The National Federation of French Cinemas has unveiled an energy sobriety plan to help cinemas, whose attendance is at half mast, to save money on their electricity and gas consumption.
This week was the Annual Congress of the National Federation of French Cinemas (FNCF) in Deauville, in a delicate context. Dark rooms are struggling to attract spectators, with barely any attendance, French cinemas having sold only 98 million tickets since the start of the year (i.e. 30% less than in 2019 at the same time, year before COVID, according to CNC figures). The FNCF has thus presented a plan, an incentive, to help cinemas save energy, in order to contain the reduction in the number of daily screenings, or even worse.
Take concrete measures to avoid power cuts which would be unfortunate for cinemas
With the will to be irreproachable on ecological issues “, the president of the FNCF, Richard Patry, recalled that “ cinema is an art of light, and therefore a big consumer of electricity “, which must push the whole sector towards a mutation for establishments ” less energy-consuming and more ecological “.
The energy needed to run a room alone is well over 3% of turnover, ” and sometimes approaches up to 10% in the oldest establishments “, notes Richard Patry. Based on this constant, cinema operators must take concrete and immediate measures to save energy.
” This is of course a civic imperative but also, let’s face it, an economic obligation in the face of soaring energy costs, especially after the 300 days of closure that we had to endure because of the Covid crisis. “, adds the leader, who wants to prevent possible power cuts, whose rooms will not be completely sheltered this winter.
Short and long term work, to maintain a certain attractiveness
To help its members make immediate savings on electricity, but also on gas, the Federation posted a sobriety charter online this week, the spirit of which consists, by simple gestures, of reducing lighting, lowering the heating, reduce the air conditioning, or even turn off machines that are not in use.
For example, the FNCF recommends turning off the signs of cinemas that are not open, or the lights of rooms that are not occupied by spectators. Likewise, she advises following the government’s objective of using the heating at a maximum of 19°C, and turning off the air conditioning if it is less than 26°C outside. Adapting opening hours even more according to public flows is also preferred.
In the longer term, but with a reflection to begin immediately, cinemas will have to move towards insulating buildings, stopping the waterproofing of floors, thinking about the use of eco-responsible building materials, rethinking the heating system , or adopt softer air conditioning. From a technological point of view, the replacement of current projectors with laser projectors, which consume much less power, is also essential.
Moving towards energy sobriety is obviously beneficial, but it will also be necessary to study the interest of spectators in dark rooms, faced with the ever-increasing power of streaming platforms which will be difficult to contain in the years to come.
Source : FNCF
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