How indie theaters are evolving in a new era: "Everybody wants movies in their lives"

Audiences have been enjoying films at movie theaters for decades, but streaming and expensive ticket prices have impacted moviegoing habits . For the owners and operators of independent theaters, survival means getting creative.

Kevin Smith , the man behind cult classics like "Clerks" and "Mallrats," bought a theater in Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, in 2022. It was the cinema he'd gone to growing up. He renamed it Smodcastle Cinemas, and hoped that even as it reeled from COVID-19 shutdowns, he could rekindle the magic he'd loved as a child.

"I learned more about myself sitting in this (theater) than I ever did sitting in a classroom or sitting in church or something like that, and it led me to the rest of my life," Smith said.

But the reality of operating the movie theate