THE curtain appears to have closed on plans for a community cinema in the city after those behind the project admitted their hopes had died with the coronavirus pandemic.

Graeme Spence, from the Dunfermline Cinema Project, said they had plans to create the facility in the Alhambra Theatre however have now scrapped their proposals.

"We started a cinema project to have a community cinema which would have been a different idea to what we see in Dunfermline. That was in 2019 into 2020 and then we got stopped with covid," he said.

"I think the project we were going to deliver is, unfortunately, dead in the water but the idea lives on. At the right time, it could comeback.

"It is only about now that cinemas are starting to move itself back to the forefront of entertainment."

The project team had sourced digital equipment for a cinema project and linked it into the sound system at the Alhambra before deciding they could take it no further.

Graeme continued: "That is as far as we got. We managed to show some trailers but, at that point, nothing was allowed to be open.

"Unfortunately, it was a small project with a very tight budget and it was not to be but it is not to say the Alhambra could not revive it."

It was our Press, Take, Action! campaign which inspired the DCP to form after more than 1,500 film fans signed our petition backing our calls for a more affordable cinema experience.

Our campaign calling on Odeon to cut ticket prices at their Fife Leisure Park complex launched last February after a Press investigation revealed that the venue was the most expensive cinema in Scotland.

An idea to reopen the old Robins Cinema on East Port had also previously been mooted by the Dunfermline Regeneration Trust however these plans were shelved when the Alhambra project was proposed.

A spokesperson for the trust explained: "Our plan was to restore the building and to convert it to a multi-purpose community building which would include a community cinema. We had successfully applied for funding for a feasibility study and had engaged the services of a top cinema consultant.

"However, another group announced that they were going to develop a cinema in Dunfermline and we realised that they were not dependant on the lengthy process of restoring an old building.

"Funders will not support a project which is setting up in competition with another established business – so sadly we had to withdraw from the project and send the funding back.

"It would be great to see that lovely old building restored and put to good use in the community. We haven’t completely given up hope of doing something with the building – if we can raise the money to buy it."

Film buffs will still be able to get a taste of the big screen in the city centre with the introduction of a monthly film night at Fire Station Creative.

This will begin next month with the showing of Alfred Hitchcock's North By Northwest on April 19.

The venue's director, Ian Moir, said they are hoping the club will prove a success.

"We are just testing the water to se how it goes," he said. "We had to invest in the equipment. We have got a good quality projector and good quality speakers. It took us a few weeks to install the speakers and get the system the way we wanted it.

"It is a laser projector that can sit within half a metre of the screen and get a really amazing quality picture."

Tickets for the film are available from eventbrite or can be purchased at FSC for £7.