Mainly, though, the new stuff that you’d expect is what’s working the best, but it has to be accommodated without neglecting the tried-and-true. family-aimed auditoriums, which offer playtimes in their kid-friendly environments before and during intermissions from the movies). That means everything from alcohol and more expensive food (with waiter service upcharges to deliver to your theater seats – some of which move and provide other sensory experiences for an additional fee) to such things as virtual reality experiences and amusements for children in lobbies (there are even Cinepolis Jr. (Photo by Hans Gutknecht, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG) Cast member Sandra Jackson takes a milkshake and ice-cream to customers watching a movie at Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas Westlake Village, Tuesday, May 8, 2018. So exhibitors have had to look for other profit centers. ![]() Distributors of those ultra-popular films, like Disney, demand higher cuts of their grosses, too. The revenue from increased prices for tickets and traditional concessions is subject to fluctuations more than ever last summer’s box office dollar amount was the lowest in more than a decade, and although AMC just announced its best first quarter revenue ever, there are only so many “Black Panthers” and “Avengers: Infinity Wars” that Marvel can pump out a year to guarantee huge crowds. The overall number of ticket sales have steadily decreased over the past several decades at North American theaters. While the Austin, Texas-based Alamo Drafthouse chain has fostered in-theater dining and drinking since 1997, the Hollywood ArcLight has boasted a modest lobby restaurant and bar since it opened in 2002 and The Landmark in West L.A.’s gourmet concessions and distinctive beer and wine bar have long been attractions, now every exhibitor from the massive AMC and Regal chains to Newport Beach’s just refurbished The Lot at Fashion Island are moving toward the more-amenities model. Pricier concessions, however, are really moving from upscale arthouses into the mainstream now. Perez said he loved being able to push a button and recline the seat to his liking. “They’re like living room chairs,” he said. Manuel Perez, 67, from Bakersfield, stumbled upon plush theater seats for the first time Tuesday when he watched “Tully” at Regal Riverside Plaza Stadium 16 while his wife conducted business. ![]() “It doesn’t make sense to pay $20 and be packed in like sardines.” “You’re paying to see a movie, you might as well be comfortable,” said Reed, who was on a date with girlfriend Jasmine Spurlock, 23, of Las Vegas. On his way into a theater at Riverside Plaza on Tuesday, May 8, to see “Avengers: Infinity War,” Dyllan Reed, 26, of Beaumont said he appreciates the plush, wide seats. We asked a couple of folks attending weekday matinees in the Inland Empire what they liked best among new theater amenities, and basic creature comfort was the sole answer. Well, depending on what kind of customer you are. And I definitely can say amenities bring in more guests, for sure.” “Somewhere where they can spend the entire evening in one development. “I think a great part of it is developing a holistic experience” for customers, Annelise Holyoak, national director of marketing and communications for the Mexican theater chain’s American branch Cinépolis USA, said. And that means more time – and money – spent at the site.Ĭinepolis USA has a new luxury multiplex in the works in Pacific Palisades, the high-end iPic Entertainment just installed even more cushy seating options in its Pasadena theater, the Krikorian Premiere Theatre chain is opening a 14-plex in Menifee next year that it claims will house the biggest indoor screen in California and has sold its theaters in Downey, Monrovia and Redlands to Studio Movie Grill, which is refurbishing them to its highest, state-of-the-industry standards. They are finding that more amenities means more visitors, they say. While many of these enhancements began a decade or two ago, exhibitors continue to push plush envelopes to entice customers. Bartender Latashia Parker pours a “Deadpool’ drink at Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas Westlake Village, Tuesday, May 8, 2018. With bars and restaurant food, luxury seating in the auditoriums and increasing amounts of other entertainment options in the lobbies, the old multiplex is turning more and more into a one-stop, night out entertainment destination.Īnd it’s happening across Southern California, from Orange County to the San Gabriel Valley, and into the Inland Empire. Going to the movies isn’t just going to the movies anymore.
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