A talk. An interview. With Jade from Indonesia, who organises concerts and sometimes also promotes movies in Indonesia. Jade lives in Bandung, Indonesia. And we spoke some days ago about her experiences with movies.
Zenvampires: Jade, the cinemas across Europe are opened now. Also in the US you can watch a movie in a cinema. But there is no audience. People prefer to stay at home instead to go to a cinema. The New York Times wrote about it a while ago. How is your experience in Indonesia? I know, you love to watch movies. Do you visit movie theatres during corona?
Jade: In my city, in Bandung, the cinemas are still closed. But I heard it from other people from other cities. Yes. I miss cinemas. But no. Now we have to stay at home. For now it’s too dangerous. Look. You cannot drink, you cannot eat inside. It’s not the same. How can I relax without eating, without drinking in a cinema. In Indonesia we have special shops, where you can purchase popcorn, cola, some other drinks. I also heard, if a movie theatre opens, it is only for two hours. They open only for one movie. And only for forty people. No. I would like to stay at home now.
“I will lose the amusement while watching movies in a cinema during Covid.”
I can understand you. For me it will be horrible to seat in an empty cinema. It remembers me on the lockdown here, in Germany. As all shops were closed. I was in an empty shopping mall. It was like a lost place. You know that lost places in Europe. Empty buildings. But how is your opinion about the safety? Do you think, it is safe to visit a cinema now?
How can it be safe? I mean, you don’t really have the air circulation in a cinema. Cinemas are mostly inside. Big rooms where people breathe. I cannot imagine, it can be safe. And then take the toilet. How you can be sure, you are not infected using it. Sure, they clean it, but you cannot be sure. And there is a second point. Thinking about all those stuff, thinking about the danger, about the virus, I will lose the amusement watching the movie. I will lose the focus on it. At the end, when I leave the cinema I will forget, what the movie was about. This is not the reason, why I go to a cinema. When people will watch a movie at a movie theatre, they would like to be entertained, they want forget their daily life. It’s impossible with the virus.
Is streaming an alternative?
Sure. But it depends on the movie I’m going to watch. Some movies are perfect to watch it at home. But others you have to watch at a cinema.
Of course, I miss all that. But I will wait.
You mean, some movies are made especially for movie theatres? Like some classical music, which was made for a church, for a special room?
Yes, of course. Look. When you take only the sound. It’s very difficult to make the same special sound at home. You maybe will have expensive speaker. But you probably do not seat in a big cinema hall. Sound in movies, also the music used in movies is made especially for big halls. And for cinema speakers. You had to buy a cinema in order to watch it for yourself.
But there is a second point. Everything what happens around the movie. When you go to the cinema, when you wait for the movie, when you maybe see your friends. You don’t have it streaming movies at home. For some movies you have special poster. Ads around and in the movie theatre. All this you don’t have when you stream movies at home.
And there is something different too. Snacks at cinemas. For me, it is a part of the experience. They sell it at cinemas and it is delicious. I cannot find it anywhere. They sell it only at cinemas in Indonesia.
Hollywood should be patient. We all should be patient.
Do you miss it? Do you miss movie theatres?
Of course I do. I miss all that. But you know. I will wait. Even for new movies, which are now available online. In my opinion, it isn’t a good idea to let them play online. Because we can wait. We all can wait and watch them next year. Maybe in two years, when it’s safer. So we can wait. You know, we are Asians. Wie love everything new. Also new movies. When they comes to cinemas, we also will watch them. It is not necessary to stream new movies now.
It doesn’t makes sense to show those movies now.
Should Hollywood wait then?
In my opinion? Yes. They should be patient. We all should be patient. Some of the movies are postponed now. And most of movies on my watchlist are postponed. So. They can wait until we again can go to cinemas. I mean, we all will watch them. But not now. And not in empty cinemas nor online. To watch a new movie online for me is like… like when I watch an old one. I mean, sometimes I do it. Sometimes I watch old movies. But then I do it online, not at movie theatres. This is the difference. So, we should be patient. With the virus and with movies.
I think it too. I mean, there are some movie festivals online now. We had tho in Hamburg. But it’s not the same. So you can watch some new movies. Even independent movies, but I guess, also independent movies should wait.
Of course they should. The whole industry should. I mean, it doesn’t makes sense to show movies now.
You also promote some movies. How is it for you in your job?
We don’t promote movies now. It has changed. And I miss it. On the one hand we had meetings with directors. Now it is not possible to meet the director. Even if some cinemas are opened. They show movies without special guests. And on the other hand, to dress for an event, it was a very nice experience. Now I don’t have it. And I miss it too. But… As I told you. We should wait. We should be a little bit patient and everything comes back.
Jade, thank you for the talk.
Thanks a lot.
