For the price of a movie ticket, you can watch the Olympics in a theater. Not only is the screen big, but the atmosphere is good. The Paris Olympics is in full swing. China Film and CCTV launched the "Watch the Olympics in Cinemas" campaign at the right time, launching live broadcasts of Olympic events in more than 800 theaters across the country, attracting many audiences to watch the games, and the lively atmosphere was comparable to that of the Olympics.
Applause erupted every time
On the evening of July 30, in the No. 3 auditorium of Happy Blue Ocean International Cinema Beijing Huanyufang Store, the 2024 Paris Olympics table tennis mixed doubles final was in full swing. Dozens of spectators were watching closely. Looking at the screen, every time the Chinese team scores, warm applause and cheers will ring out in the theater.
"I read on the Internet that there is a theater where you can watch the Olympic Games, so I searched for information and bought tickets to watch." Ms. Li, an audience member, is a loyal fan of the mixed doubles combination of Sun Yingsha and Wang Chuqin. She scored from the two Since the beginning of the Paris Olympic Games, I have been paying close attention to the game information and bought tickets early, hoping to witness the "Shatou" combination's attack on the gold medal on the big screen. In order to watch the game this time, she also brought a carefully crafted small support banner. Unexpectedly, when she entered the theater, she found that the two girls sitting next to her also brought small stickers, postcards, hand-held placards and other equipment. People happily took photos with support items.
The sense of ceremony and atmosphere of watching the Olympics in the theater can be said to be perfect. At the beginning of the game, the audience was a bit "reserved" and no one spoke. However, as the game became more intense, everyone gradually relaxed and began to communicate in low voices and comment while watching. Every change in the score will bring different reactions to the theater audience, sometimes cheering, sometimes regretting, and sometimes uncontrollable screaming. When the game fell into a stalemate in the 6th game and the Chinese team was overtaken by the North Korean team, the atmosphere in the hall became tense. When the "Shatou" combination relied on their strong strength and tenacious will to get closer to victory point by point, the atmosphere in the theater gradually heated up. Every wonderful performance of the athletes was rewarded with "Good shot!" "Beautiful!" and applause with raised hands. When the Chinese team scored the last point to win the game, the atmosphere in the theater reached a boiling point. During the award ceremony, the national anthem sounded on the screen, and the audience in the theater also stood up and sang the national anthem in unison.
Tickets for shared screenings are affordable
In July this year, China Film and CCTV jointly launched the "2024 Paris Olympics TV Program Cinema Live Broadcast" event. Audiences can purchase tickets through reservation screenings on the ticketing platform and watch exciting Olympic events in theaters. This is the first time that the Olympic Games are officially authorized to be broadcast live in domestic theaters. It is also a cross-border integration of the Chinese film industry and international sports events.
On ticket purchase platforms such as Maoyan, Taopiaopiao, and the "China Film Movie Pass" applet, the "Watch the Olympics in the Theater" module is very conspicuous. Enter the event page and you can see the list of 22 events participating in the live broadcast. In addition to the opening and closing ceremonies, most of the events participating in the event are the finals and semi-finals of popular sports for the Chinese team such as table tennis, badminton, and diving, as well as the finals of "big ball" such as men's football, men's basketball, and women's volleyball. As of the morning of July 31, the live broadcast of four events including the opening ceremony, the men's basketball team match between the United States and Serbia, the table tennis mixed doubles semi-finals, the table tennis mixed doubles bronze medal match and the final had been completed.
Tickets are purchased by reservation for shared screenings. The theater has set an opening number for each show. As long as the corresponding number of people is met, the screening can be successful; if the opening number is not reached, the ticket price will be refunded. There are more than 800 theaters across the country that can provide viewing services, and more than ten theaters in Beijing are participating in this event. As for ticket prices, according to data from the Maoyan platform, the prices in various theaters in Beijing range from 35 yuan to 85 yuan, which is about the same as the price of a movie ticket.
"The biggest advantage of watching the Olympics in the theater is that the atmosphere is very good. Everyone can discuss and cheer loudly." Ms. Zhao, an audience member, said that she thought the ticket price of this event was relatively affordable and the viewing experience was very special.
became more popular than the theater expected
“To be honest, I thought it would be a hit, but I didn’t expect it to be so popular."Wu Ying, manager of China Film International Cinema Tiantian China Film Store, said frankly that she was overjoyed by the popularity of the "Watching the Olympics Live" event. On the evening of July 30, she arranged two table tennis mixed doubles bronze medal matches and finals. All were sold out. “More than 200 tickets were sold for the opening ceremony, and the ticket purchase rate for the subsequent table tennis men’s singles and women’s singles finals has now reached 60% to 70%. "In her opinion, "Watching the Olympics in Cinemas" gives the audience more choices and attracts a group of spectators who love to watch sports games to come to the theater to experience the atmosphere of watching the games on the big screen.
Unlike screening movies with copies, this event needs to go through Special equipment transmits live signals to theaters, so not all theaters meet the screening conditions. In order to provide a better viewing experience, China Film International Cinema Tiantian China Film Store has paved a purple runway in the hall, placed event-themed backboards and a There is a table tennis table for spectators to check in and small red flags are distributed to the spectators.
The decoration inside China Film International Cinema Tiantian has a strong Olympic atmosphere. Photo courtesy of the theater.
However, which game is more popular is still a matter of "metaphysics". It remains to be seen further. Yu Chao, the deputy general manager of Capital Cinema, said with a smile that he originally thought it would be good to sell a dozen or so tickets for this table tennis game, but it ended up selling more than 60 tickets for the previous men's basketball match between the United States and Serbia. The participation of NBA players is called a preview of the men's basketball finals, but only a few spectators actually bought tickets. The game time and the audience of the theater will affect the attendance, but overall, games involving the Chinese team are relatively more popular. .
“We have always wanted to watch the game in theaters, but we have not secured the copyright before. This time we have the opportunity to give it a try. "Yu Chao introduced that the Capital Cinema has been experimenting with new formats such as live broadcasts for a long time. It has previously hosted live broadcasts of the National Center for the Performing Arts dance drama "Heavenly Road" and the Migu Annual Music Festival, but these are more technical attempts. This time "Cinema "Watching the Olympics" is directly aimed at the general audience. He believes that more similar activities will be carried out in theaters in the future to enrich the theater operation format.
