Building Back Audiences: Screen Ireland Welcomes the Reopening of Cinemas and Announces Cinema Stimulus Fund Recipients
Posted: 18th June 2021
Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland is delighted to welcome the reopening of cinemas across Ireland this month and over the coming weeks. Amongst the highest cinema-attending admissions per capita in Europe, Screen Ireland also acknowledges the enormous contribution of Irish cinemas in supporting Irish films and providing a diverse cultural offering throughout the nation across a wide-ranging demographic of audiences. Furthermore, the cinema sector operates a valuable social and educational service to communities across the country.
With the support of the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport & Media, Screen Ireland launched Building Back Audiences: the Cinema Stimulus Fund, a special initiative to support the exhibition sector in recovering from the severe impact of COVID-19 closures. 123 cinema venues from all over Ireland will benefit from the fund, recognising the immense challenges that Irish independent cinemas face as they reopen their doors and rebuild their businesses.
The Irish exhibition sector comprises of predominantly Irish-owned independent and arthouse cinemas that screen Irish and specialist films and support the indigenous filmmaking sector. Ireland has a unique screen density of regional cinema by comparison to its European counterparts and in 2019, Ireland had the highest cinema admissions per capita in Europe.
The cinema stimulus support fund will enable independently-owned Irish cinemas to reopen safely, to market and promote films and commit to audience development programmes, which in turn support their local communities.
The criteria for funding awards were based on the organisation’s track record, demonstration of its strong commitment to Irish films and the screen sector, innovation and its Building Back Audience Plan – a mix of programming, innovation in initiatives, potential reach of audience, and diversity and inclusion initiatives.
The 123 venues located all over Ireland in receipt of the fund are as follows:
Cinema
- Access Cinema*
- Bundoran Cineplex
- Carrick Cineplex, Carrick on Shannon
- Casino Killarney
- Century Cinema, Letterkenny
- Cinemax Bantry
- Devlin Cinema, Dublin
- Eclipse, Lifford
- Irish Film Institute, Dublin
- Lighthouse Cinema, Dublin
- Mayo Movie World
- Movies@Dundrum
- Movies@Dungarvan
- Movies@Gorey
- Movies@Swords
- Omniplex Arklow
- Omniplex Balbriggan
- Omniplex Carlow
- Omniplex Cork
- Omniplex Drogheda
- Omniplex Monaghan
- Omniplex Nenagh
- Omniplex Roscommon
- Omniplex Salthill
- Omniplex Shannon
- Omniplex Sligo
- Omniplex Tralee
- Omniplex Waterford
- Omniplex Wexford
- Omniplex Cork
- Omniplex Dundalk
- Omniplex Limerick
- Omniplex Rathmines
- Palas, Galway
- Park Cinema, Clonakilty
- Stella Cinema
- The Arc Meath
- The Arc Wexford
- The Arc Drogheda
- The Gate Cork
- The Gate Mallow
- The Gate Middleton
- Tipperary Excel
- Triskel, Cork
*The Access cinema group represents a cultural cinema network with 80 venues.
All funding was also made on the strict condition of adherence to:
- The Government’s Work Safely Protocol
- Guidance for the Safe Operation of Cinemas during COVID-19
- The Government’s Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021 – Plan for Living with COVID-19
- The Government’s Stay Safe Guidelines