Rootop cinemas on the rise 1: New venues for Perth and Sydney

Perth rooftop cinema gets the go ahead while Sydney Surry Hills venture awaits approval

Plans for Perth's first rooftop cinema have been given the go ahead, with the top floor of the city's Roe Street car park set to be transformed into an outdoor cinema and bar.

Following City of Perth councillors voted for the project, Northbridge-based arts group Artrage will start work on the project that will see movies screened movies on the top, uncovered floor of the car park between 22nd February and April this year.

Artrage Chief Executive Marcus Canning said organisers would use the entire upper floor of the car park, which is mostly unused during the evening, laying synthetic turf and forming a cinema screen out of two sea containers.

Canning said the tired space would be transformed into a vibrant summer nightspot, with the group also setting up potted plants and deckchairs, as well as a food and drinks bar, stating "we used it for a little festival a couple of years ago and ever since then I've had it in the back of my mind to turn it into a cinema.

"I'm a big fan of the rooftop cinemas in Sydney and Melbourne and this one will be based on the same design as the Bondi outdoor cinema."

The cinema will be on the seventh floor of the car park, with panoramic views of the city skyline.

Meanwhile, central Sydney could get its first commercial rooftop cinema and bar, operating nightly until late in Surry Hills, if Sydney City Council approves plans put forward by a Melbourne company.

With a capacity of 250 patrons, the proposal is for a 175-seat outdoor cinema operating through the warmer months, an outdoor bar serving alcohol and food and an indoor theatrette on the roof of the Paramount building on Brisbane Street.

Patrons would listen to films through headphones, to comply with noise restrictions. The cinema would operate until midnight (and 10pm on Sundays) for a 12-month trial period; and the bar would be open from midday. Alcohol would be banned outside after 10pm.

The council received 35 submissions on the $1 million proposal, 23 of them objections from residents of the nearby Mark Foys building.

With seven pubs and bars within 200 metres of the site, the Council's report dismissed residents' concerns about drunken patrons leaving noisily at night, partly due to the "city edge" nature of the neighbourhood.

The applicant, Barrie Barton, who founded Melbourne's rooftop cinema on Swanston Street, acknowledged that some residents had objected but said his company had worked closely with the council to minimise noise and other potential impacts.

Barton told the Sydney Morning Herald "we've invested heavily in acoustic engineers to work out a solution within the guidelines - obviously the use of headphones is part of that solution."

The vacant, three-storey, heritage-listed art deco building, built in 1940 on the corner of Commonwealth and Brisbane streets, was once the office and film distribution centre of Paramount Pictures.

Barton said the cinema, if approved, would screen arthouse films, and a mix of current and older releases, adding "we've been working towards this for four years and we just love that building so much.

"It's so depressing watching film shown in fast-food environments, which is what most big cinemas feel like."

If approved, Barton said the cinema could begin operating next year.

Council planners recommended the project for approval tonight, after imposing conditions to restrict noise and light.

Last November Woollahra Council approved a proposal for a 150-seat rooftop cinema in Double Bay.

For more information go to www.rooftopcinema.com.au/about-us