Movies | New movie theaters are opening rapidly in Helsinki – the reason is the changed needs of the audience

to Helsinki a new cinema will be opened again in the spring. Kino Konepaja is coming to Vallila, near Pasila.

New cinemas have been established in Helsinki now at a faster pace than in decades. In November, the Kulttuurikasarmi complex was opened in the city center, which includes a three-screen theater from the Bio Rex Cinemas chain. At the end of 2022, Riviera expanded to Punavuori. Multi-screen theaters have been added to Redi and Tripla shopping centers in recent years.

The number of cinema visits in Finland is not growing as fast as the number of new entrepreneurs might suggest. The change is related to the public's needs.

Theater manager Jojo Uimonen calls Kino Konepajaa a neighborhood cinema and a boutique cinema.

“Boutique cinema means a smaller and more specialized cinema”, describes Uimonen.

It refers to a curated program, but the appearance of the theater is also carefully thought out and conceptualized. Kino Konepaja will have a bar and there will be refreshments in the hall. The model is familiar from Riviera, which opened in 2016 as the first new cinema in the Kallio district since the 1980s. The public is looking for a comprehensive experience, so a movie ticket can be a smaller part of the theater owners' income than other ancillary sales.

“You can have a glass of wine and something to eat,” says Uimonen.

Behind Kino Konepaja is the Whitepoint Digital company, which uses the hall during the day for post-production of films.

Cinemas the change can be seen in many cities. Finnkino's newest multi-hall theater opened in Raisio in 2022. Several of its halls have the possibility of drinking, and all are equipped with Luxe, which means increased comfort and price.

Helsinki's Culture Barracks attracts a more paying public with its ultra-stylish interior.

Different movies are watched in different theaters. For example, the British film Aftersun – our day in the sun, which received great reviews, was among the seven most watched last year at Kino Engel, Orion and Riviera in Helsinki, Kino Tapiola in Espoo, Niagara in Tampere and Studio in Oulun. Nationwide, it was still number 43 on the most viewed list.

Aftersun types of arthouse films are watched especially in theaters suitable for them, says its importer Cinemansen Hanna Lajunen.

“Small theaters greatly support the diversity of the offer,” says Lajunen.

“When we don't have the marketing budgets of Hollywood studios”, the phenomenon starts with the viewers.

The Arthouse theater's software has a quality guarantee. Getting the most important of them into the software is marketing
in itself.

When there is a sufficient number of people who have seen a good film during the premiere weekend, who will tell about it, the film can also spread better to multiplex theaters that do not have an arthouse emphasis.

“For an artistically more ambitious film, the importance of small theaters during the premiere weekend is therefore great,” sums up Lajunen.

At the cinema on the block not going to watch superhero adventures popular with the youth. Spectacles are enjoyed on the big screen. Kino Konepaja is a few hundred meters from the Tripla shopping center, where there is a Bio Rex Cinemas multiplex.

“Multiplex meets the need when you want to see Napoleon's like a big movie on Saturday night”, describes Uimonen.

“In a small theater, the reliability of the software can be the main attraction. You look at what's been selected for the software, and you can find something good that you didn't know about beforehand.”

Uimonen comes to Kino Konepaja from the film distribution side. He emphasizes that the importance of curating small cinemas is not limited to foreign arthouse films. In his previous workplace, Uimonen was, among other things Teemu Nikin the movie Gambler – death is the problem of the living distributor.

“It went really well at the Riviera.”