Independent Peckham cinema, Peckhamplex, has been given nearly £600,000 in a bid to make sure it reopens in 2021.
The south London institution – famed for its £4.99 tickets any time of the day – has been given the money from the government’s Culture Recovery Fund.
In total, the cinema will receive £564,423 to stay afloat.
Its chairman, John Weiss, said: “This help, together with very careful management by the Peckhamplex team, will enable us to remain viable not losing a single employee.
“And when public health conditions permit and the flow of commercial films is renewed, we look forward to re-opening and continuing to entertain and inform our large and diverse audience from across London at affordable prices.”
The cinema had opened its doors when allowed in August, but was rapidly forced to shut up shop once again as not enough people were buying tickets to see movies.
A lack of big-screen productions also hampered the cinema’s efforts to stay open. It had planned to re-open with a new Bond release in November.
Under current Tier 4 rules in London and the south-east, cinemas are not allowed to open to the public, with no clear date for when screenings will next be able to take place.
Other independent Southwark cinemas given support from the Culture Recovery Fund include the Bermondsey Kino.
Meanwhile, cinemas such as the Dulwich Picturehouse, and Brixton’s Ritzy were forced to close temporarily in October because of a lack of movie-goers.