ONE day they hope to have their own independent arthouse cinema taking pride of place in the city.
And now, a group of film enthusiasts have taken their first steps by revealing a programme of screenings rarely seen at Hull's multiplexes.
Hull Independent Cinema Project (HICP) will launch the new series of movies on Thursday, July 3, with the British thriller Locke, starring Tom Hardy.
The screenings, to be hosted alternately at Artlink in Princes Avenue, west Hull, and Kardomah 94 in the city centre, represent HICP's first steps towards its long-term goal of creating a new venue for independent, world and art cinema.
HICP was established two years ago by Paul Terry, a local film-lover, who was inspired when passing the former Tower Cinema in Anlaby Road.
His vision was to turn the building into an arthouse cinema.
Despite making inquiries, the building was sold before Paul could really get moving.
But he has never given up on that dream and has worked hard to ensure lesser-known films can be screened in the city.
"It's fantastic that the past two years of hard work establishing contacts and getting people involved has paid off with the start of this regular film programme," he said.
"Having people involved in HICP who are already active in the city's film culture gives us a great headstart as we already have an audience who are engaged and as passionate about film as we are."
The aim remains to provide a venue for independent film screenings.
But to make it viable, the HCIP accepts it needs to grow its audience.
"We're really excited to take this first step along the road to our long-term goal and we would like to offer our appreciation to all those at Artlink and at Kardomah 94 for the opportunity to use their venues for our screenings," Paul said.
Paul, who also runs local film club WeWatchFilms, has been joined by several others including Damien Greco, who runs Cult Cinema Sunday and Fudge Film Club, and James Russell, who runs Friends of Hull Screen.
Generating interest is the key to making any new cinema viable.
To achieve that aim HCIP plans to establish and expand the film audience by hosting a series of regular screenings, community outreach events, and an annual film festival.
It also submitted a proposal to the Hull UK City of Culture 2017 team, part of which was included in the final bid, and is already working with the 2017 organisers to ensure film is a key element of the UK City of Culture programme.
"At most cinemas people go in, sit in a dark room, watch the film and then leave," said Damien, of Cult Cinema Sunday.
"That's fine and it can be a great night out,
"But when cinemas are competing more with DVD, Blu-ray, downloads and streaming sites, we need to offer something different to get people out of the house.
"We're doing that, not just by putting on films that people don't get to see at the mainstream cinemas, but doing it in a social way with added content to give people real value for their ticket price."
James has fought to keep Hull Screen going – currently one of the only ways to watch foreign and arthouse films on the big screen.
"Hull City Council's recent budget saw the end of funding for Hull Screen, which has been hosted at Reel Cinema for the past few years," he said.
"With Hull Screen facing an uncertain future, the opportunity to get involved in this new venture was too good to miss.
"We've done quite a bit of work finding out what audiences want and the films we're going to be showing are exactly the sort of thing that there is a real appetite for but which rarely get shown in Hull's cinemas.
"Lots of Friends of Hull Screen members tell me they often travel to York, Leeds and Sheffield to see films and hopefully with these screenings we can start to fill that gap in the market.
"For a city this size to be named UK City of Culture but not have an independent cinema is a real shame and these screenings are the first step to putting that right."
The programmeLocke– Thursday, July 3, at Artlink: UK thriller starring Tom Hardy as Ivan Locke.
Frances Ha– Thursday, July, 31, at Kardomah 94: US comedy about Frances, who struggles with becoming a responsible adult in New York.
The Double– Thursday, August 7, at Artlink: UK drama charting the life of a civil servant, which takes a disastrous turn when a new colleague arrives who is his physical double but his opposite in all other ways.
Calvary– Thursday, August 21, at Kardomah 94: Irish comedy drama about a decent, honest priest who receives a death threat in confession giving him only a week to live.
Polyester– Thursday, September 4 at Artlink: US comedy that is a re-release for this 1981 trash classic.
Stranger By The Lake– Thursday, September 18 at Kardomah 94: French drama as Franck puts his life at risk when he falls for the dangerous Michel.
Frank– Thursday, October 2, at Artlink: UK-Irish comedy drama about a musician who bites off more than he can chew when he joins a pop band led by the enigmatic Frank, who wears a papier-mâché head.
Wake In Fright– Thursday, October 16, at Kardomah 94: Australian horror classic from 1971 restored and re-released.
• Screenings will continue on the first Thursday of the month at Artlink and the third Thursday of the month at Kardomah 94.
• Tickets for Locke, on July 3, cost £4 and can be purchased at Hull Independent Cinema Project website. They will shortly be available in person from Artlink and Kardomah 94. Doors open 7pm, film starts at 7.30pm. Tickets for the remainder of the programme will be released in the near future. To celebrate the opening night on July 3, HICP will be laying on free drinks and snacks. Future screenings will feature guest speakers from academia and the film industry, as well as post-screening socials.