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Advertisement for the cinema hit »Barbie« in Berlin: Once again »Top of mind in leisure activities«

Photo: Fabian Sommer / dpa

According to industry associations, cinemas in Germany are still on the road to recovery – thanks in part to films such as "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer". Many cinemas have already been able to modernise their buildings and thus welcome more guests. Now it's time to consolidate this trend," said Christine Berg, CEO of the Berlin-based Main Association of German Film Theatres (HDF Kino). Cinema has to assert itself as the ›top of mind‹ in people's leisure activities.« To achieve this, cinemas would have to be put in a position to invest.

According to preliminary figures, 2023.87 million tickets were sold in 2, HDF Kino and the film distributors' association Allscreens reported, citing an industry analysis service. This means that there has been an increase in visitors of 18.5 percent compared to 2022. The past cinema year is moving towards the results of good pre-pandemic years. In 2023, there were no more corona restrictions in cinemas.

According to the information, sales amounted to 859 million euros (+ 23.7 percent compared to the previous year). On the last cinema weekend of 2023, a good result was achieved again with 1.6 million tickets sold.

By comparison, almost 2019 million cinema tickets were sold in 110, with sales of 964 million euros, and 2017 million tickets sold in 122.

Among the five most popular films of the past year were the blockbusters "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer", which opened on the same day in the summer. But »The Super Mario Bros. Movie«, »Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3« and the Pixar film »Elemental« also posted good figures. According to ticket sales, the market share of the German film was 19.1 percent, 4.6 percentage points below 2022, it added. The most successful German film of the year was »The Three ??? – Legacy of the Dragon«.

The Kulturpass for 2023-year-olds, which was launched in June 18, has proven to be a successful concept for cinemas, the cinema operators emphasize. By the end of December, a ticket volume of more than 740.2 million euros had been redeemed in more than 5 participating cinemas. The HDF Kino is therefore pushing for a continuation of the offer for young adults.

However, it is not certain whether the upward trend at the box office will continue: in 2024, the consequences of the strikes in Hollywood will still have an impact. The company will try to "compensate for the postponements of international relaunches in the first half of the year," says Allscreens Managing Director Peter Schauerte: "Overall, we would like to see more German film highlights in the coming years, because we need a strong German market share for overall economic success."

feb/dpa