In March 2020, during one of my many periods of not knowing how to process the pandemic and Lockdown, nor how the future might look for exhibition, I undertook the research project PRESSING PLAY. You can download the results of that survey here.
With the advent of the second major Lockdown in January 2021, the introduction of the mass vaccination programme and subsequent ‘roadmap to recovery’ the time felt right to return to Pressing Play.
This was a time when the sector was still unsure about its future and was rapidly experiencing major changes. But this time we could perhaps also see a possible conclusion to the pandemic.
PRESSING PLAY (AGAIN) was launched in early February 2021 and remained open until April 2021.
As well as providing an update to the first iteration of the survey, the ambition of this edition was to look into the impact of the changes happening to film distribution.
Pressing Play (Again) covered the areas of:
How we feel future attendance by different audiences may be impacted by COVID-19.
Specific barriers to attendance cinemas might face.
The nature of the messages that cinemas will adopt to encourage audiences back into their screens.
How exhibitors personally feel about attending events.
And what type of activity may be presented as part of reopening strategies.
SELECTED HEADLINE FINDINGS
Over 50% of respondents were confident about returning to their own social lives.
73% of respondents have confidence that audiences will return to cinemas.
Just 3% of respondents were ‘very worried’ about whether audiences will return to cinemas.
Less respondents in 2021 were anxious about the speed that audiences will return to cinemas than in 2020: 40%, compared to 63% a year ago.
48% of respondents anticipate a major impact on cinema attendance by customers aged 65+, compared to 60% a year ago.
Exhibitors remain less anxious about the impact of the pandemic on cinema attendance by younger adults and families, compared to other age groups.
Fear of infection remains the most significant expected barrier to attendance.
60% of respondents understand that changes to customer viewing habits may be a barrier to attendance.
The sector is eager to reopen its doors quickly.
Almost two thirds of exhibitors don’t intend to create an event of their reopening.
52% of exhibitors were concerned about how customer viewing habits have changed.
Lack of relevant content to screen is a concern for 45% of respondents.
71% of respondents will lead their communications with a variation of ‘Our venue is clean and safe’ as a key reopening message, 64% with a message about shared experience, and 50% with one revolving around cinema offering an immersive escape.
The need for audience safety remains paramount, but the value of the cinema experience and our venues’ role in our communities is vital.
Only one third of exhibitors do not feel threatened by new models of film release.
Exhibitors’ programmes may become more specialist or event-based in the months ahead.
I’m very humbled and incredibly grateful to receive support from the Film & TV Charity in such a difficult year, and at a time where repurposing, and a bit of a fresh start is needed once again.
The John Brabourne Awards exist to support up and coming talent, and as a new entrant into film distribution, receiving this support will help me look to the future, rather than to the past.
I’d strongly encourage others working in Film and TV to apply – find out more about the awards here.
How will cinemas & programmers react to this pause on our industry? What happens when we reopen our doors?
I’m undertaking a short survey of the sector to seek insight into how the exhibition sector may react after the Government’s COVID-19 restrictions lift.
If you’re running or programming a cinema or film club please follow the link to take part >> bit.ly/pressingplayJT
What happens when a Muslim city councillor, a key figure in the English Defence League and a member of ANTIFA have a meal together?
In 2015 North East filmmaker David Kenny picked up his camera and set out on an unusual project. Having become frustrated at the political and social divisions in UK society, at increasing anti-Islamic sentiments and at more and more media reports of civic unrest, David wanted to try and understand how the opposing views in Britain’s communities might be better articulated and understood. Rather than left and right wing taking to the streets was there another way for opinions to be conveyed?
To answer this question, David invited three people with disparate and opposing societal views to dinner.
Newcastle Muslim Labour Councillor Dipu Ahad, English Defence League member John Banks, and Rob Sands, a member of ANTIFA, all met for the first time in a restaurant in Cumbria, and the resulting documentary, IS NOT ONE WAY, shows what happened that night.
