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In recent decades rural areas have suffered a loss of cultural institutions and events such as the local cinema. Traditional corporations and studios struggle to make it a profitable business, adding to the pressure of the ongoing online streaming wars between different providers.  Running a cinema in a rural area is considered more difficult however not impossible. It only takes one special individual looking at the opportunities to change the game, where many people only saw obstacles. We are delighted to share the story of Khalil Rashid, who caught our attention by bringing back the tradition of motion picture screenings in his new hometown of Sveg, against all odds. The news has travelled across Sweden and people in his hometown have expressed their joy of the newly reopened local cinema.

Khalil Rashid, 18 years old, thought there was a lack of cinemas in the small town of Sveg in Sweden – so he opened one himself. For several years, the local cinema in Sveg has been closed to the public. When participating in a political debate in his high school the subject of a local cinema came up again and Khalil Rashid took the matter in his own hands.

He took the idea to the municipality and said that he aimed at reviving the old cinema in Sveg by starting his own business. While he announced his idea, several individuals lined up to do the same. However, it takes dedication and business skills to run a local cinema and when he met up with Jessica Strand and Härjedalen municipality she indicated that some of the candidates did not match the skill set they were looking for. There was also a decent amount of bureaucracy involved, which led to that some of the other candidates lost interest or left the application process. Khalil however became more determined to bring back the local cinema to Sveg.

Khalil Rashid came to Sweden in 2015 from war-torn Syria. His father Sarbest had traveled alone 2.5 years earlier in order not to let the family take the long route through the Middle East and Europe.