The buildings dedicated to culture are part of the history of the municipality of Bento Gonçalves, including the Cinema Ponticelli, which operated from 1911 to the mid-1940s. It had a capacity for 500 people and cabins with a capacity for six people each. wealthier families rented the cabins on a monthly basis, being able to attend all sessions.

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At a time when the city had a few thousand inhabitants, the proportion of the cinema, as well as the reports of crowded sessions, demonstrate the importance that the attraction represented.

The building was made of masonry, with windows shaded by brown shutters and a pediment decorated with high relief medallions and pine trees.

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In the corner was a small dome with a statue of a female figure holding a red lamp. The lamp was lit every time the session was taking place, establishing a form of communication with the community. Also, at the beginning of the movies there was a siren to sound.

Inside, the seats were interconnected, in rows, by means of a wooden slat and separated by a central aisle. Next to it, there were two other corridors for public entrance.

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The presence of cinema, still silent, was an avant-garde attraction for the beginning of the 20th century, being one of the landmarks to visualize the city's accelerated development in its first decades, after emancipation. Cinema Ponticelli is still present in the memory of the oldest residents of the city, even after its demolition to build a commercial gallery.

Sources:

POZENATO, Kenya MM; GIRON, Loraine S. Cinemas: souvenirs … in Bento Gonçalves: Cinema and Café Bento Gonçalves. Porto Alegre, 2007. p.30-34

POZENATO, Kenya MM; GIRON, Loraine S. Cinema and (dis)memory. Métis: history & culture, Caxias do Sul, v. 4, no. 8, p. 245-256, 2005. Available at: http://www.ucs.br/etc/revistas/index.php/metis/article/view/1226/849.

Project for a cinema for Mrs. Maria Ponticelli. Floor plan: Max Schwahn. 1:50 scale.