Event Cinemas reopen Sydney's last drive-in cinema

Sydney's last remaining drive-in cinema, the Skyline Drive-In in the suburb of Blacktown, has reopened after a redevelopment that mixes the old with the new.

Featuring a 'Happy Days' style retro diner and two large screens backed by the latest digital cinema technology with state-of-the-art servers and Christie digital projectors, conforming to the DCI standard for cinema exhibition, and a sound system that is replayed via an FM transmission stereo signal, the venue offers a "truly unique night of fun."

Located off Reservoir Road in Blacktown, next to the soon to open Wet'n'Wild Sydney waterpark, the drive-in is the only one of Sydney's drive-in cinemas to have escaped redevelopment and is one of the last remaining locations in Australia.

The upgrades have been undertaken by the site owner Event Cinemas - part of the AHL Group, which also runs the outdoor Moonlight Cinemas.

With Australia's first American-style drive-in having opened in the Melbourne suburb of Burwood in 1954, at their peak, Australia had in excess of 300 drive-ins. However, by the early 1980s, the rise of VHS video players led to the decline of drive-ins, a situation exaggerated as once-cheap land rose in value with rising demand for residential and commercial development in cities.

Apart from a blow-up drive-in screen at Randwick Racecourse only three other drive-ins survive in NSW.

Melbourne has Coburg's Village Triple Drive-in Theatre, the former Dandenong drive-in with four screens, and the National Trust-listed Dromana Twin Drive-In.

Queensland which once offered more than 50 drive-ins still has the Yatala drive-in south of Brisbane, the Tivoli near Ipswich, the Rodeo at Mareeba near Cairns and others at Charters Towers, Ayr and Jericho.

Perth has only one drive-in left, the Galaxy at Kingsley, but there up to eight others operating in rural Western Australia. While Adelaide also has one - the Wallis Mainline at Gepps Cross there are none left in the Tasmania, the Northern Territory or ACT.

Explaining the redevelopment of the Skyline Drive-In, AHL Group Managing Director David Seargeant explained "the Skyline Drive-In represents a distinct part of Sydney's history (and) being Sydney's only remaining drive-in, we saw a duty to preserve this part of history and develop it even further to create a truly unique and nostalgic experience for our cinema customers."

For more information go to www.eventcinemas.com.au/cinema/drive-in-blacktown