Reg. Trib. Milano n. 418 del 02.07.2007
Direttore responsabile: Elisabetta Brunella
International Edition No. 41 - year 4 - 14 January 2009
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”DigiTraining Plus 2009: European Cinemas Experiencing New Technologies”
The
sixth edition of the ”DigiTraining Plus 2009” course is approaching.
Again in London, as last year, since Great Britain is still the hub of
digitalization in Europe.
The “DigiTraining Plus” courses, supported by the MEDIA Programme and the Italian Government, are especially aimed at small and medium-sized cinemas in order to give detailed and hands-on evidence of the specific challenges, opportunities and problems associated with the digitalization of our cinemas in the future that is already with us.
The course will contain lectures by experts who have had experience in this particular field for some time, invite participants to debate and share their own experiences and offer visits to cinemas that actually have gone digital. What kind of technical, logistic and practical aspects did they have to cope with once they decided to go digital? What kind of business plan can you expect? What are the financial options?
Speakers from different market places will shed light on these matters in an intimate environment that will enable participants to get close to the experts. Among others Michael Karagosian, distinguished American advisor for NATO on digital cinema technology, will guide you through the American way and the status quo. (Please have a look at his bio in this newsletter).
You will hear the latest news about the Norwegian master plan that will enable all Norwegian cinemas to go digital at the same time whilst other representatives from Great Britain, France, Italy and Germany will chip in information for your benefit.
“DigiTraining Plus 2009” will take place from 25 February to 1 March 2009. MEDIA Salles hereby welcomes everybody to join the only course of its kind within new cinema technology.
Jens Rykaer
President of Media Salles
Italian and European Films on Digital in the United Kingdom
In 2008 digital distribution contributed
to the dissemination on the UK market of a number of films that were already
stars of the cinema season in their home countries. In Italy, for example,
a full-length feature arrived, Caos Calmo, by Antonello Grimaldi,
with Nanni Moretti and Valeria Golino, as well as award-reaping films,
such as Paolo Sorrentino’s Il Divo and Gomorra
by Matteo Garrone, based on the best-seller with the same title by Roberto
Savino, which was awarded the trophy for Best Film of the Year at the
European Film Awards, on 6 December 2008 in Copenhagen.
Il Divo, in particular, thanks to the digital format, was also
on the programme in small centres like Hawkhurst in Kent. Here the Kino
Digital Cinema presented it at the beginning of November, so that simultaneously
with the presentation of Caos Calmo at the BFI London Film Festival,
Sorrentino’s film was screened in the original language with English
subtitles. The distribution of Grimaldi’s film in digital format
by New Wave Film began in British cinemas on 24 October 2008.
As well as these Italian successes, during the month of November alone,
other films were distributed in the UK in digital format, such as The
Baader-Meinhof Complex, a blockbuster in Germany in 2008 (Momentum
Pictures), Le silence de Lorna, by the Dardenne brothers (New
Wave Film), the big film at the latest Cannes Festival, and Waltz
with Bashir (Artificial Eye), an Israeli film but with German and
French producers also.
In December came the turn of Lemon Tree (Unanimous Pictures),
another Israeli, German, French co-production, Julia (Chelsea
Films) and classics such the Italian Ladri di Biciclette, which
Park Circus distributed throughout 
England
during the Christmas holidays. Just some evidence of the great variety
of digital content made available in the UK, a result of the strategy
put in place by the UK Film Council through the Digital Screen Network.
The “DigiTraining Plus 2009” course will host a presentation of the DSN by Peter Buckingham, Head of Distribution and Exhibition for the UK Film Council.
Marcello Mazzucotelli
The 6th edition of the “DigiTraining Plus: European Cinemas Experiencing New Technologies” course, organised by MEDIA Salles, will take place in London and Hull from 25 February to 1 March 2009.
| Those who send the application form within 15 January 2009 will take advantage of the early bird fee of 700 euro, which covers tuition, accommodation in London and Hull (for a total of 4 nights) and meals included in the programme. |
Among the speakers,
prestigious names in the field of digital cinema such as Michael
Karagosian, Senior Consultant on digital cinema technology
to the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO), Peter
Buckingham, Head of distribution and exhibition for the UK
Film Council, Phil Clapp, CEO of the CEA, the British
Cinema Exhibitors’ Association and Mark Batey,
CEO of the Film Distributors’ Association (FDA), the Association
of British distributors.
The Course will be completed by a visit to the Vue Digital
Multiplex in Hull, the first European multiplex equipped
with digital projectors only, which will allow participants to understand
how to manage a cinema which, for each of its 10 screens, has only
digital projectors.
For more information, to download the enrolment form, please visit
the following pages:
http://www.mediasalles.it/training/training.htm
(Per leggere il testo in italiano cliccare qui)
Focus
on the course lecturers: Michael Karagosian Speaker on 26 February 2009  Michael
Karagosian is the founder and president of MKPE. He is a senior
consultant to the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO)
on digital cinema technology and related policies, and remains
an active leader in the digital cinema standards effort. He
was an advisor to the UK Film Council in the UK government-financed
rollout of digital cinema. Michael was a founder and former
president of Cinema Group Ltd, and is a former Advisory Board
member of Digital Harmony, who pioneered the use of IEEE 1394
for media applications. Early in his career Michael led the
development of cinema and studio products at Dolby Laboratories,
and led the development of networked audio and control systems
for Disney theme parks. |
MEDIA Salles is proud to announce that for the first time
it has provided its statistics on cinema digitalisation worldwide, with
a special focus on Europe, to the European Audiovisual Observatory that
has just published the new edition of its Yearbook.
Among this data there is the situation of the 897 European digital screens
by exhibition company.
An excerpt of this data is available herebelow.
Europe's leading companies in cinema digitalisation as at December 2007
| Number of digital cinema installations in |
|
| Company |
Total number of digital screens |
| KINEPOLIS |
91 |
| CINEWORLD GROUP |
74 |
| VUE |
49 |
| ODEON CINEMAS |
47 |
| UTOPIA GROUP |
30 |
| CITY SCREEN |
25 |
| CINEPLEXX |
22 |
| GIOMETTI CINEMA |
12 |
| GRUPPO FURLAN CINECITY |
11 |
| CINEMA PARK |
10 |
| LUSOMUNDO |
10 |
| WOLFRAM WEBER - CINECITTA |
7 |
| MOVIES @ |
7 |
| UCI |
7 |
| CGR |
7 |
| EUROPALACES |
7 |
| JOGCHEM'S THEATERS |
7 |
| ARCADIA |
7 |
| UFA |
7 |