The opening session of the Valladolid Audience Development and Innovation Lab began with introductions and ambition: these four days hold the intention of sharing to form film exhibition vision and collaboration such that participants may emerge equipped with the tools to forge forwards, stronger as an industry.
To begin, José Luis Cienfuegos (General Director, SEMINCI, Spain) welcomed participants, extending local hospitality to a room full of network members ready to embrace fresh perspectives on our chosen art form. Led by Erika Borsos (Programmer, Schikaneder Kino & Top Kino, Austria), Catherine Lemaire (Programmer, Cineflagey, Belgium), and Jens Lanestrand (Managing Director, Biografcentralen, Sweden), the Lab leaders introduced themselves and their directive for the coming days: to work in service of a vision for a sustainable, robust industry.
Each of the participants introduced themselves and their cinemas – including the things they are most proud of as well as the areas where improvement is needed. What became immediately evident is that collectively there are great strengths among network members around creating cultural spaces built on shared social values. A strong commitment to community building and audience development was apparent, especially in delivering special events targeting specific audience groups, always with an embedded sense of film education and fun – like the “study room” at Cinema Troisi in Italy. However, there are also many shared challenges among member cinemas, particularly in the desire to improve hugely important skills and strategies such as cinema comms, young audience development and the optimal usage of evolving and digital technologies. There are, too, many cinemas with site specific issues – some examples include basements full of film prints that require re-organisation; heating/cooling systems that require full overhaul; and being situated in a heavily touristic town with seasonal ebbs and flow in visitor numbers, as is the case for Kinoteka Zlatna vrata in Split, Croatia.
Significantly, though the topic of inclusivity was addressed during the Bologna Lab, there is, increasingly, no real meaningful industry innovation without it. While it includes venue accessibility, it encompasses so much more: all audience development and comms strategies too, must begin with inclusion in mind.
The Valladolid Lab, then, will start Day 2 with the bigger picture thinking that network members need to develop practical tools in line with their values. Vision, goals and purpose are key to establishing self-leadership principles and practices that ensure sustainable, long-term cinema strategies.
Finally, the day closed with a guided tour of Patio Herreriano Museum, Valladolid’s Museum of Contemporary Spanish Art, by the Museum’s Director, Javier Hontoria, offering a considered example of a venue’s relationship with its cultural context. The city itself has a huge tradition of renaissance architecture of which the Museum of Contemporary Spanish Art is the most revered. Created in the 12th Century as a Benedictine monastery, the museum walls encase a wealth of Spanish history. At the end of the 20th Century, the municipality decided to dedicate the building to contemporary art, acquiring a private collection that had been searching for a home. In 2002, the museum as it is known today was opened. It belongs to the town hall of Valladolid but has the scale of a national arts institution. Showcasing mostly Spanish artists, both from the permanent collection as well as exhibiting temporary works, the museum engages both its local community as well as visitors to the city. Its vision, ambition and engagement offer an inspiring setting for the Lab days ahead.
