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DECATUR When David Lanterman took over ownership of the Lincoln Theater 4 in January 2011, he knew changes were coming and not just to the 90-year-old movie house.

Aside from cosmetic work to refurbish the building, his greatest task as owner has been one that is facing all operators of small, independent theaters: the movie industrys switch to digital film and projection equipment. But even though he knew the switch was coming, that doesnt mean the $70,000-per-screen conversion costs were any easier to bear.

We knew that the switch was coming, but it gained so much speed in the last year that it forced us to make it happen much sooner than I initially expected, said Lanterman, who resides in Lincoln. I thought we would have a good three years or so, but there was more pressure than expected. It wont be possible to run a theater on only 35 mm in a few years as more and more films are released on digital. Youre going to have to change or close. And many will close, especially the small places.

The outlook is the same for independent theaters all over Central Illinois and, by extension, around the country. Many simply dont have the funds necessary to make the initial investment to acquire the digital film equipment. Others, such as the Lincoln Theater 4, have made the transition successfully and hope to recoup their investment in the next few years through compensation programs with studios and digital equipment companies.

Lantermans theater began all-digital shows March 2.

The case of the Lincoln Theater 4 is particularly unusual, however, as the buildings four screens already had been outfitted with digital equipment when he took over, but he was unable to assume the lease on these projectors from the previous owner. Instead, the theater returned to older 35 mm projectors that were fortunately still on hand until Lanterman could afford to bring back the digital equipment.

I couldnt have even bought the digital equipment they had here if I wanted to, so we had to wait, he said. Were able to do it now because of our community support, which has been beyond even what I was hoping it would be. The people have a sense of ownership, a realization that this is our theater. Our attendance is up around 25 percent from what it was at last year.

Not all small theaters have the resources to make the initial conversion, however. Some, such as the one-screen Onarga Theatre, are turning to their customer base in hopes of raising the entire $65,000 needed to stay in business. If the ongoing fundraiser fails, then another small town will lose its theater, leaving customers to drive 30 or 45 minutes to larger cities such as Champaign or Kankakee to see a movie at a national chain. And yet, owner Randy Lizzio is optimistic.

I think it can succeed, and the amount of money we raise will continue to slowly rise, said the Onarga Theatre manager of four years. Were going to keep chipping away at the total and hosting fundraisers. I know our meter doesnt look too good right now, but you never know how things will change.

The meter Lizzio refers to represents the path to the necessary $65,000, and can be viewed at the Onarga Theatre website. Currently sitting at about $3,000, its a daunting hurdle for film lovers in the small town to overcome, especially given that Lizzio refuses to raise ticket prices from the $5 range or increase the cost of concessions.

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Cost to go from reel to digital may close some smaller movie theaters