Despite the difficult economic situation and slightly higher ticket prices, people in Bavaria have remained loyal to the cinema. The situation is stable, a spokeswoman for the Bavarian Film-Television Fund told the German Press Agency in Munich. By autumn, the number of visitors and ticket sales had increased significantly compared to the previous year.
According to figures from the Film Funding Authority (FFA) in Berlin, more than 7.55 million tickets were sold in Bavaria in the first half of 2023, 43 percent more than in the same period last year. The FFA estimates sales at around 75.5 million euros. When it comes to prices, the Free State is roughly in line with the national average: visitors here had to spend an average of ten euros per card; last year it was 9.27 euros.
The number of cinemas has hardly changed. According to the FFA, there were 288 cinemas in the Free State at the end of June 2023, five more than in 2019, before the start of the corona pandemic. In contrast, the number of screens has also increased – from 863 to 872.
The Bavarian cinemas have invested intensively in the past two years to improve and modernize their buildings, said the FFF spokeswoman. Comfortable halls, beautiful foyers, modern technology and digital customer communication made the cinema more attractive. The FFF also supported the film theaters with funding of more than two million euros. This is the highest funding amount in ten years, according to the spokeswoman for the committee, which includes the Free State and public broadcasters as well as media companies such as RTL Television and Sky Deutschland.
The cinemas are pinning their hopes on popular films that are scheduled to start in 2024, such as “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire”, “Deadpool 3” or “Despicable Me 4”. The drama “A Million Minutes” with Karoline Herfurth and Tom Schilling or family films like “The School of Magical Animals 3” could also attract many people.