Museum of the Belarusian Cinema History - one of the youngest museums in Belarus, although it has almost thirty years history.
Founded in Minsk in 1966 due to Belarusian cinematographers initiative (in connection with the 40th anniversary of the first national film " A Forest Tale " premiere) as departmental institution at the National Film Studio "BELARUSFILM" with its main task – to collect and preserve materials concerning national cinema and promulgate its achievements.
Performing mostly archival function it had housed in the Belarusian Society of Cinematographers Cinema House (Church of Saints Simon and Helena) from 1982 to 1988 .
It has been opened for regular attendance in 2002 in specially reconstructed (1994-1998) three-storey building (an architectural monument of the first half of the XXth century ( Sverdlova st., 4) by the Council of Ministers decision. From January 2005 - branch establishment of State Museum of the History of Theatrical and Musical Culture of the Republic of Belarus.
Main activities: to collect, classificate and make descriptions of the documents and materials concerning Belarusian cinema history and cinema culture on the whole, organizing subject and personal exhibitions related to Belarusian cinema and fine arts, systematically show domestic and foreign classic films.
No one but museum specialists is allowed to fund repository.
Three museum halls are open for visitors:
- (1st floor) CINEMA HALL with 50 seats and VIDEO ROOM with 10 seats where films from retrospectives based on the Cinema Museum fund are shown for various groups and individuals;
- (2nd floor) PERMANENT EXHIBITION HALL "Belarusian Cinema Golden Fund"(140 sq.m.) which contains a variety of information (about 800 showpieces) concerning best films of all kinds and genres (including those that are included into the UNESCO list of representative works of world cinema). Also guided tours are possible;
- (3rd floor) - EXHIBITION HALL (100 sq.m.), where a variety of personal thematic art exhibitions are organized.