Cube Microplex

Cube Microplex is an independent cinema and multidisciplinary arts venue in Bristol, England. It operates as a non-profit cooperative and is run largely or entirely by volunteers, combining film exhibition with live music, performance, comedy, education, community events and artist-led projects. The venue is designed less as a conventional commercial cinema than as a social and cultural meeting place for Bristol’s independent creative community. The Cube occupies a building whose cultural history predates the present organisation. Constructed in 1916 as workshops for the Bristol Deaf Centre, the premises were adapted in 1964 by amateur theatre enthusiasts into a theatre with an auditorium and fly tower. A projection room and cinema screen were added during the 1970s. The current Cube Microplex opened in October 1998, after the Cube Cinema was incorporated as a company limited by guarantee with a democratically organised worker-cooperative structure. The venue’s central auditorium has approximately 108 seats. Its programme typically combines mainstream and limited-release films with art-house cinema, cult and classic films, locally made work, experimental screenings and special formats. It has also presented mother-and-baby screenings, movieoke events in which participants perform scenes while a film plays, stand-up comedy, live music and performance. The building can be hired by outside organisations and has hosted local and international artists, festivals and community-led activities. Cube Microplex has been associated with a strongly independent and anti-corporate ethos. Its activities have included Cube-Cola, an open-source cola project, and Feral Trade, a social-network-based approach to sourcing products for the bar, including fair-trade coffee from a farming cooperative in El Salvador. The venue also has an in-house improvising ensemble known as Orchestra Cube. Its bar is described as serving local and ethical products, reinforcing the organisation’s community-oriented approach. The Cube has periodically created temporary cinemas in unusual locations, including a tin mine in Cornwall. It has also taken cinema and cultural activity beyond Bristol. In 2010, a team travelled to Haiti after the earthquake to stage an open-air cinema for children, using mainstream and specially created films. In 2015, it undertook a similar project in Nepal after the April earthquake. A serious fire in July 2001, originating in the kitchen of the adjacent New Mayflower restaurant, destroyed much of the internal structure and timber of the neighbouring buildings at 4 and 5 King Square. The Cube suffered only minor direct damage, but its public access ran through a corridor affected by the fire, forcing the venue to close to general audiences. Following extensive rebuilding, it reopened in August 2002 with a new entrance on Dove Street South. In 2013, supporters and volunteers raised £185,000 to purchase the freehold of the building. On 1 April 2014, ownership transferred to Microplex Holdings Ltd, a non-profit Industrial and Provident Society and Community Land Trust established by Cube volunteers. The ownership structure was intended to protect the building as a community arts space in perpetuity. The Cube’s programme has been reported as averaging more than 350 events a year, with average monthly attendance of around 1,500, although current figures are not established here.

The building now occupied by Cube Microplex has served community and cultural purposes for more than a century. It was built in 1916 as a set of workshops for the Bristol Deaf Centre. In 1964, volunteers associated with amateur dramatics converted the premises into a theatre, adding an auditorium and fly tower. A projection room and cinema screen were introduced in the 1970s, establishing an early connection with film exhibition. The present organisation emerged in the late 1990s. Cube Cinema was incorporated in 1998 as a company limited by guarantee and structured as a democratically run worker cooperative. The current Cube Microplex opened in October of that year. Rather than following a conventional multiplex model, it developed as a volunteer-led cultural venue combining cinema with music, performance, comedy, education and community activity. Its programme has included mainstream and limited-release films, art-house and cult cinema, classic-film events, locally produced work and experimental screenings. The venue’s development was interrupted by a major fire in July 2001. The fire began in the kitchen of the neighbouring New Mayflower restaurant and destroyed much of the internal storeys and timber of buildings at 4 and 5 King Square. Although the Cube itself was only lightly damaged, its public entrance was reached through a corridor between the damaged restaurant and kitchen. As a result, the venue could not be used by the general public until rebuilding was completed. Cube Microplex reopened in August 2002 with a new entrance on Dove Street South. After reopening, the Cube continued to expand its role as a Bristol arts hub. Its programme has included regular film and performance nights, live music at weekends, stand-up comedy, participatory movieoke screenings and screenings for parents with babies. The venue has also offered space to festivals and artist networks, including the Venn Festival, Ladyfest Bristol, Bristol Radical History Group, Ausform Platform of Performance and Independent Heroine. Third parties have periodically hired the building for their own events. The organisation’s identity has also been shaped by experiments in alternative production and ethical consumption. Cube-Cola was developed by Kate Rich and Kayle Brandon using an open-source cola recipe. The Feral Trade project supplied bar products through personal social networks, including fair-trade coffee from a farming cooperative in El Salvador. The venue also developed Orchestra Cube, an in-house improvising orchestra. These projects reflected the Cube’s broader interest in cooperative, non-corporate and artist-led forms of cultural production. The Cube has repeatedly taken cinema outside its permanent premises. It has established temporary cinemas in unusual locations, including a tin mine in Cornwall. In 2010, a group connected with the organisation travelled to Haiti after the earthquake and staged an open-air cinema for children. In 2015, it undertook a further outreach project in Nepal after the April earthquake. These activities extended the organisation’s model from local venue programming to mobile and international cultural engagement. A major institutional change occurred through a community fundraising effort in 2013. Supporters raised £185,000 to buy the freehold of the building. On 1 April 2014, ownership passed to Microplex Holdings Ltd, a non-profit Industrial and Provident Society and Community Land Trust established by Cube volunteers. The arrangement was designed to secure the building as a community arts space in perpetuity, reducing the risk that the venue’s future would depend solely on commercial landlords or short-term occupancy. The Cube’s reported operating model has involved a large volunteer workforce, with volunteers historically ranging from children to older adults. Its public programme has been described as averaging more than 350 events each year and approximately 1,500 attendances per month. Current operating figures, leadership details and formal ownership updates are not established in the supplied material. The venue remains best understood as an independent, community-oriented cinema and multidisciplinary arts space rather than a conventional commercial cinema chain.

