Today, 30 June, the second day of DigiTraining 2016 began with the presentation of the book "Il cinema sopra Taormina" (The Cinema over Taormina), in which Ninni Panzera, Secretary General of Taoarte, guided participants at DigiTraining on a journey of discovery into the rich variety of films by internationally renowned directors, ranging from Antonioni to Besson, from Woody Allen to Benigni, that have chosen Taormina as their location.

For years now, DigiTraining has not only adopted an itinerant formula but also offers a session that is also open to students, experts and cinema buffs: the objective remains to bring training to all regions of Europe and involve in particular those industry workers who have fewer opportunities to attend business meetings.

The overview of the present state of digitization in Europe and worldwide, based on statistics elaborated every six months by MEDIA Salles, was intended especially for them.

Elisabetta Brunella, Secretary General of MEDIA Salles, announced that the objective of full digitization now seems very close (at the beginning of 2016, 96% of Europe's screens were digital), but there remain some territories in which conversion to the new technology has lagged behind, placing screens with a more cultural and social vocation at risk of closure.

It is in order to avoid this type of movie theatre being excluded from technological innovations, that the Sicilian Regional Authorities have adopted a policy of financing the purchase of digital projectors in single-screen cinemas and in those with up to five screens.

In addition, the Sicilian Regional Authorities have decided to invest in human capital, for example by providing support, also of a financial nature, for DigiTraining Plus, with the intention of providing those working in the sector of audiovisuals in Sicily with an opportunity for training and international exchange.

These were some of the most important points made by Dr. Alessandro Rais, Director of the special office for the cinema and audiovisuals with the Sicilian Regional Authorities, in his talk today at the course.

Market analysis, the strategies of public institutions, but also technological developments in the near future: these were the themes of the morning sessions, at which David Hancock, President of EDCF - European Digital Cinema Forum - took part. David presented an overview of what the industry is offering and commented on the video-talk by Michael Karagosian, who, once again this year, did not fail to share his knowledge with the participants at DigiTraining.

An interesting and complex scenario emerged, on which the progressive affirmation of laser projectors is taking root, together with immersive sound systems in some types of theatres more concerned with offering particularly spectacular movies.

Instead, the afternoon was devoted to the presentation of experiments aiming to integrate movie theatre into projects for the development of local tourism. Talks were given by Pedro Barbadillo, of the Circuit Cineciutat di Maiorca, and Marta Materska-Samek, who concentrated on the region of Little Poland, whilst Aneta Kohoutova showed how digital theatres can use the social media to create customer loyalty amongst audiences, as well as diversifying them.

As part of the mini-festival devoted to new Sicilian cinema "Seconda primavera" ("Second Spring") by Francesco Calogero was screened.

The course is organized by MEDIA Salles with the partnership of