Live jazz, comedy and craft: Cinemas lean into experiences to entice viewers back from streaming

Cinemas are radically reshaping their business models by investing in cutting-edge screens and by hosting music, comedy and “experiences”, as they try to convince Australians hooked on the comfort of at-home streaming to pay premium ticket prices for a night out.

Beyond retro screenings, which routinely sell out theatres decades after their releases, cinemas are branching out into new fields entirely, including building bars for live jazz, hosting comedy nights and concerts, as well as running all-inclusive ticket events that include alcohol, food and a show.

Fierce competition from a plethora of streaming platforms in recent years, whose monthly subscriptions to thousands of titles typically costs less than a standard adult admission at a movie theatre, have significantly dented revenue across the industry, with movement restrictions during the pandemic years widely seen as accelerating the trend.

Separately, a wave of privately run pop-up screenings in cinemas geared towards those who have become accustomed to streaming and multitasking at home, such as craft nights where lights are kept on so audiences can knit or do craft projects while a cult classic plays in the background, is the latest sign that the use of cinemas is evolving.

Cinema activity sank from a near all-time high of 91.3 million admissions and record $1.26 billion in box office revenue nationally in 2016 to 55.4 million admissions and $951 million at the box office in 2024, data from Screen Australia showed, which represented a jump in the average ticket price from $13.80 to $17.26 over the same period.

After years of volatility, revenue across the industry has tempered so far this year. Market research firm IBISWorld projects sector revenue is on track to be down 2.6 per cent in 2025 after a brief post-pandemic boom that was in part spurred by a flurry of delayed blockbuster releases such as Barbie and Oppenheimer.

Meanwhile, industry group the Cinema Association of Australasia said box office figures were tracking 3 per cent above the same point in 2024, with its executive director, Cameron Mitchell, hopeful that releases of titles such as Wicked For Good, Avatar: Fire and Ash, and The SpongeBob Movie provide a strong finish to the year.

Regardless of how 2025 pans out, both the industry itself and outside analysts are predicting a promising period ahead for cinema.

The expected boost in the industry is largely based on improved economic conditions, where consumers are expected to have more disposable income, combined with a steady production pipeline of films that together are forecast to drive a resurgence of interest in cinemas.

While IBISWorld expects revenues to increase by a modest 0.9 per cent between 2025 and 2030, it’s also predicting more new cinemas to pop up. In 2024, the number of cinema businesses grew by 0.9 per cent to 390, comprised of 456 different locations and 2244 individual screens. A further 1 per cent growth in the number of businesses is expected through to 2030.

That growth in competition, as well as the trend of cinemas diversifying their offerings beyond new release films, is set to reposition movie theatres as entertainment hubs in an era where streaming remains dominant.

Despite gripes from some about the steadily rising cost of admission, recent behaviour suggests cinemagoers are actually willing to spend well above the average $17.26 ticket, so long as they’re getting a premium experience in return.

High-tech screens and seats, as well as curated events that pair screenings with live entertainment or food and drinks, are key growth areas for cinema chains and smaller independents, said IBISWorld analyst Jayson Cooke.

Australia leads the world in terms of the rise of the cinema experience in response to the age of streaming, believes the CAA’s Mitchell. He notes that Australia has the highest box office earnings per capita in the world, and that this reflects how local cinemas have adapted quicker to offer more special experiences.

Major chains Event and Hoyts, who each command slightly less than 30 per cent of the market, are investing in technology.

Last month, Hoyts announced a partnership with IMAX for five new screens with its Laser technology that promises to deliver “maximum immersion” and “crystal-clear 4K images” with “precision audio”. Hoyts is also rolling out D-Box motion recliners which move in sync with on-screen action.

For its part, Event has launched ScreenX at two premises, where audiences can view blockbusters such as Fantastic Four or Jurassic World: Rebirth on a curved three-screen display which provides a 270-degree view.

Meanwhile, independent operators, which run 16 per cent of the sector, are trying to expand their niches.

One such cinema is the Hayden Orpheum, in Sydney’s Cremorne. The cinemas inside the art deco heritage-listed building are a throwback to the golden era of cinema, and general manager Alex Temesvari said the Orpheum had embraced that sense of occasion in what it programs.

“We’re a special event cinema, where people come out for interactive screenings, classics, book launches and premieres. It’s about the wild and wacky here,” Temesvari said.

“We’re having artists, concerts, stand-up comedy, all of which have nothing to do with films. Initially, we were only filling the gaps with these things, but as we noticed the impact of streaming, we went further into this space.”

The popularity of classic films continues to surprise Temesvari. A recent 20th anniversary Mother’s Day screening of Pride & Prejudice from 2005, where a ticket included a complimentary glass of sparkling wine, sold out the main 700-seat theatre.

He added a simultaneous screening in a smaller 300-seat screen, which also sold out. “A thousand people coming out to watch a 20-year-old film shows how much people like the experience of watching on a big screen with big sound with like-minded people.”

Retro films are also big business for the Classic Cinemas in Melbourne’s Elsternwick.

“We charge the same amount for our retros as our new releases, and despite being available on streaming already, people still want to come out and watch it with 200 other people,” said Benji Tamir, general manager of the Moving Story, which manages Classic as well the Lido and Cameo cinemas in Melbourne and Sydney’s Randwick Ritz. “It’s cheaper than going to a concert, and it’s a shared experience you just can’t get at home.”

While blockbusters and general release new films still provide a reliable stream of income, cinemas must now rely on diverse offerings, such as food and beverage sales.

On average, food and drink generates about 28 per cent of revenue for a cinema, but allows far greater profit margins due to mark-ups from low-cost prices, compared with ticket sales which account for 59 per cent of an average cinema’s revenue but which must be shared with distributors.

As demand for tickets has waned, cinemas have been increasing both the quality and diversity of food, such as brand partnerships, and beverages, such as alcoholic drinks, they offer, which has allowed them to simultaneously increase what they charge, Cooke said. He pointed out that Event Cinemas recorded a 53 per cent increase in merchandising spend per head over a five-year period to the end of 2023.

At the Classic, Tamir said that rather than purely seeing food and beverage as an opportunity for greater mark-ups, having a premium offering such as “nice toasties, cheese platters, craft beer on tap and wine” adds to the sense of occasion and appeal of going to the cinema. The Classic has also introduced a rooftop cinema, live jazz bar and comedy throughout the week to bolster its offering.

“We find people sit in the foyer to enjoy the ambience here,” Tamir said.

Renting out theatres within a cinema during quiet periods to private events is also booming. Beyond allowing businesses to maximise the revenue they draw from their physical space, it is allowing movies to be screened for audiences looking for something different to traditional theatre etiquette.

Craft Cinema Night is one such example of a privately run event. Attendees buy a ticket for a classic film, for anywhere between $22 an $31, arrive at a cinema where the lights stay on as they work on their knitting, colouring books or other craft projects while film plays in the background.

The nights are run by Juliet Rose, a craft influencer behind Sew Hooked Crochet, who was an avid cinemagoer but “hated having to put my project down whenever I went to the cinema when instead I could watch a movie at home and keep working on it”.

Rose has run 18 events over the past year, including at the Classic in Elsternwick, and routinely sells out 200-seat cinemas.

“It feels like you’re in a room with a bunch of friends at a sleepover. I’d never do a new release film, otherwise people would be too focused on the movie,” Rose said. “You want something people already know, like Grease or 10 Things I Hate About You. People will say their favourite line as it comes on, it feels really social.”

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