Crowds slowly returning to cinemas, says GSC rep

By Farah Solhi - July 3, 2020 @ 11:02am

KUALA LUMPUR: THREE days into the reopening of cinemas nationwide, movie-buffs are already filling the seats in the halls under strict standard operating procedures (SOP).

Golden Screen Cinemas public relations and branding manager, Sharmine Ishak, said crowds had been slowly returning to the premises while adhering to the government's safety measures in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Patrons are familiar with the SOP which are in place, including the need to complete a digital declaration form for contact tracing, having their temperatures checked and the requirement for social distancing in movie theatres."

He said the response on the first day of operation was very encouraging, with the cinema chain screening new titles, including Japanese films, Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna and Kaiji: Final Game.

"People came to see both new releases and previously-released ones. Our free screening of Jumanji: The Next Level on Wednesday received great support from young and old fans, although the movie is already available on streaming services.

"This is a positive sign that our customers are confident of the safety measures that we have taken," he said, adding that customers could start purchasing tickets at the cinema's e-kiosks.

The cinemas special re-runs at RM5 and combo concessions from RM8 will be available until the end of the month.

Sharmine also said it is recommended that customers pre-book their tickets and concessions online via the mobile application.

Following reports that local films producers were holding back new film releases in cinemas as they were not sure if they could achieve the targeted box-office collection in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, younger film-makers were calling for cinema operators to adopt new business strategies to attract new audiences.

This, they believed, could be done by creating a balance between local and international releases.

Screenwriter-cum-aspiring local film director Kavivarmen Vigneswaran, 25, said this would be the first step to help sustain the local film industry.

"Balance is very important. Most of the time, I feel that our local films are not getting fair treatment," he said.

Another aspiring local film director, Adam Zainal, 24, said cinema operators could fill the current available slots on the heels of the lack of new international releases by playing local films.

"People have been missing the big-screen experience. This is the opportune time for operators to screen more local films so that we can support the industry and educate our viewers on local creativity.

"In order to have quality films to compete at the Academy Awards, we first need to garner support from the industry players and local audiences."

Adam, known for his short films Ngelamun and Kantoi, said local filmmakers should be allowed to explore their creativity.