Audiences Want More Independent Cinemas, According to Art House Convergence Study
Audiences Want More Independent Cinemas, According to Art House Convergence Study
The Art House Convergence Study found that independent cinemas are preferred by audiences.
People say they want that, but do those independent cinemas get enough people through the doors to stay open?
It depends.
I'm in Seattle, which you would expect to be a pretty popular spot for independently run cinemas, but my local (a 4-auditorium theater) is teetering on the edge of closing due to high rent and low attendance. I saw Inside Out 2 there on a weekend evening and the entire house only had only about a dozen people in it.
Meanwhile, a few blocks down the street, a tiny independent cinema with one auditorium that seats ~70 and generally only runs older and niche films seems to be doing kinda-ok.
The cinema marketplace is changing really fast compared to even 10 years ago and there are sadly going to be some casualties.
Ultimately i think we're going to get back to movie houses with one to three auditoriums, and with a wide range of uses: movies, streamed live performances, television premieres and finales, away-game playoff sports, as well as a healthy usage as rental space for public meetings for reasonable rates.
Best I can do is Sony Alamo Drafthouse™.
Not economically viable.