Name: Omniplex Cinema.
Address: Rosslare Road, Strandfield, Drinagh, Wexford, Y35 YC96
Phone Number: (053) 914 9038
The Omniplex Cinema sits on Rosslare Road in Strandfield, Drinagh, on the outskirts of Wexford Town. It has eight screens, free parking, assigned seating, an automated ticket purchasing system, seating for people with disabilities, and various 3D performances. The cinema is also close to McDonald’s.
The Omniplex opened in July 2008 as Ireland’s first all-digital movie theatre. An estimated 12,000 people attended during its first week. The facility, which cost approximately €9 million to construct, replaced the older Savoy Cineplex, which had operated in Redmond Square since the early 1990s.
By the mid-2000s, the three-screen cinema in Redmond Square could no longer cater for Wexford’s growing population.
When the Omniplex opened, it was one of the first cinemas in Europe to use digital projection. Until the late 2000s, most movie theatres used an analogue medium called film stock (also known as motion picture film or film reel). With digital projection, the cinema stores films on hard drives and schedules them via the central computer system, eliminating the need for projectionists. An on-site technician can address any issue.
The facility received a Grade A rating from Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) in January 2015. Judges noted that “there was a virtual absence of litter and hopefully, this new top ranking status can be sustained.”
A new 16.5m x 8.5m OmniplexMAXX giant screen opened at the cinema in February 2015 as part of a €1.5 million upgrade. Omniplex carried out similar upgrades at other cinemas around the country.
The cinema began screening subtitled movies in August 2015, as well as sensory movies for people with autism. During sensory screenings, staff keep the lights on, lower the volume, and allow children to move around freely.
Live opera from New York’s Metropolitan Opera began screening at the cinema in October 2015. The first screening featured Verdi’s Il Trovatore, broadcast live from the Met. Screenings the following year included Madama Butterfly, Les pêcheurs de perles, and Giacomo Puccini’s Turandot.
Map
A map showing the location of Wexford’s Omniplex Cinema: