP have said that Oriel “won’t commit because our building is in the footprint of their plans for a ‘Fifth Quad’ to accommodate graduate students”.
Concerning the current status of their campaign to secure their future, the UPP told Cherwell: “Our landlord, Oriel College, has so far been unwilling to commit to the long-term future we need. However, we’re currently in positive discussions with Oriel about a way forward, and we’re hopeful that we can reach an agreement that allows the UPP to stay in its historic home.
“Our Save the UPP posters seem to be in every other window on some streets around Cowley Road and East Oxford. Being shortlisted for this award just shows how much the cinema is valued, and we hope it will help reinforce the case for protecting the UPP.”
Oriel did not comment on the impact that this award could have on their negotiations; it told Cherwell: “The Ultimate Picture Palace is one of the country’s historic cinemas. We are very proud that it has been shortlisted for the BIFA Cinema of the Year award.”
One of last year’s entrants for Cinema of the Year said that they “saw a 20% increase in ticket sales”. BIFA notes that “votes are weighted taking into account the footfall through your cinema over the course of the preceding year”. With a petition of over 24,430 verified signatures to save their cinema, the UPP say it is an exciting time for them.
The UPP told Cherwell: “We’d love to bring the Cinema of the Year award back to Oxford when the winner is announced on December 6th.”
, Oxford’s only independent cinema, has been shortlisted for Cinema of the Year at the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA).){kind=link}