A cinema that hasn't always been one…
If only the walls could speak… They would have plenty of stories to tell about UTOPIA. Because before becoming a space dedicated to art-house and independent cinema, Utopia started its life as a church: Saint-Siméon was built in the 15th century. Until the Revolution, the church's history was peaceful, then it was decommissioned and converted for a few years into a saltpetre factory.
In 1883, a naval school for ship boys and novices moved in. This philanthropic foundation aimed to offer an « honourable status » to a mass of working-class children left to themselves and to vagrancy. The school gave them dignity and turned them into skilled sailors. When the school was transferred aboard a real boat moored in the port of Bordeaux, Utopia lost its activity.
In 1863, a small industrialist from rue des Pas-Saint-Georges moved in and opened a factory of tinned vegetables and ready meals.
Then came a bike and cycle dealer, and a garage, who successively became tenants of these walls.
It took until 1999 for this old church to finally welcome and host the art-house cinema you know today.
