RISING from the ashes of the once-illustrious independent cinema scene in Sheffield is the birth of a new era in art and culture.

Independent cinemas in the UK have taken a battering in recent times, but the story of the art deco Picture House on Abbeydale Road, which is a step closer to a £12m re-development, is a welcome antidote to the recent doom and gloom. Plans are still in their infancy, but with the backing of the Architectural Heritage Fund and the appointment of renowned theatres consultant Peter Longman, the grade II listed building is set to be transformed into performing and visual arts space, retaining many features of the 1920s' architecture.

"The key is to have a mixture of features," says Peter. "A cinema could be part of a new project, along with other entertainment.

"The art deco building is much more for the local community than other art centres in Sheffield and the Friends of Abbeydale Road Picture House have worked tremendously hard not only to get the project off the ground, but to keep the momentum going."

The planned refurbishment in the industrial-turned-tourist city may not exactly return the Picture House to its silver screen glory days, but with the backing of famous patrons such as Michael Palin and Peter Stringfellow, it should at least provide a new chapter in its already long history.

And the Sheffield Picture House, which closed as a cinema in 1975, isn't alone. Across the rest of Yorkshire and the Humber, independent cinema is enjoying a steady revival.

On the blustery seafront of Cleethorpes is the Parkway, a labour of love for independent cinema enthusiast Gerald Parkes, a man with almost 50 years in the industry, rising from humble projectionist to managing director of his own cinema company.

"You cannot manage without the blockbusters," he says. "But you can try to stretch the imagination.

"It is like what the BBC used to say, 'Make the good popular and make the popular good', we try to have the broadest base of appeal."

Parkes has made a habit of saving picture houses from the brink of oblivion, but he doesn't underestimate the enormous hurdles facing independent cinemas.

DVDs, downloads and digital television have taken a sizeable bite out of the traditional cinema crowd, of which independent cinema takes an even smaller slice of.

"I remember wondering whether this was the end," he says. "And my father said, 'A pint in the pub is worth two at home'. It is about the magic of the theatre and we are gift-wrapping it."

Gerald puts his success down to programming, a balance between the quirky and the standard that fits a commercial enterprise, but some picture houses get to boldly go where no multiplexes have gone before. Nestled in the heart
of Hyde Park, Leeds, is
an independent cinema whose Edwardian beauty stands out from the
motley collection of terraced houses.

"Over the last two and a half years there has been an upward spiral," says general manager Wendy Cook. "The closure of the Lounge Cinema in Headingley got a lot of publicity and made Leeds City Council realise that steps had to be taken."

The picture house, which is owned by the council, needed to make drastic decisions to reverse a reliance on subsidies.

"We turned to external programming with a company called City Screen," she said. "They run the programmes of around 20 cinemas across the country, like the Showroom in Sheffield. We are still very independent but we now have a kind of big sister.

"Some people think of independent cinema as being very 1950s, but keeping these places alive is not about sacrificing quality. There has to be that balance between modern facilities and keeping the period charm."

However, while Hyde Park Picture House has the advantage of being subsidised by Leeds City Council, not all cinemas are so lucky.

The Friends of Hull Screen has been battling to re-establish the arthouse film scene in the city, but the campaign was dealt a blow when the cinema was moved from Hull's Central Library to the University of Lincoln's George Street campus.

"It is too far out and has poor parking facilities," says head of the group Susan Harr. "Any large city should have four types of cultural centres – museums, art galleries, theatres and arthouse cinemas. We have three of those, but a cinema would add life to the city.

"The move came after Hull City Council decided it wasn't able to subsidise the cinema, and audience figures have dropped by 50 per cent. It's an appalling reflection on a city that there seems to be no interest in maintaining a valuable arts facility."

The FHS's struggle will continue, but if membership is anything to go by, it will take more than a few blockbusters to defeat
the champions of independent cinema.

For more information, visit www.independentcinemaoffice.org.uk