Cinema Dimashq (Translated from Arabic, Cinema Damascus) is a movie theater in

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

. The theater was one of the largest single room

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

s in the

Arab World The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

, with a total seating capacity of 1500, the ground floor seated 1000 moviegoers and a large balcony seated 500. It is currently the only cinema in Syria featuring the latest American and European productions. The movie theater currently features 4 medium-sized projection rooms of about 300 places each. Opened in 1943 by Toufik Chammas, a prominent local businessman, Cinema Dimashq rapidly became a local entertainment proxy, bringing Syria into the era of cinematography. Closed in early 2005, and reopened in mid-2009, its current name is Cinema City. Completely renovated, the cinema now features a sushi bar, and digital projectors. Cinema City did come under criticism as it was later accused of evading US sanctions imposed onto Syria since 2003, and projecting US movies the same day they would debut in Dubai, Lebanon and other prevalent Arab cities.

External links

Cinema City Syria (Damascus), previously known as Cinema Dimashq
Cinemas in Syria Buildings and structures in Damascus 1943 establishments in Mandatory Syria Theatres completed in 1943 {{Syria-stub