Central Kino in Požega / Croatia

 

This modernistic building with 456 seats in parterre and balcony, opened in 1937 with Charles Chaplin's Modern Times. The architect was Ljudevit Pelzer, who is famous for the cinema Korso/Europe in Osijek. The investors of both cinemas were the brothers Slavko and Bogumil Fleissig from Požega. Although Bogumil Fleissig was a civil engineer and had a construction company, his life is connected with the cinema. Already in 1911, his uncle Dragutin Fleissig, also a civil engineer, opened first cinema in Požega.

The architectural building of the new cinema and the outside area indicated the function of the building itself. On the facade of the building with large wall surfaces, an empty wall screen protruded, which was an unusual and interesting advertisement for the interior, cinema projections. The building is an example of the modern architecture of the 1930s.

The Central Kino was closed on 1st May 1999. Today it is a part of the Saint Teresa of Ávila Cathedral. Unfortunately I couldn't a find a photo from today on internet.

So there isn't any cinema today in Požega, but the local film and video club has been organizing every year the Croatian One-Minute Film Festival since 1993. Požega is really worth visiting.