Narooma Kinema, a cultural institution since 1925, is up for sale

In 2019 Jade bought the Kinema from her grandparents, John and Janette, who had been operating the Narooma icon since 2003.

"We sold our business and retired for about five years, but we were still young, in our fifties, so we were looking for a family business," said Janette.

"John said to me one day, what about a cinema?"

The Griffiths packed up their house in Dural and moved down the coast, along with their sons, Jason and John, who helped renovate the theatre.

Jade was introduced to the Kinema at the age of seven, when she'd travel from Sydney to stay with her grandparents for the school holidays.

"They were working a lot, so I was here a lot, which I did not mind at all," she said.

"Just getting to watch movies for free I thought was pretty awesome."

The Kinema is reputedly the fourth-oldest still in operation and one of the last surviving small-town cinemas in Australia.

Constructed in 1925 by Dick O'Donnell, the Narooma Soldiers Memorial School of Arts opened in 1926.

Built from locally produced brick and fibro, the art deco building sits on community-owned land managed by the Narooma School of Arts and is protected by the National Trust.

Over the course of 100 years, the building had been a venue for balls, dances, Anzac Day services, flower shows, live theatre, public meetings, and, of course, film.

"It was a good dance floor," said Bertie Martin, the man who originally laid the blackout boards.

The building is community-owned, and managed by the Narooma School of Arts, who leases out the cinema to the Kinema business.

Over their tenure, the Griffiths and the School of Arts sensitively restored the building to its Edwardian grandeur, installed a second cinema, and reinstated theatre, music and live events.

But, their most significant alteration was to the Kinema's cinema culture, balancing blockbusters with art-house and independent films, as well as regularly screening theatre and opera.

That art-house approach initiated by Janette and John was carried on by Jade, who felt it was key to developing a community around the cinema.

"Our customers love art house films and independent films," she said.

"We're quite lucky because it's quite cohesive with our brand, and the art deco and the character of the building definitely lends itself to that."

In recent years, however, movie studios have been struggling, with fewer independent releases delivered to cinemas and greater reliance on streaming.

"I will say I have noticed in the past few years a trend to where the busier films have definitely now become, even for us, maybe not Marvel films exactly, but the more mainstream films," said Jade.

"The actors and writer strikes a couple of years ago really affected the product and it was kind of a couple of years of nothing really coming out."

But, unlike multiplex cinemas with dozens of screens, with the Kinema Jade was able to pivot toward cultural events, film societies and the unique experience provided by the Narooma institution.

"I think the atmosphere at the cinema is very much in our favour, and a lot of cinemas are moving to ensuring it's more of an experience or doing more events, which I personally love doing."

While Jade felt it was the right time to pass it on, she hoped the Kinema's next owner would preserve the cinema's unique role in the Eurobodalla's cultural community.

"If we can hand it over to a local that would be ideal," she said.

"I mean obviously anyone's welcome, but someone that at least understands the community aspect and respects and enjoys that, because it's very rewarding."