Jubilee Cinema

The oldest cinema in Liberec dates from 1908-1909, when builders Robert and Ernest Peuker constructed the first permanent movie house, called the "Elektrisches Jubiläums-Theater". The place was renamed the Jubilee Cinema to mark the 60th anniversary of the reign of Franz Joseph I. The fully electrified cinema was one of the first and most modern buildings of its kind in North Bohemia and could seat an audience of up to 234 people. 

Cinema with garages

The cinema was considerably changed and refurbished in 1922-1923 following plans drawn up by the architects Effenberger & Noppes, who designed the cinema in the modern Art Deco style and also added parking garages, located somewhat unusually above the main cinema hall. The cinema was first called "Städtische Lichtspiele Reichenberg", and during World War II was then renamed as "Kino Kapitol"; for a while after the war it was known as "Mír" ("Peace"), and in the 1960s was finally given the name "Varšava" ("Warsaw"), which it has kept since then. 

Let’s Save the Warsaw Cinema

Regular film screenings stopped here in 2008, when the city council ceased to fund the cinema and made efforts to sell it. A group of people who opposed this plan got together and set up a civil association in 2012, called "Let’s Save the Warsaw Cinema", and rented out the building to enable it again to be used for cultural purposes. With funding from the city and regional authorities, sponsors, and work put in by volunteers, the foyer was reconstructed and a café was opened in 2015. The reconstruction was later awarded the Community of Architects Grand Prix for 2015. 

The oldest cinema in Liberec is being rejuvenated

Since 2012, when it first started taking care of the cinema, the group of local citizens making up “Let’s Save the Warsaw Cinema” (originally a civil association) has managed to do a great deal of work. 

The Warsaw Cinema has been a cultural heritage site since 2023.