The Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema (formerly the Bloor Cinema and the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema) is a movie theatre in
The Annex district of
downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ...
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada, located at 506
Bloor Street West, near its intersection with
Bathurst Street and the
Bathurst subway station.
The venue serves as the primary home of the annual
Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, as well as screening a regular theatrical lineup of documentary films throughout the year and serving as a venue for other smaller film festivals and cultural events.
History
In 1913, the Madison Picture Palace opened at this location. It was demolished in 1940 and rebuilt as the Midtown Theatre. It was renamed the Capri in 1967. In 1973, it became the Eden, showing adult films. It became the Bloor in 1979 and returned to showing first-run films. One year later, it was sold, becoming an independent repertory-style theatre. It was sold to the Blue Ice Group in 2011 and to the Hot Docs Festival in 2016.
For a large part of recent history, the Bloor Cinema was a
second-run theatre, showing movies that had already been in theatres, usually before they were released on video and DVD. The theatre screened classic films,
art film
An art film (or arthouse film) is typically an independent film, aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made primarily f ...
s, and
cult film
A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage i ...
s. ''
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' is a 1975 Musical film, musical comedy horror film by 20th Century Fox, produced by Lou Adler and Michael White (producer), Michael White and directed by Jim Sharman. The screenplay was written by Sharman an ...
'' was traditionally screened with a live cast on
Halloween
Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observan ...
and on the last Friday of every month. The Bloor Cinema was repeatedly selected as the best repertory cinema in Toronto by ''
Eye Weekly
''Eye Weekly'' was a free weekly newspaper published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was owned by Torstar, the parent company of the '' Toronto Star'', and was published by their Star Media Group until its final issue on May 5, 2011. The foll ...
''. The theatre was independent and it reopened after its renovation in 1999.
Hot Docs
Although it was closed in 2010, the Bloor Cinema's owner turned away developers looking to replace the theatre. In 2011, it was sold to the Blue Ice Group who managed the cinema in partnership with Hot Docs, where it was renovated and reopened under the moniker the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema in 2012. It is the main location for Hot Docs, akin to the
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...
's
Bell Lightbox.
On June 23, 2016, it was announced that Hot Docs had purchased the Bloor Cinema from the Blue Ice Group, using a gift from the
Rogers Foundation, and that the cinema would be rebranded as the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema.
See also
*
List of cinemas in Toronto
References
External links
*
{{Theatres in Toronto
Cinemas and movie theatres in Toronto
Repertory cinemas
1941 establishments in Ontario
Festival venues in Canada