CENTURY 21 CINEMA

Century 21 Cinema Corporation stemmed from the Jesus S. Avila Theatrical Enterprises, a single proprietorship turned into a family corporation.

This shift was a milestone when founder, Atty. Jesus S. Avila, no longer renewed his lease of the Avila-owned theaters in downtown Colon Street to concentrate on the new Century 21 Cinema he built in 1979 on the property that was once the Avila family residence in uptown Cebu City along Mango Avenue.

It was the golden age of cinema, when in the olden days, people would go to the movie houses to watch both local and international films.

Century 21 Cinema was a free-standing theater that had 1,008 seats with state-of-the-art projection and audio systems.

This fruitful venture lasted for 23 years, until the heirs of Jesus Avila, now running JESA Management Corporation, decided it best to stop theater operations due to excessive amusement taxes and unabated video piracy of current films and movies that have yet to be shown to the public.

In 2009, the Avila family finally decided to destroy the old theater building where today the JESA I.T. Building stands.