Campaign to save St Leonards cinema 'severely' damaged by flooding

Kino-Teatr, in Norman Road, was severely affected by flooding following the recent heavy rainfall.

Owners said water broke through the roof and damaged equipment and part of the interior of the building.

Husband-and-wife team, Olga Mamonova and Russell Baker have now launched an appeal on Gofundme to raise £40,000 towards repairs and keep the venue open.

Olga said: “This is our first ever appeal to the public since we opened in 2015. It is a husband-and-wife team trying to maintain an exciting cultural life at the heart of St Leonards, the town where we’ve lived for more 25 years.

"We treat it as an ‘open house’, as my artist husband Russell Baker and myself are here 24/7 and our customers know us well. Although we pay rent, it is a long-term lease and we’ve been working hard to make sure Kino-Teatr is here to stay.

"Kino-Teatr has always been open, even under the most challenging of circumstances. On top of rising costs of running such a large space the Kino went through a disastrous flooding last week when heavy rain broke through the roof and damaged some of the equipment and structures.

"The flooding has severely affected our events, building, and projection room.

"The repairs would be too costly for us to afford it but manageable if all friends and supporters of the Kino could help us to face these challenge together. So after many years of work we’re now turning to the public for help, to donate anything they can so we can continue the repairs and our creative work in 2023.

"We’ve managed to handle what we could to stop further damage but it is far from enough. So if a person had a good time at the Kino, if he/she ever enjoyed a film here, a play, a show, or worked with us on a performance, an exhibition, a musical or any other creative project or an event, or even celebrated their wedding here, please support our efforts to prevent Kino-Teatr from going down, alongside other historical local venues. Kino-Teatr has been our pride and joy, shared by so many of residents and visitors from afar.”

Visit www.gofundme.com/f/save-kinoteatr.