Cinema of Eritrea


The history of cinema in Eritrea dates back to the country's colonial rule under the Kingdom of Italy. In connection with the growth of Italian cinema in the 1930s, so did the rise of cinema in Asmara, Eritrea. In 1937, Asmara's Opera was converted into a dual-use theatre and cinema. By the following year, Asmara had a total of nine movie theatres.
The Italian missionary film was first introduced in a 1922 work produced in the country by Capuchin monks collaborating with the colonial government. Despite the country's independence, film screenings in Eritrea are mostly still confined to English and Italian language movies.