Britain's silver screen is to follow the example of radical stage producers 50 years ago who mounted an entire theatre on ex-army lorries and trundled it out into the culture-starved countryside.

A gap in cinema provision has triggered the plan for modern successors to the celebrated 'Blue Box' whose convoy of vehicles could be converted within a few hours into a 200-seat auditorium.

The proposal will be announced today at the start of an attempt to bring new releases to villages and market towns at the same time as urban cinemas. A Lottery grant of £500,000 will pay for portable, high-quality digital equipment which will allow village halls and rooms in rural pubs to become cinemas for the evening.

The move follows last week's release of statistics which showed that people in many rural areas had almost more chance of appearing in pictures than going to see them. "Our initiative will provide surround-sound and a perfect digital picture, and all the clubs will need is a bare wall to project the film against," said Peter Buckingham, head of distribution and exhibition for the UK Film Council which will administer the scheme.

The programme hopes to stimulate the creation of more countryside film clubs, using church groups, young farmers' clubs and the Women's Institute to increase demand. The UKFC, set up by the government to promote the domestic film industry, will offer up to 80% of costs to groups applying for mobile equipment with a ceiling of £5,000.