It’s been over a month now since the government allowed cinemas to re-open with certain restrictions in place. Though it felt like a sigh of relief to many, the situation still isn’t in favor of the theatres. The main reason behind this being the lack of new films that can be released in theatres.
With the fear of virus still very much prevalent, it’s increasingly difficult to lure people to cinema halls, more so due to the lack of any tentpole film at their hands. Even if we take the big-budget blockbusters out of the scene, there’s nothing much available with theatres who are left with no choice but to re-release old films which very few are considering worth the risk of going and watching. Now that’s a massive setback for theatres, given the operational costs they got to bear for their screening.
On the flip side, the filmmakers are apprehensive of releasing their films in the theatres as of yet, given the limitations imposed by the government, which will impact the revenue generation. It seems like too much of a risk, more so for the big-budget tentpole films, to release in theatres with only 50% seating capacity.
Whether the film will work well in cinemas or not can be predicted and that’s the safety net that OTTs have provided the producers especially during such uncertain times. When the films are sold to OTTs at a fixed price reached through negotiations, the financial concerns are the least for those who put their money into it.
Coming back to the customer side, with every new content, big and small, easily available on OTT platforms, people are not really feeling the need to venture out of the safety and comfort of their homes into the world still grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic.
These were the very reason cinema owners were so concerned about when a large number of titles were opting for a direct-to-digital release. They were well aware of the fact that if this pattern continues it poses a big risk for their businesses in the coming future. A change in the viewing habits of people was another thing they were worried about.
The re-opening of cinemas thus feels like just a hopeful and symbolic measure to alleviate the fear and a step towards creating a feeling of normalizing of the situation, while in reality there’s still a long way to go until things get back to as they were.
While this is not the end of anything and normality will return, the only concern that remains is the amount of time it will take for the filmmakers to be courageous enough to let their films go for theatrical release. How long do you think they are gonna weigh it out before taking that leap of faith?
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