Bound by Tradition

Would you believe that the movie theater called Apolló is almost 100 years old? It was actually built in 1912, when a cloth merchant and his brother applied for a permit to build a "motion picture theater" at the corner of what is Miklós (Michael) and Piac (Market) streets today. At that time, it was a novelty that the electricity supply in the theater direct and not alternate current. The grand opening featured two films: Két férfi (Two Men) and Az ezres bankó (The Thousand Bill).

Several major alterations of the theater building have been implemented since, and Apolló has become one of the most technologically advanced movie theaters in Hungary, and it does not seem to have stopped improving even today. The individual auditoriums in the theater are all fully accessible to customers with special needs. When the advent of multiplex movie theaters dealt a serious blow to the four original movie theaters in Debrecen, it was only Apolló that survived among them to remain a favourite hotspot in the cultural life of Debrecen as an art cinema.

From Premieres to Pearl Diving

Apolló is not simply a movie theater. It offers such a colorful variety of programs that attract the old and the young, art-lovers and action-movie fans, Hungarians and foreigners alike. A regular program of the movie theater is the showing of the prize-winning films of the Hungarian National Film Days, with special attention devoted to moviemakers from Debrecen. The hosts of first night galas regularly invite the directors, producers, and even the lead actors and actresses, so that the audience may get a chance to meet the artists in person. In the past few years, Apolló has been the host for a number of very special movies and their creators, such as Üvegtigris (Glass Tiger), Csocsó, Csudafilm (Magic Movie), Sorstalanság (Fateless), Hídember (Bridge-Man), Meseautó (Fairy Tale Auto), Az igazi Mikulás (The Real Santa Claus), Rinaldo, Egy szoknya egy nadrág (One Skirt and One Pair of Pants), A fény ösvényei (The Paths of Light), or Hamvadó cigarettavég (Smouldering Cigarette)... Regularly, there are series of films selected from the output of individual nations, shown generally for a couple of days; these are films that are not distributed nationwide. Every year, the movie theater joins the nationwide French Film Days but we have also had a chance to get a flavor of Polish, Turkish, Italian, Portuguese, Australian, Israeli, Indian, Argentinean, and Spanish films during special film days. And this is not all. Festive events that have been offered by Apolló range from Movie Feast, Mustra ORTT (Muster ORTT) Film Festival, Dialect Festival and Romany Days, European Film Days, Francophone Film Night, Pearl Diver Film Week or Animation Film Days.

Children growing up in large families or in foster homes and children with disabilities are regularly provided with possibilities of participating in charitable film showings. The imposing lobby of Apolló Movie Theater is oftentimes used for hosting a variety of exhibitions. What could a table exhibition or a television set exhibition be like? If you are interested, come and find out in the Apolló.

What do the auditoriums "know"?

Grand Auditorium

Seats: 176

Screen dimensions: 4.5 × 8.5 m

Number of projectors: 2

Projector types: 35 mm, ME05

Sound system: Lege Sound

Minor Auditorium

Seats: 74

Screen dimensions: 5.50 × 2.50 m, mini perforational screen

Number of projectors: 2

Projector types: 35 mm, ME05

Sound system: Dolby and DTS system

Art Auditorium

Seats: 63

Screen dimensions: 5.50 × 2.50 m, mini perforational screen

Projector types: 35 mm, ME05

Sound system: Dolby and DTS system