SINGAPORE - Filmgarde Cineplexes has announced that it will close two of its three cinemas in the coming months.

When the leases for the Filmgarde cinemas at Bugis+ and Century Square expire in the first quarter of this year (2022), they will be closed, with staff redeployed across other operations in the company's property and hospitality businesses, according to a press statement.

Filmgarde is owned by Hansfort Investment, which also owns and manages the Joyden Hall event space.  

The closures are part of a "new transformative road map" for the company that reflects changing trends in the industry.

Plans for the remaining third cinema at Leisure Park Kallang will be announced later.

Mr Sherman Ong, head of cinema operations at Filmgarde said in the statement that the closures come amid a general decline in cinema attendance since 2013.

"This is in spite of an increase in the number of screens and seating capacity over the same period," he said.

The onset of pandemic precautions in 2020, which saw seating capacities roughly cut by half to meet social-distancing regulations, "accelerated and exacerbated these trends".

Singapore's cinema-going habits have also been hit by the arrival of streaming platforms, which have altered movie consumption patterns, he added.

Filmgarde, set up in 2007, was known for being a small operator overshadowed by larger and more established players such as Golden Village, Shaw Theatres and Cathay Cineplexes. Over the years, it made its mark by supporting the screenings of Singapore film-makers such as Daniel Hui, Remi M. Sali and Tan Pin Pin as well as hosting events held by the Singapore International Film Festival.

In 2018, when Oscar-winning Mexican film-maker Alfonso Cuaron visited Singapore to attend a cinema screening of his drama Roma, Filmgarde Bugis+ was selected for the event.

In March, Filmgarde plans to release a series of photography journals to commemorate its 15 years in operation.