INDEPENDENT READING

Reading Film Theatre was established over 40 years ago as an independent cinema with a policy to show the best films from around the world. RFT receives no grants and hires the largest auditorium from the University on a regular basis, using its own equipment and employing RFT staff, most of whom are volunteers. he cinema is open to everyone, and being based on a university campus, it screens films only during term time. We aim to screen at least one foreign language film (subtitled in English) each week, the rest of the programme being a mix of both mainstream and independent cinema, primarily from the UK and North America. The majority of films are recent releases, but occasionally a classic will be screened if a new print has become available. The website gives details of our current program with informative links to other sites showing stills, reviews, background and comment. Programmes are published three times a year and distributed to all Reading and Wokingham area libr...

The Rising Sun Arts Centre is a small, independent arts centre, which for 25 years has been staffed and run by volunteers. The Rising Sun started as a squat, created by a group of intrepid artists who saw a need for ground-level arts development, for and by, the people of Reading. The centre gained charity status in the mid-90s, and has been at the heart of Reading’s cultural life ever since. The Rising Sun creates a space where creativity flourishes and people come together to make things happen. Our programme includes a varied line up of high quality events and activities, avant garde music from some of the world’s top improvisers, ground breaking, participatory projects and the best band nights in town to name a few, all managed by volunteers without the benefit of core funding or full time staff. How we run: The Rising Sun is a registered charity governed by a board of Trustees and has two part time paid workers. All the core work of the centre is done by volunteers and...