Mathias Holtz, President of Europa Cinemas asked both of the conference’s moderators, Irene Musumeci and Michael Gubbins if […]
Mathias Holtz, President of Europa Cinemas asked both of the conference’s moderators, Irene Musumeci and Michael Gubbins if there was a significant difference between this conference and previous iterations in past years. Overwhelmingly, it was the positivity that prevailed.
Musumeci said, “Surviving is insufficient. We are in the business of living. Art does this: art gives you the cream on top of the cake.” Congratulating the exhibitors in the room she praised their efforts saying, “You’ve not only survived, but thrived.”
Holtz thanked the European Commission and the European and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) for their support, welcoming Alessandra Luchetti to the stage. Luchetti called the past two days inspiring and gave her thanks to Lithuania and the Baltic region. She commended the cinemas and screening programme from earlier in the week, including the Latvian film, Flow, which was developed with digital technology Blender 3D, funded by MEDIA ten years ago.
Luchetti commended the Europa Cinemas Boot Camps initiative and Collaborate to Innovate projects as a testing ground for new ideas that, even in failure, offers learnings for the future. Audiences are diverse and changing, but knowing that there are new, younger audiences gives a sense of joy and hope as well as responsibility for the future. “Your work means much more than entertainment… You elevate the propensity for empathy, which is so essential in our societies to remain connected,” Luchetti said, praising the love, energy and commitment of Network exhibitors.
Having covered everything from AI to the meaning of life, the conference has looked at all aspects of the business. Mathias Holtz talked about the importance of working as a part of the cinema ecosystem and not becoming an echo chamber for the same ideas year after year. But this year, Holtz said, “we have heard new and tangible ideas… well thought-out and well executed, professional strategies have been shared at this conference from proactive and solutions-oriented exhibitors, generous with their insights to the benefit of us all.”
Major themes noted from the three days included: the importance of diversity within cinema teams as well in our audiences; managing staff burnout as we increasingly do more – especially in adding more and more events to our cinema schedules; and using the resources we do have in an effective way, from workflows to funding opportunities such as Collaborate to Innovate and the new Training Boot Camps.
Miila Norros, Co-ordinator for the Europa Cinemas Training Boot Camps outlined how the professional training programme, with financial and technical support, enables exhibitors to provide peer-to-peer projects to build practical skills according to local needs. More information about the Training Boot Camps can be found on the Europa Cinemas website.
Fatima Djoumer, CEO for Europa Cinemas closed the conference by giving her thanks to the team, moderators, exhibitors, venue and technical staff as well as a special mention to Nico Simon, former President of Europa Cinemas, and an emotional thank you to Claude-Éric Poiroux.
Photos courtesy of Gediminas Gražys.
