The Sony / Loew's / AMC Metreon 16

135 4th St. | map | 

Opened: June 16, 1999 as the Sony Theatres Metreon. The 2004 photo was taken by Scott Weinfeld when the complex was under Loew's management. 

 

The theatres are part of a development initially called the Sony Entertainment Center. At the time they owned the Loew's circuit. The building is at 4th and Mission St., a block south of Market St. The complex is now managed by AMC and called the AMC Metreon 16. 

Website: www.amctheatres.com

Seating: 4,370 originally in 16 auditoria. They're all located on the 3rd floor of the complex. The Imax house sat 614. The others varied in size from 106 to 589. Recliner seats were installed beginning in 2016 reducing the capacity to 1,897. 

Thanks to Scott Weinfeld for these capacity numbers. The first for each house is the original 1999 capacity, the one after the slash the capacity after re-terracing and installation of recliners: #1 - 105/45, #2 - 123/45, #3 - 123/49, #4 - 121/47, #5 - 133/54, #6 -155/58, #7 - 282/102, #8 - 251/104, #9 - 264/106, #10 - 259/107, #11 - 259/109, #12 - 304/135, #13 - 590/182, #14 - Dolby Cinema 370/160, #15 - 417/159, #16 - Imax 614/435. 

Scott notes that auditoria #5, 10, 11 and 12 are RealD 3D capable, using a silver screen. Possibly others are as well. Auditorium #13. the Dolby house, uses their 3D technology on a white screen. The Imax house uses "Imax 3-D" on a silver screen. In 1999 all the theatres, except for the Imax house, were THX certified.  

Architects: David Rockwell Group, Gensler. 

The screen in the Imax house is 97' x 76', tying the one at the AMC Lincoln Center complex in New York as the largest in North America. This auditorium got digital equipment in 2014 but retained 15/70 film capability. Initially all the auditoria were THX certified. House #13, the second largest in the complex, got a Dolby Vision installation in 2016. 

 

 

A June 6, 1999 article from the Sunday Examiner and Chronicle. Thanks to Scott Weinfeld for locating this. Click on it for a larger view.  

 

 

Half of a two page spread in the Sunday June 6, 1999 issue of the Examiner and Chronicle. Thanks to Scott Weinfeld for locating it. 

 

 

Page two of the June 8 coverage.  

 

 

The illustration of a model of the complex from the June 8 spread.  

 

 

A closer look at the 3rd floor layout. Thanks, Scott!

 

An ad for a pre-opening screening of "Everest" that Scott Weinfeld located.  

 

 

A June 18, 1999 ad located by Scott.  

 

 

The directory listings for June 18, 1999. Thanks to Scott for sharing this.  

 

Interior views: 

 

 

The AMC ticket counter in 2015. Thanks to the blog Elokuvateattereita for this photo and others from their page about the theatre that appear here.  

 

The main lobby upstairs. Photo: Elokuvateattereita- 2015

 

The snackbar.  Photo: Elokuvateattereita- 2015

 

 

An escalator view of the main lobby. Photo: Scott Weinfeld - 2004 

 

 

The 3rd floor lobby in 2004. Photo: Scott Weinfeld 

 

 

A 2004 look to the screen in one of the auditoria. Photo: Scott Weinfeld  

 

 

  

Across to house left in the same auditorium. Photo: Scott Weinfeld - 2004 

 

The entrance to the Imax auditorium. Photo: Elokuvateattereita - 2015 

The Imax auditorium. It's a photo Edward Havens posted on on Cinema Treasures in 2011.

 

More exterior views:  

A 2005 photo taken by Fred Beall that's from the Jack Tillmany collection.  

 

 

A 2015 view of the revamped entrance and AMC signage. Target took over the original entrance on the corner and the theatre entrance moved off to the side. It's a photo from the page about the theatre on the blog Elokuvateattereita.

More information: See the Cinema Treasures page on the AMC Metreon 16 for over 80 photos, many of them interior views. The Cinema Tour page also has many, many interior photos.

Jack Tillmany's Arcadia Publishing book "Theatres of San Francisco" can be previewed on Google Books. It's available from Amazon or your local bookseller.  

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