A sector hard hit by the Covid-19 epidemic, the cinema is struggling to recover from the scars left by the health crisis. As Le Figaro decrypts, attendance in European cinemas in 2021 plunged by 60%, compared to the average level of admissions recorded before the pandemic, between 2017 and 2019. In the 27 countries of the European Union as well as in In Britain, admissions, which approached one billion in 2019, fell below 400 million last year, according to a new study by the European Audiovisual Observatory.
A derisory number that directly impacts the entire economy of the industry. As Le Figaro points out, gross cinema receipts in 2021, which represent 2.9 billion euros, are down 58% compared to the pre-pandemic situation. “The prolonged closure of cinemas, especially during the first half of the year, the negative impact of capacity restrictions, the reluctance of the public to return to cinemas”, are all causes that have slowed down the dynamic, estimates the European Observatory of audiovisual.
Another damning figure for European cinema, attendance fell compared to 2020 in eight countries, including Italy. Nevertheless, the cinema can boast of several encouraging signs to hope for a return to normal in the years to come. The year 2021 has more than 100 million admissions more than 2020, where 300 million admissions were not reached and the production of European films has returned to its pre-pandemic level, with more than 1,800 feature films created in 2021. Among them, the French comedy Kaamelott won the title of the most popular European film, after attracting more than 2.8 million Europeans.