A night of music will raise money to help Clova Cinema make the necessary switch to digital film projection.

The theatre's aging projectors can show only 35-millimetre film prints, which are being phased out by the studios in favour of digital technology.

The conversion will cost anywhere from $40,000 to $60,000, Clova owner Craig Burghardt told the Now.

"The industry is changing over and they're saying either get new projectors or we won't provide any films," Burghardt said Tuesday.

"We have options," he added. "I could borrow the money and scrimp and scrape to get by, we could do fundraising to offset the costs or I could just raise ticket prices, which is what some other places did - $3 extra for people to see something in 3D."

On Friday, Nov. 16, a "Road to Digital" concert has been organized to raise funds for the conversion of projectors at the Clova.

Performers at the $15-aticket benefit event include The Oh Wells, Garth and the Guys, Madeline Merlo and Vanessa Bonita Dolezal. Doors open at 6 p.m. at 5732 176th St. More details are online at theclova.com.

The concert is eight weeks in the planning, with 270 tickets available and close to 20 silent auction items up for grabs.

"We wanted to show everybody that we're not just a cinema," said event organizer Samantha LeDrew, a Clova employee. "We have the stage now, which got expanded over the last year. It's a great stage and we haven't had a chance to use it yet, so this is that chance."

Burghardt said he hopes to have digital projectors installed by springtime.

"Film prints are getting really hard to find," he said.

Currently playing at the Clova is the animated comedy Wreck-it Ralph, which is followed by another first-run movie, Rise of the Guardians, starting Nov. 23.

"Part of the (studios') strategy is that when you open a movie, they'll make a film print for you," Burghardt said. "It's when you want to play something down the line, a movie that's been out for a bit, then it's tough to find 35-millimetre prints. The multiplexes have all converted to digital, so they don't order any film prints anymore. For the studios, it saves them huge bucks because digital prints are a lot cheaper to produce than film prints."

Twitter @tomzillich