LEO COX

La Scala // Grangemouth

This project proposes the retrofit of La Scala, a 113-year-old former Empire Electric Theatre in Grangemouth, Scotland. The scheme restores the building to its historic role as a cinema, while adapting it for a new era of film, aiming to keep the spirit of traditional cinema alive whilst embracing its future.

The existing auditorium is retained as the emotional and spatial heart of the building, preserving the memory of communal film going and La Scala’s established civic presence. Around it, a series of contemporary interventions introduces spaces for youth activity, film-making, education and public experimentation. The programme includes a traditional cinema, an AI movie making experience, immersive cinema, youth film club, public foyer and bar spaces, and a rooftop cinema.

AI was used experimentally throughout the project to explore both the positive and negative aspects of its use within the design process. This investigation concluded with a 10 minute project film, created to communicate the final design.

You can access the movie via this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z47EdZQ3jI4