Sag Harbor Cinema’s “Here Comes The Cinema!” Premiering With Giuseppe Tornatore’s “Cinema Paradiso”

Here Comes the Cinema!, a new winter Sag Harbor Cinema (SHC) series, will launch with a free screening of Giuseppe Tornatore’s Cinema Paradiso on Monday, December 16. The screening, taking place at Bay Street, will begin at 7 p.m. and be followed by a conversation with Hollywood screenwriter, East End resident, and SHC board member Bill Collage. The series will feature a variety of beloved films and is designed to be a fun, shared experience for the community.

Here Comes the Cinema! will take viewers on a trip around the world as films are shown from places like Southern Italy to Taipei to Key West to Paris to Texas and New Jersey. The program desires to celebrate the power of film, which has quite literally changed history.

“Whether it’s a scene or an entire film, cinemas and the movie going experience have been at the heart of so many movies…It seemed a natural theme for this last pre-opening series; and also a good way to acknowledge the extraordinary collective effort that made possible the rebuild of the Sag Harbor Cinema,” SHC’s Founding Artistic Director Giulia D’Agnolo Vallan, who will moderate the conversation, relayed.

You can expect to see films like Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Goodbye Dragon Inn, The Cameraman, Dawson City: Frozen Time, The Last Picture Show, Targets, and Sullivan’s Travels.

Set in a tiny village in Sicily, just after World War II, Cinema Paradiso follows the unique bond a young boy forges with the town projectionist.

“We are so pleased to be joining forces on a series of films with our friends from the Cinema. It’s important to keep Sag Harbor a center for all forms of artistic endeavors, which serves our artists and our community, as well as the economic health of our village as a whole,” explained Bay Street Theater’s Executive Director Tracy Mitchell.

The screening of Giuseppe Tornatore’s Oscar winning Cinema Paradiso will take place on a momentous day in Sag Harbor history – the third anniversary of the fire that significantly damaged the Cinema.

“We are so thankful to the first responders, to the community and to Bay Street for their generosity and support,” added Sag Harbor Cinema’s Executive Director Gillian Gordon. “We are excited about opening our very own Cinema Paradiso, on Main Street in the Spring.”

The evening will begin with a special holiday reception, complete with hot cider, mulled wine, and a visit from Santa, at 6 p.m. There is no fee to attend, however reserving a seat in advance is required.

Bay Street Theater is located at 1 Bay Street, Sag Harbor. Reserve your place at www.sagharborcinema.org or call 631-725-9500.