Sun Picture Gardens, Open-air cinema in Broome, Australia
Sun Picture Gardens is an outdoor cinema in Broome where visitors sit in comfortable deck chairs arranged in rows beneath the open sky to watch films. The venue operates as a heritage-registered location and continues to show movies in this distinctive open-air format.
The cinema opened in 1916 with a racing drama titled Kissing Cup, establishing regular film screenings in the town. A major shift came in 1933 when the first sound film, Monte Carlo, was shown, moving the venue from silent movies to audio-supported presentations.
The site draws its name from its role as a sun-lit outdoor venue for film viewing, reflecting how locals thought of cinema-going as a communal experience under natural light. Over time it became central to Broome life, functioning as a place where the community gathered and shared entertainment in a uniquely tropical way.
Arriving early is advisable to secure good seating positions, especially during the warmer months when weather can be unpredictable. Bringing blankets, pillows, and snacks is common practice as visitors spend extended time in the open air.
The venue holds the Guinness World Record as the oldest continuously operating outdoor cinema, maintaining its operations without interruption since opening. This unbroken run spanning over a century makes it a remarkable testament to cinema history.
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