The teams from the Czech Republic, France, and Hungary will propose the renovation of the Great Cinema

Zlín - The future shape and use of the Zlín Grand Cinema will be proposed by three architectural firms from the Czech Republic, as well as teams from France, Slovakia, and Hungary. Representatives of six teams that advanced to the finals of the cinema renovation competition toured the facility today. A total of over 30 firms, including those from abroad across Europe, applied for the competition, said Zlín Mayor Jiří Korec (ANO) to reporters today. The Grand Cinema, built in 1932 by the Baťa company, has been closed since 2016 due to structural issues, and the city wants to repair it.

The city chose a so-called competitive dialogue format, allowing for input on the proposals. During today’s introductory workshop, architects also met with heritage protectors, as the cinema is a protected monument, as well as structural engineers and representatives of the Zlín Film Festival, which regularly screened films at the cinema.

Afterward, the architectural firms will begin preparing proposals that will be gradually reviewed. The finalists were not selected by the jury based on specific proposals but rather on their references and previous work on similar projects.

"We looked at how they approach buildings and renovations, whether they were innovative, and how they incorporated modern technologies. Our vision for the Grand Cinema is for it to be a lively space that attracts audiences not just during the festival week," Korec stated.

The building should retain its basic function, with a cinema hall of about 800 seats that can also be used for other purposes. Additional spaces are to be created, such as a museum of cinematography, exhibitions with audiovisual elements, or virtual reality.

Heritage protectors demand that as much of the original structure as possible be preserved during the renovation. It was the largest in the republic at the time. According to the city architect Ivo Tuček, the cinema is unique due to its size and specific construction solution, and it is one of the buildings dominating Náměstí Práce. The original seating capacity reached up to 2,270 seats but has gradually been reduced to the current 1,010 seats. However, the building has been damaged by wars, poor maintenance, and subsequent additional stress.

The winner of the competition is to be announced next September. The costs of renovating the cinema are estimated by the mayor to be 300 million crowns.