PICL: the online screening room for arthouse cinemas
Bringing your arthouse cinema into your living room
* Discover cinema
We work directly with Dutch cinemas who have selected the most exceptional, award-winning, quality films: just for you.
* Don’t miss a thing
We offer you films that are screening in the cinemas right now. The latest arthouse films, straight away on your own screen at home. So you don’t need to miss a thing!
* Your way
It’s really simple: transform your home into a personal cinema with just a few clicks. Whenever its suits you.
With Picl, arthouse cinemas can offer their local audiences a personal, hand-picked selection of new films for home viewing through Video on Demand. In their own online screening rooms, on their own websites. Bringing larger audiences to European arthouse films and documentaries by offering these films both offline and online through the most natural, trusted platform that already exists for these films: the cinema.
Objective
Find a larger and more diverse audience for European arthouse films and documentaries by offering these films both off- and online at THE most natural, strong and trusted platform existing for these films: the independent cinema.
About Picl
Picl enables cinemas to offer their local audiences a personal, handpicked selection of films as Video on Demand for home viewing in their very own online screening room, embedded on their websites.
The market (NL)
Independent cinemas with their culturally diverse programming are the flagship platform and natural homes of European arthouse films. They’re still the place where most of the arthouse films develop a life and gain cultural and economic value with over 2,7 million visitors, 19,9 million euro box-office (2014/2015) in the Netherlands. However, more and more European arthouse films and documentaries are having a hard time finding an audience. An overabundance of titles increases the competition for the limited awareness of audiences.
And although we believe in the unsurpassed cinema experience of the big screen, there’s no doubt that the rise of the digital market and online availability of films has a significant impact on the entire value chain for films including the cinemas. Cinemas can play a significant role in unlocking independent films and documentaries for a loyal and well-targeted audience. The competition in cinemas is big and once they leave the cinema, they must compete with the overabundance of films on the large VOD platforms. IF they get a VOD release at all. Instead of creating yet another VOD platform trying to reach a new audience, we give the cinema’s a tool to bring the best European films straight to their core target groups.
Picl offers these films a real, high-profile chance for an audience and by doing so strengthen the position of the cinemas by offering them an innovative online tool, which is a natural extension to their value chain.
Target audience
Research in The Netherlands shows that 91% of the people who are interested in art house cinema, watch these movies at home as well. 28% of Cinema visitors watch art house movies at home as well, and 57% of them use paid online services to watch movies (subscription services and pay-per-view). Also, 63% of the people with an interest in art house films, does not go to a movie theater a large part (for different reasons: too far away, not enough time, too expensive).
(source: Stichting Filmonderzoek desk research 2016)
Primarily: man/women | 45+ | frequent cinema goers and independent film lovers | are up to date on the cinema programs and know exactly what they have missed | get their information through the cinemas communication | reads traditional media including film reviews | can be connected to the cinema through friends program | well educated | core audience for European films.
Secondary: men/women | aged 25 – 45 | in the highlight of their carriers/young children at home | independent film lovers and incidental cinemagoers | watch lots of films at home | easy users of internet and flexible with different devices | get their information online
(source: Stichting Filmonderzoek research first pilot Picl (Filmthuis) in summer 2015)
Find more information on research and results here.
Positioning/ USP
Picl is positioned as a platform of the local theatre. The unique selling point of Picl is the fact that we build upon independent cinemas as existing local brands. The aim is to connect to this already existing offline audience to the online programming, rather than to build up a new audience. Using these existing channels makes our marketing significantly more efficient and less expensive compared to regular independent VOD platforms.
Results of Pilot Year (Filmthuis)
Since March 2016 we have been running the online screening room in the Netherlands under the name of Filmthuis. A few results of the first 10 months:
- 14 cinemas participating
- 42 films offered by 15 distributors
- Results are promising and participants positive
> reaches younger audience
> returning visitors
> extra revenue cinemas
International partners of Picl:
Kino on Demand (Germany)
La Toile (France)
Nettkino (Norway)
See also: www.ecvi.eu
Picl is a project of Stichting Nederlandse Filmpromotie, initiated by Herrie Film & TV.
For more information contact Anke van Diejen (anke@picl.nl) or Noortje van de Sande (noortje@picl.nl)