Aberdeen businessman Craig Thom is confident that the city's historic Belmont Filmhouse can be saved, despite the doors closing last week.
Parent charity the Centre for the Moving Image called in administrators to all its businesses after suffering from sharply rising costs and reduced trade due to the Covid pandemic.
The venture's other operations were the Edinburgh International Film Festival and the Edinburgh Filmhouse. More than 100 people lost their jobs - 20 of them in Aberdeen.
Mr Thom, of city cafe Faffless, has been in touch with the administrators with a plan for a combined restaurant and cinema at the Belmont site - and would like take on as many of the ex-employees as possible.
He has told the Press and Journal that he is is "certain" the Belmont will be back - even if it's not his vision that ultimately becomes reality.
The businessman wants to turn the lower ground floor into a new restaurant, while keeping the three-screen arthouse cinema in operation upstairs.
Different bids
But he has been advised that others have come in with different bids since the shock closure of the venue on Thursday morning.
Though optimistic, Mr Thom is aware it may not end up being Faffless that takes the Belmont on.
He said: "There have been expressions of interest from another couple of people - though I don't know any of the details about those. No matter what happens, I think it will be reopened."
Mr Thom said yesterday he had been overwhelmed with the support for his plan to reopen the Belmont - not only from the local press, but also councillors, and from people coming into Faffless as well as local firms.
The businessman does not want to see another dead space in the city centre.
He added: “I believe that I Faffless is best placed to take on the Belmont, inject some more personality into it and bring it to the forefront in British cinema like it should be.
Proven track record
“I have a proven track record of opening and running a successful business that has a heavy focus on art during adverse times, having opened Faffless in the middle of Covid.
“I think that the days of people seeing businesses and business people as bad and money-grabbing should be put behind us. Running a business can be beneficial to the city as well as the company - this is a prime example of such a project.”