The comeback of the film industry after the pandemic

By Denilson Triadiapta

Customers buy a ticket from a ticket machine in a Cinema

(Photo Source: The Star)

Some blockbuster films, which were postponed due to Covid-19 pandemic, have started to be released to the cinemas recently.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, all public entertainment establishments were closed though some have tried to stay in business with covid-19 protocols.

Then as the vaccination rate increased each month, some countries have allowed the cinema and related businesses to reopen, but with other precautions

In Indonesia for example, people have to scan a barcode and it must show a green barcode, in order for them to enter public spaces.

The government only allowed cinemas in Covid-19 Zone 3 and 2, which has the lowest cases of Covid-19 to open its doors on 16 September.

In Malaysia, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, announced in September that cinemas in states under Phase One of the National Recovery Plan (PPN) can open. [Source?]

Only people who have been fully vaccinated are allowed to enter and the capacity is limited to 50% of the theatres’ capacity.

The reopening of cinemas in many parts of the world, especially in Asia brings new hope for the movie industry.

In Hollywood, several upcoming films have continued their shoot which had to be postponed due to Covid-19.

Movie production delays and postponement of releases are just two unpleasant pills that Hollywood had to swallow in 2020 and the beginning of 2021.

According to The Atlantic magazine, Mulan and Tenet are the two movies that have lost millions of dollars, due to their releases being affected by the pandemic.

Then both movies had to shift their release to streaming platforms, to keep their profits and maintain their finances.

Other production houses followed the same path, because the Covid-19 situation is still unpredictable.

This strategy would save money, and they still can reach the international markets.

When the U.S. and other governments in the world started to open cinemas in their countries, Hollywood was relieved, and they were excited by this.

Despites the excitement, there are also concerns from the people about the possibility of a surge in Covid-19 cases. Some of them think it is still too risky.

So they still choose to watch movies from their homes, to avoid any possibilities of getting infected.

Many people are very excited about the reopening of cinemas. They believe it is a sign of hope of a comeback after the pandemic.

Nisya Salsabilla is one of the students who are very enthusiastic to watch movies at the cinema.

“I actually prefer to watch new movies in the cinema, since the experience is different from only watching it through my laptop screen,” said Nisya, a student at Taylor’s University.

She also said that she will go to the cinema again because recently many good movies have been released.

The last time I went to the cinema was a few months ago, when I watched the Disney movie Raya with my friends,” she added.