First they came for the railways. Then they came for the cinemas. Germany is the latest European state looking to boost its film industry by letting people visit participating cinemas as often as they want.
ADVERTISEMENTJust as the Deutschlandticket gave Germans the ability to affordably travel their country by train for just €49 a month, a new project aims to give people unlimited cinema trips.
Germany’s Federal Film Board (FFA) has announced a new scheme where cinephiles can take as many visits to the cinema as they like all for a monthly fee.
The Cinifinity project is set to launch across Germany for just €12.50 a month. That’s a steal considering the average cinema ticket in Germany was €9.71 in 2023.
For just a few euros more than a single ticket, Germans will be able to visit participating cinemas as regularly as they want, getting the full experience of new releases and revisiting reissued classics.
Currently, more than 100 cinema complexes have signed up to the scheme - although it remains unclear just how widespread the availability of the Cinifinity project will be. The FFA has predicted that the scheme should increase cinema visitor numbers by between 10-20%.
For now, it appears the only limitation on the subscription is that you have to be over 18 to participate.
Although new to Germany, the initiative has been trialled in various formats across Europe. With cinema attendance numbers continually threatened by streaming platforms, cinema subscriptions are a great way to encourage the public to visit their local cinemas more often.
If the scheme can prove profitable, it’s a winner for everyone. The cinemas stay afloat with higher capacities, film studios get larger takings from the box office, and the public get to enjoy a wider range of experiences as they try out films they may have passed on if not for the subscription.
Fête du Cinéma in France
Every year, France runs the Fête du Cinéma event to encourage the public to visit their local cinemas over the summer through affordable ticketing.
This year’s Fête du Cinéma ran from 30 June to 3 July with 6,000 cinemas taking part and offering €5 tickets.
France’s National Federation of Cinemas (FNFC) has run the event since 1985, expanding from a single day event in 1992 to the multi-day extravaganza. After ticket prices increased to €4 in 2019, the 2024 edition has seen a further increase to screenings costing €5.
Despite the price increase, it was the most popular event on record with 4.6 million tickets sold to French cinephiles.
Cineville in the Netherlands
Across the Netherlands, one of the best ways to catch a movie is by signing up to a Cineville pass. With over 70 cinemas taking part in the scheme, for just €22.50 a month you can go to the cinema as often as you like. That’s reduced to €18.50 if you’re under 30.
Much like the Cinifinity project suggested for Germany, Cineville’s niche is that it explicitly is designed to support independent cinemas and filmmakers.
While the Netherlands’ main cinema chain is Pathé Cinémas which doesn’t participate in the scheme (it has its own subscription service for €23 a month), Cineville gives film lovers access to all the unique cinemas spotted across the Netherlands.
ADVERTISEMENTAmsterdamers, for example, could spend a day soaking up films across the city, starting with a classy foreign language film in Rialto, before moving onto a blockbuster at FilmHallen and finishing up with a nostalgia trip at Lab111 – all without cycling more than 15 minutes in between.
Mubi Go in Germany, the UK and Ireland
Already in Germany is the cinema ticketing system from streaming platform and production company Mubi. The UK-based company has grown massively in recent years to become one of the go-to streaming services for people with a love of independent film.
Since 2016, Mubi started co-producing and producing its own films including Suspiria, Shiva Baby, Titane, and Aftersun. If you’re based in Germany, the UK or Ireland, you can use their own service to see films in cinemas through an additional product they offer.
Mubi Go costs £18.99 in the UK and €18.99 in Ireland and Germany. With that, you get access to their full streaming service, as well as a weekly ticket to the cinema.
ADVERTISEMENTThe catch with Mubi Go is that Mubi chooses which film you can see each week. For lovers of the curation behind the streaming service and production company, this can be a benefit, opening up audiences to new cinematic experiences.