Before making the film, with such a challenging and far-reaching project, David knew the result would offer different answers than purely seeking a response to anti-Muslim sentiment.
“I know that it would be naive to expect any solution to such a huge social issue so my intention was to try and encourage Rob, Dipu and John to better understand one another as people, and to begin to respect one another’s views by the time they had finished their desserts.”
The resulting film is a thought-provoking insight into the mindset of our three subjects and in a way offers its own insight into a fragmented Britain. David says:
“I’m really happy to have undertaken this experiment and with how it has turned out. John, Rob and Dipu were all amazing to have dedicated themselves so fully to the film, and they were all really open and honest. The three have met again since and whilst they will never relate to their differing worlds, they all now have a better understanding of each another’s situations.”
Understanding that the idea of screening a film about societal unrest might make some cinema managers cautious, since completing the film; David has been carefully preparing for a UK cinema tour, going so far as to screen It Is Not One Way in London in a private showing for political and film journalists. He now feels he is ready to unveil his film, with the first public screening taking place at Newcastle’s Tyneside Cinema on Tuesday 26th February at 6.30pm.
Director of Film Programme at Tyneside Cinema, Andrew Simpson says:
“I was very keen to bring It Is Not One Way to Tyneside Cinema as part of our Frontline series of films. Frontline is all about taking issues or subjects that matter to people now, and starting a conversation which is driven by cinema, and within the cinema space. In this film, David Kenny does exactly that – it perfectly embodies what we are trying to achieve with our Frontline programme. I anticipate a lively discussion after the screening too!”
The screening will be followed by a panel discussion to discuss whether ‘swapping demonstration for dinner’ is a practical option. The panel will include Peter Hopkins (Professor for Social Geography from Newcastle University), Tony Dowling (Chair, People’s Assembly North East & local anti-fascist) and David himself. It is chaired by Richard Moss, the BBC’s Political Editor for North East and Cumbria.
David says:
“I’m thrilled to be able to screen It Is Not One Way in the north east. After this screening, I have plans to take the film to other cinemas in the UK during 2019. The release of the film has been supported by over 100 people via a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign, and it will be really interesting to meet the people who supported it – whatever their perspective. I’m expecting a healthy debate, and I really want to hear what the audience think of our project.”
2018 was going to be the make or break year for me in my endeavour of Connecting People With Stuff, and to have not only survived it but also be looking forward to the next year is unbelievable.
I look back on the last 12 months and see the peaks of happy clients, setting out into film distribution, finding new colleagues, enjoying a slate of work which expanded across the UK and the world, lots of recommendations and repeat engagements. I experienced loads of travelling, new learning and skills building – and the sheer sexiness of having a film I’m working on be made The Observer’s Film of The Week by Mark Kermode!
I also see the lows of missed opportunities, the anxieties of where the next gig might come from, a little bit of ill-health, and the normal insecurities that occasionally cloud our feelings, strategies and judgement.
Cinema is in my blood. After 20+ years of bringing a world of film to my region, and trying to replicate the deep journey I had into cinema for countless others I can’t let go. In 2017 I refused to let the trepidation I felt about major career change push me into another sector and into a role that didn’t involve cinema or an audience sat in front of a big screen.
I’m never going to let go of that fascination of engaging audiences with cinema.
I set out on this new path to learn new skills and develop. After a wildly successful and satisfying career, this necessary new chapter had to be about exploration, growth, and self-affirmation.
It hasn’t disappointed.
The last 18 months of being a freelancer have been tough, really tough, but it’s also been the most rewarding period of my life and through it, I’ve found untapped resolve, new skills and an eagerness to push ahead and build myself into something bigger, better and bolder.
2019 is the next stage. I head into a new year with pencil sketches of plans – films to help distribute, projects in place across exhibition, programming and audience development – and more teaching. I also now have a network of people around me to talk to, seek advice from and take inspiration from.
Once again it’s a make or break year, but this time I head into the fray with more support around me than ever before, more experience, more confidence and a little bit of a strategy.
