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Brixton Community Cinema Creator Abiba Coulibaly On Why She Decided To End The Popular London Film Club
Brixton Community Cinema, Abiba Coulibaly’s popular pay-what-you-can film club, will close next month after its final season. Launched in 2022, the roving project became known for showcasing international repertory and arthouse films, building a strong following and moving from small Brixton spaces to established venues such as London’s Cinema Museum. Coulibaly says the closure is a recalibration rather than an abandonment of the project.
The cinema expanded beyond what one person could sustainably manage, while the pay-what-you-can model provided limited financial stability. Attempts to formalise and scale the organisation created substantial administrative costs and demands, without attracting significant long-term institutional funding. Its final season includes screenings of Kuxa Kanema: The Birth of Cinema and An Incomplete Calendar, alongside a discussion featuring filmmaker John Akomfrah; a £2,500 WeTransfer contribution is described as its only major partnership.
In short
- Brixton Community Cinema will close after its final season.
- Rapid growth made the project unsustainable for one person.
- The farewell programme includes films and a John Akomfrah discussion.
Explained simply
Brixton Community Cinema is a London film club founded by Abiba Coulibaly in 2022. It screened international older and independent films in changing venues, growing from small spaces in Brixton to established places such as the Cinema Museum.
The club used a pay-what-you-can model, so audiences could contribute what they were able. As it grew, running it brought more administrative work and costs, while the income and long-term institutional funding remained limited.
Coulibaly describes the closure as a chance to rethink the project, rather than abandon it altogether. Its story reflects the practical challenge of sustaining a popular cultural project when one person is carrying much of the work.