Indie film lovers in San Antonio who’ve been hungry for a big screen experience since the closing of the Santikos Bijou in March, 2022 have something new to enjoy.
This week, Santikos launches the Bijou Collection, an ongoing series of independent and thought-provoking films to bring audiences together. “Movies that make you think differently, or make you feel differently” will be part of the programming series, said Rene Villanueva, Santikos’ Digital Media Manager, and one of the Bijou Collection programmers.
While there still isn’t a full-service, dedicated art house theater in San Antonio, the Bijou Collection films are being rolled out at the Embassy and Palladium theaters, with the goal of spreading them around to other locations in the local chain’s fleet. Nevertheless, Villanueva recognizes that part of the whole art house experience is bringing people together.
To facilitate that, Santikos has launched a series of channels on the social media app Discord, including a channel devoted to the Bijou series, as well as places to chat about other recent films and new releases. There’s even a channel specifically for spoiler-laden discussion.
“The Bijou Series really needed a home,” Villanueva explained. “I think that’s a big part of the art house community, is not just seeing the movie and moving on, but talking about it afterwards and discussing… how [the movie] made you feel, and maybe how you felt that first night, and then how you felt about it maybe a few weeks later.”
Villanueva said Santikos is also planning to bring in special guests, such as film professors from local universities, to facilitate discussions following select screenings at the theaters.
Guests who are also part of the Santikos Movie Lovers rewards program can earn extra points on their accounts for checking off Bijou Collection titles within a given month.
The Bijou Collection opens this Friday with a San Antonio exclusive run of the A24 Studios film “Funny Pages,” a darkly comedic coming-of-age story about an aspiring cartoonist that earned a three-minute ovation at its Cannes Film Festival premiere last May. Villanueva says he’s personally looking forward to it.
“I’m a creative person, and I love movies about art, and creating art, and how that affects your life process and your life choices.”
Other titles opening in the Bijou Collection this month and next include “Three Thousand Years of Longing,” starring Tilda Swinton, “Moonage Daydream,” a documentary about David Bowie, the mystery “See How They Run,” and the 2022 Sundance Film Festival favorite, “God’s Country.”
An online presence for the Bijou Collection is available on the Santikos website.
