Disaster Artist

In the early days of the film's birth, the concept of "theatrical chain" had not yet taken shape, and most of the movie theaters were privately owned, ranging from only one to three or five.

These private movie theaters, after purchasing the copyright, decide the movie list, broadcast schedule, etc. by themselves. The whole preference is very personal and very unique.

And the audience is also used to it. They often buy tickets directly to enter the venue without knowing what movie is playing, and then wait for the cinema to bring surprises.

In the early days, these private cinemas were the mainstream of the market. A hundred schools of thought contended, and a hundred schools of thought flourished. There was also competition among cinemas that belonged to them.

Among them are some places that specialize in playing genre movies, such as horror movies 24 hours a day, and then those horror movie lovers can come to watch at any time, or they can buy even tickets to watch multiple movie marathons in one go, and the cinema will just Stand out from the market with such a unique concept.

However, with the formation of the concept of the cinema chain, chain cinemas gradually became the mainstream of the market; then, the concept of movie schedules also took shape one after another. The release and publicity are closely linked, and the box office blowout has been fully ushered in, and the era has entered a new stage.

Just like the Industrial Revolution, large factories cannibalize small workshops, and the film industry is no exception. Large-scale theater chains began to nibble on these individual movie theaters. The torrent of capital roared past, and private movie theaters gradually withdrew from the stage of history.

Today, the whole concept of distribution has been completely different.

Nevertheless, thanks to the development of the film industry, the target audience of film lovers has become more and more specialized, and a small number of private cinemas have successfully survived, continuing the model of the early film industry—

It is up to the cinema owner or the cinema manager to decide the playlist to attract different audiences.

Sometimes, the classic works of a great director are played all day; sometimes, special episodes of classic love movies are played all day; sometimes, there are retrospectives of special art films.

These cinemas have their own unique audience groups, some are community residents, and some are senior movie lovers, and they also have their own way of survival.

However, those large film companies are often reluctant to license their copyrights to these independent cinemas, so they are rarely able to "advance with the times", and the latest works are basically out of reach with these cinemas, and they often play classic old movies. , and even black and white films, silent films, etc.

It is precisely because of this that the audience of these cinemas is very limited, it is very difficult to open up the situation, and it is absolutely impossible to shake the trend of the film market.

Of course, there are also some outliers, such as the dome theater.

In the north of Lanchuan city center, there is a Boxi Avenue, as you can tell from the name, this is an avenue closely related to movies.

It was originally named because of "direct access to Boxi". Later, countless private cinemas emerged on both sides of this avenue, and gradually developed into a holy place for movie lovers. Then, when the city was planned and constructed, the old buildings on the street were preserved. On the other hand, it has been developed into a tourist attraction in the city.

On Boxi Avenue, I have witnessed the decline of private cinemas, the rise and fall of Boxi's century-old history, and the birth and decline of countless superstars.

Up to now, there are still three independent movie theaters that have survived, playing an important role in today's movie industry.

Two of them have been acquired by a consortium and renamed, and although they are not part of a chain of theaters, they are the preferred locations for the world premieres of major films thanks to their geographic locations.

It's symbolic!

The last one is the Dome Cinema, so named because the roof of the cinema is shaped like a circular dome.

Standing behind the Dome Cinema is a wealthy family that has been passed down for three generations. They are not bad money. They have no direct relationship with the film industry. They are a jewelry business. Because the first-generation homeowners who started from scratch like movies, they follow the trend. A movie theater was built on Boxi Avenue.

Later, the second-generation owner who inherited the family business, because he spent a lot of good time here since childhood, he was not willing to sell it. Still haven't given up.

It is precisely because of its economic independence that Dome Cinema does not need to look at the faces of major film companies and major theater chains. Witness the rise and fall of the film industry.

Moreover, because of the long-sleeved and good dance of the two previous owners, they have maintained a good relationship with major film companies, and there are still many movies willing to hold world premieres here - just like the other two movie theaters, including Fantastic Pictures. , Streamer Films, etc. are no exception.

It is a pity that the Dome Cinema has always adhered to its original intention and has never renovated the projection hall. UU Reading www.uukanshu.com still has only one hall, and it can only accommodate 600 people, which is far from the capacity of those large theater lines, so Even if you want to expand the premiere business, you have more than enough energy.

Now, more special movies with retro orientation and niche orientation will have their premieres in the dome theater as part of the publicity strategy.

Back then, Damen Pictures was still a small company that made horror movies. Large theater chains either refused to cooperate with them or made a big deal about box office dividends. Damen Pictures was not qualified to sit down and negotiate at all. The situation was difficult. The show requires a lot of effort.

Later, the Dome Cinema opened its arms and handed out an olive branch, and the premiere of "Escape" was held here; moreover, Dome Cinema is also willing to give them a chance for the audience to enjoy them on the big screen. Then see if the word of mouth can ferment.

Thanks to this, many unpopular works of Damen Pictures may not have the opportunity to be released on a large scale, and they often release Blu-ray discs directly, but those aficionados who collect Blu-ray discs still hope to be able to enjoy themselves on the big screen. Like the works, the Dome Cinema provides such a platform.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Dome Cinema is not the same for many movie lovers.

Lu Qian and Ji Xu are no exception.

As movie lovers and practitioners, the Dome Cinema is no stranger to them. They have come here more than once to watch movies and experience the charm of light and shadow of those classic masterpieces. Naturally, they have heard more or less many rumors here. .

However, none of them thought that one day they would come to knock on the door of the Dome Cinema, but not to buy tickets to watch the movie.

It feels a little strange.