ARS Cinema
ul. św. Tomasza 11
This is where Kraków’s first cinema opened in 1916. The auditorium of the Sztuka could seat 400 people. The building was entered from św. Tomasza Street and exited via św. Jana Street. In 1929 the Sztuka was the second cinema in the city to have rozgłośniki (loudspeakers) installed, which allowed the projection of sound films such as László Moholy-Nagy’s Lightplay: Black/White/Gray and Josef von Sternberg’s Thunderbolt. Between the two world wars it lent its screen to experimental films, including The Cabinet of Dr Caligari directed by Robert Wiene, and was the venue of digests of Polish avant-garde films. After the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 it was transformed into an outdoor cinema for a Polish audience. The Sztuka continued in operation after the war until 1980. After a general renovation in 1995 it became one of the rooms of the Krakowskie Centrum ARS.
Today’s ARS, a member of the Europa Cinema network, is a cosy studio cinema, imbued with a magic atmosphere.