Blog 4 - The Cinematic Experience

With the threat of Screening Room-like services becoming more of a reality by the day and current streaming sites such as Netflix, Cinema seems to be taking a dive in recent years with 2017 seeing US cinema’s having the worst summer in 25 Years. So in an attempt to clasp on to relevance and business, in the past few years we have seen the rise of a unique cinematic experience that’s deciding to offer something that a streaming service can’t.

A mock up of Picturehouse Central before it was built

At this point in history cinemas are about as different as the types of people that go to them. There are big ones, small ones, cool ones and boring ones. In reality though there are 2 types of cinema that matter the most, the independent cinema vs the corporate multiplex. Within these 2 types of cinema there are 2 major differences that define them. The price, and the quality of experience, and as it would seem they are correlated. With Independent cinemas the quality of the experience is usually much better, comfier seats, a nicer atmosphere and perhaps even a bar/cafe/restaurant for before or after your movie if you follow the paradigm of independent cinema chain Picturehouse. However in this case the price is usually increased to meet this experience. After some quick maths I discovered that the average price for a UK Adult ticket to a Picturehouse Cinema is £12.41, which is £4.56 above the national living wage. Which seems like a lot for a cinema ticket, however the price is matched with experience. Picturehouses are rarely just cinemas and in their own words…

“Picturehouse cinemas feature stylish and relaxing café-bars, which host art exhibitions and events such as live music, comedy and quizzes. Fully licensed auditoria and state-of-the-art sound and projection complete the Picturehouse experience.”

They offer much more than a simple trip to this cinema, they offer an evening out, an experience. They present opportunities that large cinema chains can’t or won’t. 

Speaking of larger cinema chains, little needs to be said of them except they offer a cheaper ticket (generally) for a more basic experience. Vue recently reduced the price of their tickets at 22 venues to £5. So for the worse experience you can have a much cheaper night out, for the price of one Picturehouse ticket you can get two at a Vue. Not only this but due to economies of scale large cinema chains can offer deals like the Cineworld Unlimited card which for £17.90 a month you can see as many films as you like, enticing for cinephiles more bothered about the films than the experience. 

The two different types of cinema offer two completely separate experiences but are likely aiming for two separate audiences. The independent audience are likely to be the same audience that would opt for the Screening Room experience, giving them comfort and ease of there living rooms. The cost although more for Screening Room does hold the same principles as the independent audience, for a more expensive experience they are given a more comfortable one. The audience for multiplex’s is more likely to care about price and less likely to go for screening room. It might be that screening room pulls in the people that pay more for the cinema. So perhaps cinema and Screening Room coexist but will represent more of a socio-economic barrier than people who leave the house and people who stay in.

However in 2015 the Picturehouse marketing director said “Picturehouse has always bucked the trend with regards to film-going habits – our members are engaged and loyal and they visit our cinemas six to seven times a year on average, against the national average of 2.5 visits.” So perhaps despite the price the experience does come first for audiences. When the Screening Room apps come along this digital age of movies might not kill cinema, but instead work conversely with the independent cinema market to kill off the impersonal cinema experience.