Time to learn, once again. So if you booked a film, offered advice, hired me, or were just there with support, thank you for everything and have a good one!
Working with audiences all my life, I’ve always been sensitive to the perception of cultural venues that the people who don’t visit them have. I’ve always hoped to find a way to make that first visit to an independent cinema a desirable and comfortable experience for the cautious film lover, and to understand and challenge the psychological barriers we accidentally put in their way.
I’ve written something about threshold anxiety for Film Hub North.
When was the last time you tried to enter somewhere, or do something entirely new? And how did you feel?
Independent cinemas can be terrifying spaces. Many people believe that what happens inside them will never be open to them, and that they don’t have our permission to enter. For a sector that exists to expand horizons we must accept that this perception exists and respond to the amazing opportunity it presents.
‘Threshold Fear’ is a psychological term applied to cultural experiences (museums) in 2005 by Elaine Heumann Gurian in her essay of the same name. Also known as threshold anxiety, it’s simply a fear of the unknown. It’s the stress of an unfamiliar situation, arising when a person feels threatened or uncomfortable by a new situation or place.
This huge psychological barrier can prevent potential new visitors from physically entering our cinema spaces and having a great time – all because they feel intimidated and scared by what they think happens inside. Alike to impostor syndrome, it’s all wrapped up in the fear of being found out and of not belonging. But how is this? Our organisations go out of their way to try and make our spaces welcoming, and we create successful projects purely to welcome new audiences. And yet our venues remain intimidating to many.
Well, there are a number of ways that our organisations can accidentally instil this fear. Our spaces are mysterious places, defined by being off the mainstream. It’s this mission to expand horizons and how it materialises in our endeavours that fuels the mystery, and in turn, fuels the fear.
Taking an ‘outsiders’’ critical view of what we offer and to whom we offer it for a moment, most venues which screen specialised film are perceived as catering for a specific demographic. Dare I say it; it’s an audience that is often defined as being quite well off and fairly well educated. I’m (kind of) saying this for effect, of course, and there are countless exceptions, but the next time you have a packed house for a specialised film, take a look at the crowd and consider this bold statement I’m making. Who isn’t there? Allowing yourself the license to look for the gaps in your audience will be utterly liberating.
Like the old chestnut tells us, marketing needs to permeate every aspect of your offer. There are many people from all walks of life not attending our venues because of their perception of what happens inside them. What stops them? How can we find out? We must – in identifying and accepting the elements that may be barriers for those missing audiences; we can then start a process of challenging them accordingly.
For example:
They may be cultural –
How do our programmes look to the vast amount of people who aren’t living inside film 24/7? What do the millions of people who don’t know or care who Michael Haneke or Paul Thomas Anderson are think when they pick up our literature or see posters for their films outside our venues? What’s inside our spaces for them? How can we encourage them to care on their terms?
They may be monetary –
Are our tickets too expensive? Are we allowing the perceived quality of what we offer and the price we deem appropriate for entry to those experiences slam the door in the faces of a whole section of potential visitors? If that’s the case, how does it make them feel about our organisations?
They may be physical –
How many of us have looked at the entrances to our buildings and tried to visualise how welcoming and easy to navigate they are when a new visitor walks through the front door. How fear inducing are our actual thresholds? What part of town are we in? Does our location say something about us too?
They may even be grammatical –
How do we describe what we do? Where do we advertise? Do we presume knowledge when we write about our films and events? My most hated phrase is “If you’re a fan of….” and when I read it I cringe – what if I’m not? Should I stop reading?!
You may not wish to or be able to change any of these elements, of course, but it’s important to understand and consider them when doing the exercise of placing yourself in your local cultural landscape.
An example
As a rough-and-ready illustration for the purposes of this article I’m going to use the fairly universal and very current example of young people in their late teens. I believe that there are many reasons that may prevent a young person from visiting an independent cinema for the first time. I’ll miss some, obviously, but they might include:
Our venues are full of old people (to them, anyway) and our audiences don’t look like them.
