Alex Dalland
If you think Netflix and internet streaming are wiping out movie theatres, think again.
A research report released on Monday by Roy Morgan shows that cinema attendance has hit record highs in Australia – with 5.6 million Australians over the age of 14 attending a film screening in any average four weeks over the past year. At around 28 per cent of the population, this number is the largest proportion of cinema-goers since 2010 and close to the 30 per cent mark reached in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
So what has prompted such a surge in cinema attendance?
“Many big successful Hollywood films were released over the last 12 months, driving Australia’s cinema audience to new heights,” Michele Levine, CEO of Roy Morgan Research says.
“Over four million Australians saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the cinema, over two million saw Jurassic World and Deadpool, and films as varied as The Jungle Book, The Martian, The Revenant and The Dressmaker all passed the million mark.”
Despite graph data from the US suggesting an exponential decline in movie attendance since the 1930’s – due to a range of factors such as the rise in TV and Home Theatre systems ever since the 1950’s and the increasing price of cinema visits – Australia’s movie attendance by comparison has remained relatively steady, with an average of 69 per cent of the population visiting a cinema at least once a year since 2000, however the number of average visits has declined consistently. While most people are still going to see a movie occasionally, not many people are going often.
With a range of hits released this year, the cinema has managed to keep people entertained, but its future remains uncertain.
“The time period from cinema release to becoming available to download [has shortened],” Dr John McDonnell from the Queensland University of Technology says.
“This has resulted in the loss of the competitive advantage that traditional cinemas have enjoyed in the past.”
