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The Sofia Innovation Lab will take place from Wednesday 19 to Saturday 22 March 2025. This year’s edition is entitled "STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD: HOW COMMUNICATION AND MARKETING CAN DEVELOP YOUR CINEMA BRAND" and will welcome 34 exhibitors from different countries across Europe.

Led by Züleyha Azman (Marketing Director and Programmer, KINO Rotterdam, The Netherlands), Tom de Bont (Former Executive Director and Head Programmer, Heerenstraat Theater & Visum Mundi, Wageningen, The Netherlands), together with Ola Starmach (Programmer and Project Coordinator, KINO POD BARANAMI, Krakow, Poland), the Sofia Lab will be a great opportunity to share approaches and find practical solutions to some of the big questions facing the film sector.

The live-streamed sessions will include a diverse range of topics such as: defining your cinema’s brand identity, promoting your cinema beyond the screen, developing effective content marketing strategies through social media and websites, identifying relevant partnerships and collaborations for greater outreach (including EC Collaborate to Innovate and Boot Camps schemes), and creating special events to attract wider audiences.

Themed sessions and practical workshops will give participants the space to share problems, innovative ideas and/or identify potential innovative programming and communication strategies.

Click here to follow the live-stream. 

Timetable for the live sessions (indicated in EET, local time – Sofia, Bulgaria):

Thursday, 20 March 2025

SESSION 1 – Enhance Your Cinema’s Online Presence
9.30 – 10.20 am

Züleyha Azman (KINO Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands) – KINO’s Digital Marketing
Fernando Lobo Garcia (Cines Embajadores, Madrid, Spain) – Rebooting Our Cinema’s Social Media Presence
Felice Klop (Verkadefabriek, Den Bosch, The Netherlands) – Reviving our Social Accounts

Short Q&A

CASE STUDY – Share and Compare

10.20 – 10.45 am

Amalia Linninger (Arenan, Karlstad, Sweden) – Why Children’s Film Festival Underperformed Despite Marketing Efforts
Finne Tora Kristiane (Cinemateket i Bergen, Bergen, Norway) – Successful Targeting for Cinemateket Junior

SESSION 2 – Brand Identity & Content Marketing
11.00 – 11.40 am

Ondrej Kodera (Kino Aero, Prague, Czech Republic) – Self-Branding on Your Cinema Screen
Luka Vidic (Linhartova dvorana, Radovljica, Slovenia) – Cinema & Coffee: Strengthening Our Brand with Monthly Morning Screenings
Andrea Čurošová Gavalcová (Kino Usmev, Kosice, Slovakia) – Silver Screenings: How We Marketed a Cinema Program for Seniors

Short Q&A

WORKSHOP 1 Debrief – What Sets Your Arthouse Cinema Apart?
12.30 pm – 1.00 pm

SESSION 3 – Tailor-Made Programming: From Idea to Building a Community
2.00 – 3.00 pm

Ola Starmach (Kino Pod Baranami, Krakow, Poland) – Students' Night Film Club
Felice Klop (Verkadefabriek, Den Bosch, The Netherlands) – Filmkantine: From On-line to On-Screen
Alix Lorsignol (Quai 10, Charleroi, Belgium) – High Precision Audience Targeting – The Example of Cinemanette
Raiko Puust (Artis, Tallinn, Estonia) – Niche Community Development: Gaming Tournaments & Anime Nights

Short Q&A

WORKSHOP 2 Debrief – Authentic Marketing for Unique Cinemas
4.00 – 4.30 pm

Friday, 21 March 2025

SESSION 4 – Data Management: Work Smarter, Not Harder
12.30 – 1.00 pm

Anette Knijnenberg (Filmhuis Alkmaar, Alkmaar, The Netherlands) – Incentive-based Data Collection: Measuring the Growth of New Audiences
Raiko Puust (Artis, Tallinn, Estonia) – Data: Skills & Tools for a Strong Audience Outreach

Short Q&A

WORKSHOP SESSION ON SUBSCRIPTION MODELS
2.00 – 3.45 pm

Introduced and led by Jon Barrenechea (Film Consultant, Former VP of Marketing and Global Distribution at MUBI, London, UK)

SESSION 5 – Europa Cinemas’ Tools for Collaboration & Strategic Emulation
4.00 – 4.45 pm

Marija Serban & Bianca Popistas (Europa Cinemas) – Short Introduction: Collaborate to Innovate & EC Boot Camps
Luke Makris (Cinema Galeries, Bruxelles, Belgium) – CTI 2021: Cineville Belgium
Kornelija Maziliauskaitė (Cinema Centre Romuva, Kaunas, Lithuania) – Boot Camps 2024: Creativity and Communication Training
Antonija Seba (Cinema Samobor, Samobor, Croatia) – Boot Camps 2024: Understanding Genre in Use of Better Programming for Local Cinemas

Saturday, 22 March 2025 – Advancing on Sustainability, Diversity & Inclusion

SESSION 6 – Event-Driven Cinema Branding
11.00 – 11.30 am

Züleyha Azman (KINO Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands) – Building Your Cinema Brand with Events
Ola Starmach (Kino Pod Baranami, Krakow, Poland) – Getting the Most Out of Your Venue

Short Q&A

SESSION 7 – Turning Environment into Advantage: Challenges and Opportunities
11.30 – 12.00 pm

Tom de Bont (Heerenstraat Theater, The Netherlands) – New Venue, From Zero to Hero
Samo Senicar (Kino Union, Celje, Slovenia) – The Second-Floor Cinema, When the Building Is Not Helping
Zuzana Stanková (Univerzitní kino Scala, Brno, Czech Republic) – When Alternative Venue Becomes the Main, Communicating the Change

Short Q&A

WORKSHOP 3 Debrief – Sustainability In Your Venues and During Your Events
12.30 – 1.00 pm

SESSION 8 – Broadening the Cinema Experience for a Better Inclusivity
2.00 – 3.00 pm

Marlies Stevens (Kunstencentrum BUDA, Kortrijk, Belgium) – Workshops for Autistic Children
Andrea Čurošová Gavalcová (Kino Usmev, Kosice, Slovakia) – IncluCine
Goda Grigaliunaite (Cinema Centre Romuva, Kaunas, Lithuania) – Film Therapy for Mental Health
Gregor Janežič (Kulturni dom, Cerknica, Slovenia) – Cinema Without Barriers, Screening for Everybody

Short Q&A