The Event Cinema Association will host its first annual overseas convention October 14 in Stockholm, Sweden. Held at the Bio Rio cinema in central Stockholm and organized by the ECA’s partners Folkets Hus och Parker, the event intends to shed light on the Nordic region, celebrate it successes and learn from its achievements.
The Nordic region includes Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark and the schedule of the day includes panels focusing on technical delivery – a Scandinavian perspective, audience development, how the local market works in each territory and what makes a night out in Scandinavia. It will expert speakers from each of the featured territories including Emma Sjoblom of SF Bio (Sweden), Ann-Christin Danhammar of the Royal Opera House (Sweden), Marjut Apilo-Olsen of Finnkino Oy (Finland) and a number of speakers from independent cinemas across the region, both urban and rural.
Moderated by industry stalwart and champion of event cinema Patrick von Sychowski, whose multiple languages and journalistic perspective will be a great asset on the day, the event will also be opened by Melissa Cogavin, managing director of the ECA and Katja Uneborg of the Bio Rio venue, followed by an overview of the global digital cinema market and development, with a special look at Scandinavia, from David Hancock, Senior Analyst of I.H.S.
Rickard Gramfors, event cinema manager for FHP and co-organizer said, “I have long had a passion for event cinema and we at FHP feel our achievements in this area are something to be very proud of. It was important to us that we showcase the region and highlight what we have learned as an industry here for the benefit of others. This is an industry first and as a founding ECA board member I am thrilled to be spearheading such an event.”
Cogavin said, “At the ECA we now have members in 33 territories worldwide, reflective of the growth of the industry in general. We felt the time is right to focus our attention on a specific region so we can examine in more depth the themes that characterize this sector. Scandinavia has some unique qualities and strengths and we can all learn from their achievements and challenges, so we are very happy to be working with FHP in bringing this event to Sweden.”
She added, “If you are based in this region with an interest in event cinema then this event is a must, but equally this is a smaller, more intimate event that all supporters of this industry will benefit from attending.”
Platinum sponsors include Unique Digital and Kencast. All You Need Is Live and Gofilex will also support the event. Further sponsors are to be announced shortly.
Eyvind Ljundqvist, Nordic sales director at Unique said, “Unique Digital are proud to be empowering cinemas worldwide with our technology, and we're delighted to be supporting FHP and ECA in this event. The event cinema market is an essential element of growing the cinema industry worldwide, and Unique are committed to provide innovations to further strengthen the industry in the upcoming season. We are very much looking forward to taking part in the event October 14th ”
For the first time, SendSteps will be used extensively during the day to get feedback and questions from the audience but also provide statistics and other information. This will be a very vivid conference, where the audience is expected to be active. All results will be published afterwards, for the participants, and for ECA members on the website.
The annual ECA Conference & Awards will be take place in London on February 9.
Tickets are limited for the Nordic event so booking early is advisable. Click here for tickets and full details on the event http://www.eventcinemaassociation.org/ecacon2016.html