THE boss of Bournemouth's IMAX cinema claims the future is bright despite the recent closure of the Birmingham attraction.

The closure of Birmingham IMAX last week and warnings from industry experts that others were failing to attract audiences sparked fears for the future of IMAX in Bournemouth.

But Mark Robinson, new general manager at Bournemouth IMAX, said lessons have been learnt from the cinema's rocky start and he said a recent advertising campaign in the Daily Echo had helped make Christmas and New Year a busy period.

He said: "My own opinion is that IMAX has never advertised enough."

And he told the Echo hit movies such as the new Harry Potter film and Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, expected to arrive at the same time as in the regular cinemas, will boost IMAX in 2004.

He said: "Bournemouth IMAX won't close - that's nothing I'm hearing from head office. In fact they are talking about spending more money here, not shutting it down. The first couple of months of Harry Potter will be packed.

"It isn't viewed as a cinema but more a tourist attraction. It does comparable business to the Oceanarium. In the summer we do great but in the middle of winter it's not so busy."

The Bournemouth IMAX has undergone a lot of management changes over the past year with the arrival of Mary Rose Gilroy - who it had been hoped would turn the venue around -and subsequent departure just seven months later with most of her plans unfulfilled.

Mr Robinson said: "Obviously we've been through a lot of management changes over the last year but the future looks rosy.

"IMAX is going through a big change in Canada - all the money is going into transferring ordinary movies into IMAX format.

"Birmingham's closure is because of its weird location within the city. Bournemouth is a tourist town and the IMAX cinema doesn't do badly at all."