Throwback to the 23rd Europa Cinemas Network Conference in Vilnius
The 23rd Conference of the Europa Cinemas Network was held in Vilnius, Lithuania from Thursday, November 28 to Sunday, December 1st, 2024, providing a renewed opportunity to gather with fellow network exhibitors, exchange best practices and innovative ideas and strengthen Europa Cinemas network which has now reached 3121 screens in 783 cities and 39 countries.
It was the first time that our Europa Cinemas Network Conference was organized in the Baltic countries, an excellent opportunity to highlight outstanding and dynamic network members of the Baltics. The Vilnius Conference brought together once more a network of professionals from over 30 countries to discuss practical ideas and innovations, offering dynamic, interactive discussions and concrete actions to be implemented in the short and medium terms.
On this occasion, Europa Cinemas awarded the annual prize for Best Programming, Young Audience Activities and the Entrepreneur of the Year, and screened 12 European film previews.
© Gediminas Gražys
Adapting to the shifting cinema landscape through shared innovation was the central theme of the Conference. Understanding and meeting audience expectations (in particular young audiences), developing communication and marketing strategies for brand development, rethinking programming and events, re-energising business models, re-imagining the cinema experience through loyalty schemes as well as training and skills development were among key topics of discussions.
The sessions also stressed the importance of collaboration between cinemas in promoting local and regional productions, as highlighted in the Focus on Baltic cinema, underlining the need for collective efforts in the industry. They also addressed the issues of inclusivity, sustainability and diversity. Participants highlighted data-driven approaches, targeted community initiatives, and the optimization of work processes to tackle the current challenges facing the industry.
This gathering reaffirmed that cinemas are creative spaces that generate content and social connections, combining passion and commitment to build audience engagement in an ever-evolving industry. The event concluded with a call for innovation, resilience, and active collaboration to ensure the continued growth and relevance of European cinema.
The Europa Cinemas award winners 2024:
- Award for Best Programming: Zita Folkets Bio (Stockholm, Sweden)
- Award for Best Young Audience Activities: Skalvija Kino Centras (Vilnius, Lithuania)
- Award for Entrepreneur of the Year: Wictoria Pelzer (Stadtkino Wien & Admiral Kino, Vienna, Austria)
The 12 European film previews screened at the Conference:
- AFTERNOONS OF SOLITUDE / TARDES DE SOLEDAD by Albert Serra (ES, FR, PT, 2024, 125')
- ALPHA. by Julia Ducournau (FR, BE, 2024, 100')
- FLOW by Gints Zilbalodis (LV, FR, BE, 2024, 84')
- JULIE KEEPS QUIET / JULIE ZWIJGT by Leonardo Van Dijl (BE, 2024, 100')
- LOVEABLE / ELSKLING by Lilja Ingolfsdottir (NO, 2024, 101')
- MOON / MOND by Kurdwin Ayub (AT, 2024, 92')
- SOULEYMANE’S STORY / L’HISTOIRE DE SOULEYMANE by Boris Lojkine (FR, 2024, 93')
- THE NEW YEAR THAT NEVER CAME / ANUL NOU CARE N-A FOST by Bogdan Mureșanu (RO, 2024,138')
- TO A LAND UNKNOWN by Mahdi Fleifel (RU, FR, DE, GR, NL, UAD, PS, QAT, 2024, 105')
- TOXIC by Saulė Bliuvaitė (LT, 2024, 99')
- VERMIGLIO by Maura Delpero (IT, 2024, 119')
- WILD DIAMOND / DIAMANT BRUT by Agathe Riedinger (FR, 2024, 103')
Conference documents
Conference summary on our blog