Cinema unlimited
Cinegi Arts&Film — filmed performance from the UK’s leading companies in your local venue
Increasing engagement with the arts
I firmly believe that we need to find ways of connecting much wider audiences with the great art that is being created, in both traditional and contemporary formats.
Audiences in London have access to a wealth of content but that is not a privilege shared by communities in other parts of the country; geographic and socio-economic issues present barriers for many.
Gill Johnson, Director of Creative Media at Arts Council England:
“The huge success in recent years of cinema screenings of productions by companies like the National Theatre and the Royal Opera House shows there is a massive public appetite for great art on screen. Cinegi aims to go one step further by bringing art on film to everyone’s doorstep, in venues of all types and sizes, wherever in the country they happen to live. We’re delighted that so many arts companies are making their content available to support this exciting project.”
Work produced regionally also deserves to reach more dispersed audiences and Cinegi Arts&Film will provide a form of ‘digital touring’ beyond the live.
Annie Ukleja, Managing Director, Miracle Theatre:
‘Miracle has spent almost 40 years touring to venues of all kinds, taking a rich mix of theatre into the nooks and crannies of the UK. We have also spent the last few years exploring ways to get our work out to even more people using digital technology. Cinegi is the perfect solution, in line with our history and ethos of creating new experiences for people within their own communities. Starting with our digital feature film set in a Cornish mining village, Tin, we are looking forward to adding new productions to the Cinegi collection.’
A shared experience
There are numerous ways of watching filmed performance at home on a personal device but CinegiArts&Film enables the experience to be a shared one with other people in a public place and on a larger screen — an experience that is closer to the original ‘live’ one.
It uses the digital distribution platform, Cinegi, which enables venues to put on public screenings of filmed content securely and legally in full HD. It works as download over standard broadband and the public internet with no proprietary kit needed.
Cinegi Arts&Film, launching in January 2017, makes filmed theatre, music, dance, ballet and opera available to audiences across the UK, bringing the arts directly to communities wherever they are, from village hall to pub, from arts centre to high street pop-up, in towns and remote villages.
Cinegi Arts&Film launches with titles from major arts organisations such as the Royal Opera House, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, Shakespeare’s Globe and also smaller companies like Miracle Theatre from Cornwall, alongside content from Britain on Film and archive arts and documentary titles from the BFI. More arts and BFI titles will follow throughout the year.
Alex Beard, Chief Executive of the Royal Opera House:
‘Running alongside the ROH Live Cinema Season, Cinegi Arts&Film is a wonderful initiative that reaches smaller communities and venues across the UK. We are delighted that The Royal Ballet’s 2014 recording of Giselle is part of the platform and hope that it is enjoyed at a wide-range of locations.’
Increasing audience reach for rightsholders
I have talked to many arts companies who have welcomed the initiative as a great way of extending their audience reach and enabling people to watch their content as a shared experience in venues close to home.
For some arts companies it will make their work visible for the first time to a range of new audiences. For others they have said that it offers an opportunity that will help to encourage them to take the first step in capturing their work and distributing it more widely.
I am really looking forward to this adventure and learning what audiences want and how we can best deliver a service that works in all kind of venues in communities across the UK.
