The Star, Friday March 16, 2012

New cineplex helps Shah Alam residents cut travel time

GOING for a movie had never been easier for Mohd Zam Abdul Rahman and his family whose house is only 7km away from the newly-opened MBO cineplex in Space@U8, Shah Alam.

The father of three said he used to travel double that distance from his home near Kampung Melayu Subang to treat his children a weekend movie.

“We used to drive to malls like Sunway Pyramid, Subang Parade or The Curve in Mutiara Damansara but we hardly do that now,” he said.

Nearer to home: Movie-goers buying tickets at the cineplex.

 

Mohd Zam’s wife Fatimah Isa agreed that they no longer need to worry about finding a parking spot or if they needed to get to the shopping malls early.

Students, Mohd Izuan Shah and Mohd Ridwan Anuar, who frequent the shopping mall often, said they preferred watching movies at Space@U8 as it was only “a walking distance” from their homes.

“We use to travel to Klang to watch movies but now with the cineplex near our house we do not need to travel far anymore,” said Izuan, who visits the cineplex twice a week.

Another resident Koe Kim Leong, said he heard about the cinema from his neighbours but had yet to visit the place.

“It is good to have a cinema near my house and now I can drop by anytime to watch a movie,” he said.

What to watch: (From right) Mohd Zam with his son Mohd 

Fikri Afiq, Fatimah and daughter Nuriffa Haziqah taking a look at the movie posters that are on display at the cineplex.

 

The new shopping mall in Space@U8 in Bukit Jelutong opened its doors late last year with the MBO cineplex as one of its anchor tenants.

Located at the top floor of the three-storey complex, the cineplex has become an instant hit among residents.

“We wanted to explore Shah Alam as there were no other cinemas there at that time, and we believe that the people staying and working here will benefit from having a cinema in the area,” said Mcat Box Office marketing communications manager Christina Yeo.

When asked if the movies screened were selected based on the demographic of the residents in Shah Alam, Yeo said: “We do not have a specific target market, although Shah Alam has a higher percentage of Malay residents. We will still screen a wide variety of English, Malay and Chinese titles.”

During a recent visit to the cineplex, it was noted that the screening times begin at 2pm with occasional midnight movie screenings.

Yeo said the late screening times was due to the traffic flow near the mall during the day.

“In due time, as traffic flow increases, we will adjust our show times accordingly to meet demand,” she said.

Although there are a number of malls in the city, namely Plaza Alam Sentral, SACC Mall, Plaza Shah Alam, Ole-Ole Seksyen 18, Anggerik Mall and the PKNS Complex but none had a cinema.

Despite Shah Alam being declared as capital of Selangor in 1978, so far only entertainment outlets such as bowling and karaoke outlets as well as an outdoor theme park are available.

“We are happy that residents are welcoming smaller cinemas in Shah Alam where they can spend quality time with their children and family during the weekends,” said Shah Alam mayor Datuk Mohd Jaafar Mohd Atan.

He added that the council had received numerous applications from companies which intended to open cinemas.

However, only those situated out of the city centre and had adhered to the requirements would be approved.

The council’s One Stop Centre director Mohd Rusli Dalim said the second cinema in the city would be at the Setia City Mall.

Mohd Rusli said the yet-to-be-opened mall in Setia Alam would house nine halls which would cater to a larger audience.