Spanish-Language Movie Theater Opens

AURORA, CO-The metro area’s first Spanish-language multiplex movie theater has opened its doors in this city east of Denver. Anthony Martinez, a fifth-generation Coloradoan, opened CinemaLatino at East Sixth Avenue and Peoria Street.

The eight-screen theater opened with the Spanish-version of movies such as the “Bandits,” “Jurassic Park III,” “Hannibal,” and “Tomb Raiders,” which include subtitles, and “Amorres Perros,” “Matame Mucho” and “Lejos y Rosas,” which are Spanish films with English subtitles.

The theater had been closed since 1999. Previously, Silver Cinemas had operated a Super Saver Cinema 8 in the facility.

“I’m not aware of any other Spanish-speaking movie theater in the metro area,” Tom Mathews, a retail broker with CB Richard Ellis tells GlobeSt.com. “It’s an area that is not represented. I think something like this makes sense.”

About 275,000 people live in Aurora — Colorado’s third largest city – and about 55,000, or 20% of them, are Hispanic. Denver billionaire Philip Anschutz controls more movie theater screens than anyone else in the country.

But Mathews says he doubts that someone like Anschutz would try to get into this market.

“It’s a great idea, but a lot of these big guys do really high-profile type of deals,” Mathews tells GlobeSt.com. The Spanish-speaking movie idea is more of a grass-roots concept that lends itself to specific neighborhoods, he says.

“This is more of a rubber meets the road-type of thing,” Mathews explains.