• 2014

  Community trust takes ownership

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  Microplex Holdings Ltd, a volunteer-established non-profit society and Community Land Trust, became the building’s owner on 1 April.

• 2013

  Freehold fundraising target reached

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  A community fundraising campaign reached its £185,000 target to purchase the building’s freehold.

• 2002

  Reopening with a new entrance

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  After rebuilding, the Cube reopened in August with public access relocated to Dove Street South.

• 2001

  Fire blocks public access

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  A fire at the neighbouring New Mayflower restaurant caused major surrounding damage and cut off the Cube’s public entrance.

• 1998

  Cube Microplex opens in its present form

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  The present-day Cube opened in October 1998, following the incorporation of Cube Cinema as a company limited by guarantee and cooperative organisation.

• 1970

  Cinema projection facilities added

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  A projection room and cinema screen were added during the 1970s.

• 1964

  Premises converted into a theatre

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  A team of amateur theatre enthusiasts adapted the workshops into a theatre with an auditorium and fly tower.

• 1916

  Building constructed as Bristol Deaf Centre workshops

  [1]Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org

  The building that later housed Cube Microplex was constructed as workshops for the Bristol Deaf Centre.

Volunteer-led, non-profit and community-owned independent cinema and arts venue, distinguished by experimental programming, participatory events, ethical trading projects and a strong anti-corporate ethos.

• Film exhibition · 1998

  Cinema programme

  Cube Microplex presents a mixed film programme spanning mainstream and limited-release titles, art-house cinema, cult and classic films, experimental work and films made by local creators. It also presents themed and participatory screenings, including special sessions for mothers and babies and movieoke events in which audience members perform scenes from films as they play.

• Music and performance · 1998

  Live events programme

  The venue hosts live music, performance art, comedy, stand-up and community-initiated events. Its flexible programme has supported both local and international artists, while the building is also available for selected third-party events and festivals.

• Ethical consumer project

  Cube-Cola

  Cube-Cola was an anti-corporate cultural and trading project associated with Kate Rich and Kayle Brandon. It used an open-source cola recipe and expressed the organisation’s interest in alternative, participatory approaches to production and consumption.

• Ethical bar supply project

  Feral Trade

  Feral Trade supplied products to the Cube bar through personal social networks rather than conventional distribution channels. The project included fair-trade coffee sourced from a farming cooperative in El Salvador and formed part of the venue’s ethical and non-corporate ethos.

• Improvised music

  Orchestra Cube

  Orchestra Cube is the venue’s in-house improvising orchestra, extending the Cube’s activities beyond film exhibition into experimental live music and collaborative performance.

• 2015Nepal post-earthquake cinema project

  NP

  The Cube undertook an outreach cinema project in Nepal following the April 2015 earthquake.

  Outcome. The initiative continued the organisation’s use of temporary cinema as a form of cultural and community engagement after disasters.

  Source
• 2013Freehold purchase fundraising campaign

  GB

  Volunteers and supporters raised funds to purchase the freehold of the Cube’s building, with a stated target of £185,000.

  Outcome. The target was reached, enabling the subsequent transfer of ownership to Microplex Holdings Ltd.

  Source
• 2010Haiti open-air cinema project

  HT

  A group associated with the Cube travelled to Haiti after the earthquake and organised an open-air cinema for children, combining mainstream films with specially created material.

  Outcome. The project extended the Cube’s community cinema model into post-disaster cultural outreach.

  Source

• 2014

  Secure the venue through community ownershipStrategy

  Background

  The organisation sought to protect the Cube’s future as a community arts venue and reduce dependence on conventional property ownership.

  Action taken

  After a successful fundraising campaign, ownership of the building transferred to Microplex Holdings Ltd, a volunteer-established non-profit Industrial and Provident Society and Community Land Trust.

  Aftermath

  The ownership structure was intended to preserve the building as a community arts space in perpetuity.

  Freehold fundraising target. £185,000 target reached (2013)

  Source

• 2002

  Rebuild and relocate public access after fireStrategy

  Background

  The 2001 fire at the neighbouring restaurant blocked the corridor used by the public to enter the Cube, despite only minor direct damage to the venue.

  Action taken

  The organisation undertook rebuilding work and reopened with a new entrance on Dove Street South.

  Aftermath

  Cube Microplex resumed public programming in August 2002.

  Source

1. 1Cube Microplexen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Cube Microplex official websitemicroplex.cubecinema.com