Special グ

August 2022

Special グ

More Than
Just the Big Screen

A Crisis Transforms What It Means to Be a Movie Theater

WRITTEN BY
Lee Myungj,
journalist of the Korea Economic Magazine

Photographed by
Studio Kenn

Faced with the rise of streaming services, movie theaters began transforming how they use their physical spaces. The COVID-19 pandemic only accelerated this transformation. Theaters are remodeling their brick-and-mortar spaces and diversifying what visitors can do apart from just watching movies. Indeed, they are continuing to transform into genuine ＾multi-plexes.￣

The offline space is facing a crisis. Much of daily life takes place online as the importance of physical interaction declines. The worldwide spread of COVID-19 has diminished the offline world even more.

Turning to ＾Concepts￣
to Transform Space

This trend has impacted movie theaters, too. For a long time, the best weapons movie theaters had were their massive screens, the laughter of hundreds of moviegoers, and real-life sound; indeed, their massive screens allowed moviegoers to focus on films without interruptions.

These weapons disappeared with the recent rise of VOD services, cable channels and streaming services. Theaters saw declining numbers of moviegoers because people could just watch movies anywhere they were. In response, theaters pulled out a new weapon, ＾space marketing.￣ This marketing strategy boosts the value of ＾spaces￣ by allowing people to do more things in them.

CGV has put this new marketing strategy to use. The company has long tried various ways to turn its theaters from just places to see movies into ＾culture plexes￣ where visitors can have diverse cultural experiences. In short, CGV has introduced concepts to turn its physical spaces into more attractive environments for consumers.

As part of CGV¨s efforts in this regard, the company opened up a special theater in 2018 called ＾Cine & Foret￣ under the theme of ＾healing.￣ The theater¨s inner walls were covered with green moss while grass was placed on the floor. The existing seats were taken away and replaced with mats, bean bags and cabanas so that people could watch movies more comfortably. An oxygen concentrator was installed along with star-shaped lights on the ceiling to make it seem as if moviegoers were in a forest. In short, CGV maximized the merits of watching movies in an offline environment.

Visitors enjoy a movie over a sumptuous meal.

This theater has an indoor bowling alley and pub. © CJ CGV

The COVID-19 Era:
Seizing Opportunity from Crisis

Despite such efforts to rethink offline spaces, the COVID-19 pandemic encouraged people to avoid shared spaces. There was a drastic fall in the number of moviegoers due to fear of infection, and hardly anyone went to theaters anymore following the suspension of movie productions and film openings.

Without any moviegoers, movie theaters took special action to offset the fixed costs they were paying to maintain their brick-and-mortar spaces. They moved to break old concepts about movie theaters and turn them into spaces providing experiences apart from just ＾watching movies.￣

CGV, for its part, remodeled Theater 7 and Theater 8 of its CGV Piccadilly 1958, reopening as a sports climbing center called ＾Peakers.￣ The remodeled theater was essentially turned into a leisure center where people could enjoy new types of leisure, not just watch movies. Initially, the move was a desperate measure to generate profits. The move proved popular, however, with the revamped facility drawing some 300 visitors on the weekend. ＾Peakers￣ is considered a good example of how to use the unique characteristics of theaters—namely their high ceiling floors—to positive effect.

CGV turned the interior of one of its branches into an indoor rock climbing venue. © CJ CGV

With pets ownership on the rise in Korea, Megabox has opened Puppy Cinema, a place where people can watch movies with their dogs, while Lotte Cinema transformed its Daegu theater into an indoor tennis court where people can take tennis lessons.

That theaters are being remodeled into places where visitors can enjoy a range of entertainment—ranging from bowling and reading comic books to escaping from so-called ＾puzzle rooms￣—shows that theaters are shifting to become ＾multi-play￣ spaces where diverse leisure activities can take place.

This kids theater comes complete with kiddie cars for seats. © CJ CGV

Megabox¨s ｀Puppy Cinema¨ lets visitors enjoy a movie with their pets. © Another Baby

Beyond Just Watching Movies

The spread of OTT services and COVID-19 sparked changes that have redefined Korea¨s most well-known movie theaters as places not just to watch movies but enjoy a ＾wide range of experiences.￣ Visitors have welcomed this shift in how theaters function, which, in turn, has accelerated their transformations.