Cinemas in Shanghai actively innovate and transform from "eating and watching" to "eating and filming"
The public area of the "MIDNITE" light and shadow art restaurant in the Grand Cinema has recently opened for business, and two mysterious private rooms will be officially opened to the public soon. On September 18, a reporter from Jiefang Daily and Shangguan News walked into the space in advance to explore the relevant content. It is reported that the two spaces will adopt a reservation system, and will respectively stage a "movie food journey" and a "movie shooting journey". In the "movie shooting journey", participants have to choose a role from the screenwriter, storyboard, protagonist, photography, editing, and color grading. During the meal, different roles will jointly "create" a movie exclusively for the participants.
Previously, cinemas where people could watch movies while eating had become fashionable in Shanghai, and now cinemas where people could take photos while eating have appeared. Behind the renovation and upgrade of the century-old Grand Theater, Shanghai cinemas have witnessed their active innovative transformation and exploration of diversified business formats.
The reporter saw at the scene that the "small box" has a round table for 8 people, where the "movie food journey" will be staged. The "big box" with a long table that can accommodate 12 people will stage the "movie shooting journey", which is the "eating and shooting movies" that many viewers are curious about. The experience time of both projects is about 2 hours. The "movie food journey" needs to be booked on the official mini program, while the "movie shooting journey" can choose to share a table on the official mini program and select seats online like movie tickets.
In the "Movie Shooting Tour", participants have to choose their role cards in advance. After arriving at the restaurant, the "director" played by the box manager will invite the participants of the "movie shooting" to sit down together and guide everyone to complete the shooting task together. "You can think of him as the DM in the script-killing game. We will invite drama professionals to be the managers." The person in charge of Yeban's publicity said that the "shooting tour" is more about adding interaction and ritual to the audience when enjoying food, and it is not as brain-burning as the script-killing game.
The "Movie Food Tour" is mainly about immersive experience. Customers will receive an "itinerary", and after they sit down in the room, an "electronic ticket" will be displayed in front of their seats. Then, an exclusive "AI virtual person" will appear at midnight, and the audience will travel into movies from different countries. The "host" of the dinner will also serve different delicacies and introduce them accordingly. With each dish, the theme of the picture will switch, and different light and shadow interactive effects will be added, making the scene very film-like.
The light and shadow interactive technology of the two boxes was created by the ALIGHT team that created the Shanghai teamLab Boundless Art Museum. The two products are expensive because they are creatively produced by Cai Hao, a well-known domestic gourmet. "We hope to provide consumption options for young people who pursue high-end food enjoyment and fashionable interactive experience. The private environment and movie theme here are also suitable for business banquets. There are affordable packages in the public area, which are suitable for mass consumption." said the person in charge of Yeban's publicity.
Recently, the Grandview Cinema gave the most conspicuous poster position at the entrance to Yeban. Under the visual effect of interlaced light and shadow, the restaurant’s slogan is written: "Walk with the light and taste the world."
Yeban is the first digital art and cultural sensory restaurant with a movie theme. Based on catering services, it creates a comprehensive experience space integrating movies, dramas, operas, plays and other cultural arts. The public area of the restaurant was opened to the public in early August this year. Cinema-themed activities can bring more people to the catering space.
During the Olympic Games, the Grandview Cinema joined the CCTV's live broadcast of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games TV programs. It also became a "branch venue" for viewing, and with the special "Olympic package", the atmosphere was even more lively than the cinema downstairs.
In early September, the film exhibition of Japanese film master Hirokazu Koreeda was screened in Hall 1 of the upgraded Grandview Cinema. The Midnight Restaurant was temporarily transformed into a stage for film salon activities. In the future, it can also be used as a stage performance press conference space, interview room, etc. It is like a multi-functional "backstage" of the cinema. Many audiences will stop here after watching the movie. Some will choose to have a simple meal or drink a cup of coffee, some will chat about movies with friends, or stand on the "most beautiful terrace on Nanjing Road" with an area of 600 square meters to overlook the street scene of Shanghai.
Every weekend night, Yeban Restaurant launches different types of performances for consumers to enrich the public's entertainment and leisure options. "Currently, no tickets are sold for the performances. As long as you come to the restaurant to consume, you can enjoy the performances." The person in charge of Yeban's publicity said that the Grandview Cinema is located in the performing arts cluster area around People's Square. The surrounding theaters have active customer traffic. Through the combination of catering and performances, we hope to attract groups who love performances to consume and then convert them into theater audiences. "We want to create a diversified business format that combines culture, commerce, sports, tourism and exhibitions. Not only will there be an immersive dining environment, but more rich content will be implanted to bring the audience a 'one-stop consumer experience'."
Previously, Baiying Sanke Cinema, located on the basement floor of Jing'an MOHO, attracted attention for launching the "eat and watch" service. During the off-season for movies, the attendance rate of the cinema's prime shows can still reach 50% to 60%.
Nowadays, you can also "eat and watch" in Shanghai Cinema SHO. After the renovation of the cinema last year, it has become a diversified ecosystem with movies as the core, integrating art, culture, entertainment and fashion. The "Director Bar" on the 5th floor is a movie-themed bar. Each glass of wine is named after a movie. Audiences can have a drink while watching old movies in the bar. The two VIP halls 5 and 6 next door are professional film review halls of "production studio level". Hall 6 is also a theater where you can "lie down". The atmosphere for watching movies is comfortable and relaxing. After watching the recently released "Alien: Taken", some people went to the bar for a drink to "calm down".
Reporters learned from Shanghai Cinema SHO that Hall 6 will be linked with the "Director Bar" and will open a "tipsy viewing area" during the National Day holiday in conjunction with the release of new films. Audiences can purchase a package to enjoy double-viewing, snacks, and cocktail packages in the hall, giving them a diverse experience in the cinema.
This summer, cinemas have seen an increase in diversified content. SFCEVENTS teamed up with Bilibili to hold a national roadshow for Time Agents, and many SFC Shanghai Cinemas event venues were packed; SFC Shanghai Cinemas Metro City successively held Slam Dunk and Ghibli theme exhibitions, becoming Shanghai's "secondary check-in mecca"; SFC Shanghai Bailian Cinemas and other cinemas broadcast live the personal concerts of well-known virtual anchors, making the dreams of many viewers who didn't buy tickets come true; Shanghai Cinema SHO provided an original poster exhibition for the French Film Week, opening up new ways to play at art film festivals...
In the view of Yang Bin, marketing manager of Shanghai Cinema, at a time when the market is growing slowly, cinemas need to think more, explore the highlights of the film, hold themed activities, and provide more different content to inspire more audiences to go to the cinema for consumption. "For increasing the income of cinemas, the content of the film accounts for more than half, and the hardware conditions and geographical location account for about 30%, leaving little room for improvement. But just as Olympic athletes can run within 10 seconds, the difference brought by the last 0.1 second is huge. Holding diversified themed activities is to help cinemas gain that 0.1 second survival advantage."
The Night Light Art Restaurant combines performances, catering and other aspects with digital technology, as well as multi-format innovation. It is part of the digital transformation of the Grandview Cinema, which was founded in 1928. Recently, the cinema has also upgraded Hall 1 to the LUXE Cinema Hall and digitally upgraded the cinema's historical and cultural corridor. "I hope this old cinema with a history of more than 90 years will be rejuvenated with new digital high-tech buds." said Li Kelu, general manager of the Grandview Cinema.
