I don't like the picture above! Empty cinema halls! Sad!
I am a traditional movie-goer in a way. I have seen several movies in cinema halls where only 5 people turned up to see them. Let me share a fact here : Most cinema halls don't play a movie if the audience is less than 4-5 people. There have been times, when I have convinced people in the ticket queue to watch a film, so that the quorum is complete. You might call me crazy, but my idea of watching films is utopian. Packed hall! A bucket of popcorn! And no one accompanying me!
I am a traditional movie-goer in a way. I have seen several movies in cinema halls where only 5 people turned up to see them. Let me share a fact here : Most cinema halls don't play a movie if the audience is less than 4-5 people. There have been times, when I have convinced people in the ticket queue to watch a film, so that the quorum is complete. You might call me crazy, but my idea of watching films is utopian. Packed hall! A bucket of popcorn! And no one accompanying me!
Sadly this lockdown is going to change the way we watch movies, forever. The new normal in entertainment is here and it is going to stay. Things were already changing, but this lockdown is going to hasten the process. In last one month, Netflix and other streaming platforms have seen a surge in their subscribers. A certain percentage of these new subscribers are going to get hooked forever and a really big star or a block-buster film will only pull them towards theaters. Also once lockdown is over, multiplexes and cinema halls will open last. Restrictions on large gatherings are expected to continue even longer and people will operate out of fear. This means thinner crowds in cinemas for many months. This period is long enough to change the habits of cinema-goers. Here are few ways in which I feel, the new normal in entertainment would look like:
1. Smaller movies in India will not get releases easily on big screens. With so many movies' release dates piling up, big movies will edge them out for next one year or so. So the trend of direct releases on OTT platforms is going to be the obvious alternative for smaller films.
2. The new digital / OTT subscribers will discover language content. Good quality of regional films and non-Hollywood foreign cinema will create a resistance among movie-goers to splurge at local cinema halls.
3. The movie making itself is going to change. I recently saw this short film (Family - A Made at Home Short Film) which was made with none of the actors stepping out of their homes. If you watch it closely, you will know technicians like editors, story-boarders and VFX guys are going to play a huge role in future, in the way films would be made. With smaller crews and less crowded film sets, are we finally going to get Indian cinema where technicians will rule the roost? Watch the short film below.
4. The community watching experience would get divided on the lines of class. The cinema halls with good hygiene and high standards of sanitization, would become costlier and would have more amenities to give comfort to their patrons. These will become new haunts of the upper classes. While masses will throng to regular multiplexes. So tent-pole films in regular multiplexes and curated niche films for upper classes can become a norm. There would always be exceptions for 8-10 top superstars though.
5. Is popcorn sales going to fall too? I can't have it with the mask on!
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I haven't watched much on streaming platforms since lockdown period started. My erratic work from home hours are keeping me away from any form of entertainment. But here are some recommendations for those readers who only came for these to my blog after reading my click-bait title.
1. Special Ops - Hotstar - (Hindi Series) A good Indian spy thriller, lavishly mounted with excellent actors and a taut story-line
2. The Platform - Netflix - (Spanish Film with subtitles) A sci-fi horror thriller, that explores human greed. Most experimental film I watched lately.
3. Parasite - Amazon Prime - (South Korean Film with subtitles) I had already seen it in theaters before the lockdown. And I saw it again recently on Prime. If you haven't watched this amazing black comedy, which won the Oscar for the best picture this year, you should do it right away. This film looks at class divide and privilege in such a sharp way that you will feel uncomfortable about some of your actions in past.
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1. Smaller movies in India will not get releases easily on big screens. With so many movies' release dates piling up, big movies will edge them out for next one year or so. So the trend of direct releases on OTT platforms is going to be the obvious alternative for smaller films.
2. The new digital / OTT subscribers will discover language content. Good quality of regional films and non-Hollywood foreign cinema will create a resistance among movie-goers to splurge at local cinema halls.
3. The movie making itself is going to change. I recently saw this short film (Family - A Made at Home Short Film) which was made with none of the actors stepping out of their homes. If you watch it closely, you will know technicians like editors, story-boarders and VFX guys are going to play a huge role in future, in the way films would be made. With smaller crews and less crowded film sets, are we finally going to get Indian cinema where technicians will rule the roost? Watch the short film below.
4. The community watching experience would get divided on the lines of class. The cinema halls with good hygiene and high standards of sanitization, would become costlier and would have more amenities to give comfort to their patrons. These will become new haunts of the upper classes. While masses will throng to regular multiplexes. So tent-pole films in regular multiplexes and curated niche films for upper classes can become a norm. There would always be exceptions for 8-10 top superstars though.
5. Is popcorn sales going to fall too? I can't have it with the mask on!
---
I haven't watched much on streaming platforms since lockdown period started. My erratic work from home hours are keeping me away from any form of entertainment. But here are some recommendations for those readers who only came for these to my blog after reading my click-bait title.
1. Special Ops - Hotstar - (Hindi Series) A good Indian spy thriller, lavishly mounted with excellent actors and a taut story-line
2. The Platform - Netflix - (Spanish Film with subtitles) A sci-fi horror thriller, that explores human greed. Most experimental film I watched lately.
3. Parasite - Amazon Prime - (South Korean Film with subtitles) I had already seen it in theaters before the lockdown. And I saw it again recently on Prime. If you haven't watched this amazing black comedy, which won the Oscar for the best picture this year, you should do it right away. This film looks at class divide and privilege in such a sharp way that you will feel uncomfortable about some of your actions in past.
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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is Lock-down Blues. I intend to write and talk about how I deal with it, what it inspires me to read or watch or any aspect of it which fascinates me. You can read the theme reveal post here.
Previous Challenges : Letter N
2 comments:
My visit to cinema hall anyways was reduced long back . And I used to watch movies only on digital platform. Now since I am at home I can watch the content which my husband (you) either has already seen it or togehter new content. I am not allowed to watch content which he has not watched.ðĪŠðð. But still chori chupke I have tried to watch the content which he has not watched. I like teasing him..ð
Hmmm. Ulta chor kotwaal ko daante... ð Ishwinder you are hotstar person while I am the Netflix guy. This chasm will never be bridged
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