Our programmes feature lots of films they haven’t heard of.
We don’t really sell hot dogs or popcorn or the food you can buy in other cinemas (and I don’t like olives).
Our tickets may be too expensive for them.
We don’t engage with them using the right platforms.
Our cinema foyers are sometimes quiet and that can be imposing.
It’s where their school takes them to to learn things, so why go there in their spare time?
They don’t know anyone else who goes there.
NB – The macro–factor here (elephant in the room?) is also that it seems younger audiences in cinemas are in decline in the UK and beyond, and in an article by Stephen Follows (https://stephenfollows.com/young-people-watching-movies-in-cinemas/) this is explained brilliantly and concisely. As to why, that’s another question for another day…
Here is where I invoke the ‘marketing permeates everything’ epithet again.
What we screen in our auditoria, how much we charge for it, what the experience of reading our websites or our Tweets is like, what its like to walk into our buildings, who the other people in our spaces are, how easy it is to buy a snack (where are your Magnums?!), and even which music plays in your cinema before the film comes onscreen. All are potential barriers, but it is perhaps the last one which is the most important – they simply don’t know what it’s like inside!
The best way for someone entering a new place to feel comfortable is via hearing the experiences of their friends who are already ‘inside’ – if it’s OK for them, then its likely OK for me. But what about the people who don’t have someone on the inside to tell them it’s OK? Clubs are great-unless you aren’t in one.
Trying to dial back my age by 25 years and engaging my empathy circuits to get close to how an 18 year old might feel, the key message which screams out for me about this mysterious experience is this:
“This is not really meant for me.”
And this is just one example.
So how do we start to demystify our spaces?
In her essay Elaine Heumann Gurian mentions cultural venues striving to be the new ‘town square’ and a place to congregate. A former project I worked on was created to encourage 15-19 year olds to visit under their own steam. It achieved many things, but for me, one experience stood out. The project was a gateway for thousands of young people into cinema (ours and ‘the’), but the most joyous moment I had during my work on the project was the first time I saw a group of young people simply hanging out at the venue.
In a small way, and in that moment, we had become the town square.
When I was 20 I was given the incredible opportunity to have a work placement at a weird independent cinema. Did I want to go there? No way, but I reluctantly did, and it opened my eyes to a fantastic new world. It made me fall in love with film and gave me the tools to consider it as a career. I was an outsider, and then I wasn’t.
Scary places can end up being refuges. So how do we give ourselves the tools to throw open the doors visibly?
A checklist
As a starting point, know your audience. Look at your customers as they enter your auditoria, pore over your ticket sales data, even consider the postcodes of your clientele – if can’t run regular audience research programmes, make sure that you use all the data and opportunities you have at hand to find out as much as you can.
Find some non-attenders and find out what they think about you. Hold an informal focus group with them – what can they say about your venue or your programme that you can’t see because you’re just too close? What are their personal barriers to visiting you? What is the perception of your venue outside of your cultural bubble?
Look at your programme – are there enough easy entry points into what you do for more casual cinemagoers? Would screening a Star Wars film at Christmas or a family mainstream film in the summer open the doors of your venue to new people just waiting for your permission to enter? Imagine what they might watch next!
Look at your building with fresh eyes – how welcoming is it physically to new visitors? Have a walk through and imagine it’s your first visit. Can you hear a pin drop when you enter or is there a welcoming hubbub? Are your box office staff attentive and happy and poised to help? Can you easily find out what’s on just seconds after you enter the front door? Or does it feel imposing, intimidating or confusing?
Read your website and brochure – who is it really speaking to?
Then consider any accidental barriers you find, and if you want to welcome more people on terms that suit them, perhaps make some subtle changes…
Empathy is something that can be lost or set aside easily. Running cinemas is hard work and we have daily conveyor belts of tasks that must be completed in order to keep the lights on and the tickets selling. That conveyor belt sometimes commands all of our attention.
But if you take a breather and consider who is missing out on all the fruits of your hard work it may make a world of difference. Especially to them.
