www.forbes.com: With the global pandemic, less than 1% of the movie theaters in the world are presently open and almost all of America’s 5,400-plus theaters have been shut since March. As a result, the biggest Hollywood releases have been pushed to now release later in the year or even next year.
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I love going to the movie theaters - and it used to be the one way I would treat myself during the week. I would finish all my work and then head to the movie theater and depending on how much money and I had (and what movies were playing) I might get to watch one movie or go for a double feature. It was just me and my giant movie theater soda against the world. I know, from a consumer perspective, the closing of movie theaters has been really sad because movies were my number one free time activity. It’s actually really wild to think how COVID-19 has affected even major companies, by pushing back major movies. While I know that many bigger movie theaters will be back most likely, I am really hoping for people to donate funds and other resources to smaller, local theaters to help them survive these circumstances.
Like I keep saying in all of these covid related articles, it is just so sad and unfortunate that this unpredictable pandemic has happened, especially in industries where projects are so long lasting. For the people who have spent years and years developing these films and pouring their efforts in, I can’t even imagine what it must be like to have to postpone even further. Or, to jump straight to viewing things online and forego the experience of watching a movie in a theater surrounded by people. I was really looking forward to some of the films that were going to release this summer, and as soon as the theaters open back up, I will be there in the theatre to help them recoup even in the smallest way. I wonder if the movie industry will suffer from these losses for a long time, or maybe not, since there is a lot of money in Hollywood.
I have always loved watching movies in the theaters. They have been that go to thing I have always had. Watching movies in theaters, with my medium popcorn and sprite with my friends around me was one of the few things that I would look forward to in the week, once I was done with all my work.
Sadly, I have not watched a single movie since the beginning of March and I have not been any sadder. But social distancing is the need of the hour and movie theaters are one big place where several people gather at any given point so it makes sense that they are not functional at this time. Not to mention that there are not any new films that have released so there is not point in theaters being open.
I just hope that once everything is back to normal, the movie- watching experience is still as enjoyable as it has been, given that movies are one thing which really help people to have immersive experience.
Am I allowed to write “well this sucks” 150 times? Because truly, the state of the economy sucks. And is going to suck for a very long time because the United States is not equipped with policies and willing politicians to do so. And what REALLY sucks that so many people are going to suffer because of it. I have tried so desperately hard to not put myself in the shoes of current entertainment industry workers because only in imagining the kind of pain they’re going through, I know I have only accessed a fragment of it. I would not be able to handle more than that. Hollywood is at least backed by one of the largest groups of wealthy people in the country. Broadway cannot necessarily say the same. If Hollywood experiences a 40% drop in revenue, imagine how bad that will be for the entertainment practices that require a live audience to thrive. Sucks is an understatement, but that is what this is.
It’s a bit terrifying to read these articles. The worst part about the coronavirus is there is no certainty in when a solution can be found and when it will end or at least slow down. The world will significantly change in how we interact and the film industry will take a hit because of it. Now, my sympathy for the larger fil companies extends only so far. I feel bad for the crew members who dedicated a lot of time and work into the movie only to have to wait longer for their income to settle in. The big companies will take a hit, but they have other outlets to make cash and will most likely be able to survive. What really broke my heart was the independent theatres. It’s already difficult bringing people to the theatre to see smaller films, but now that their building is completely closed, it’s difficult for really any money to be made. It’s so upsetting because so many people will lose jobs, money, time, and effort for something that was completely out of their control.
I think the most important point in this article is that “small theatres which almost never release blockbusters and concentrate on popularizing independent and niche films” are really on the edge of a cliff. Major film studios like Disney, Warner Bros., and Universal, or movie theatre chains like AMC Entertainment are less likely to go bankrupt, definitely with indispensable layoffs and downsizes of projects just like all other industries. I am seeing many small theatres in Japan running crowdfunding campaigns to obtain the minimum costs. However, considering the situation with no end in sight, I don’t think funding would be enough to support the theaters until theater-goers come back. In addition, I also wonder how this quarantine life would affect people’s thoughts about going to the theatre. How people started to enjoy movies more in their houses using streaming services was already being discussed before the virus. Would this situation accelerate the trend? Or would people come back to theatres because they realize the importance of other audience during the quarantine?
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