The French multiplex company CGR Cinemas is bringing a little European cinematic luxury to the U.S., and it all started in our home city of Los Angeles. Get excited, because CGR Cinemas’ first U.S. ICE Theatre is debuting at Regal’s L.A. Live.
What is an ICE Theatre anyway?
Since the evolution of streaming platforms, movie theater attendance has dropped significantly. In order to keep the cinematic experience alive, CGR Cinemas has been experimenting with immersive cinema experience technology to keep the movie audience captivated and in the theater. The only way to do this was to create the ultimate cinematic experience for moviegoers, so they did. Two-and-a-half years ago, CGR cinemas created the ICE Theatre, a premium large format cinema brand that features LED panels flanking each side of the auditorium. Together, these 10 LED panels fill the moviegoer’s peripheral vision with complementary colors.
Check out the video below for a demonstration; it's in French but you'll get the idea!
“Entering the U.S. market and doing so in partnership with AEG, that allows us to launch at the prestigious Regal L.A. Live and provides affirmation of the incredible success and potential of the ICE Theatre format,” said Jocelyn Bouyssy, managing director of CGR Cinemas. “This revolutionary experience is based on a concept designed by an exhibitor for exhibitors, with a focus on a unique business model. This first location has always been known for bringing innovative experiences to moviegoers, and the ICE Theatre is a perfect fit, especially in one of the world’s more beautiful locations and capital of the entertainment industry.”
How have they performed?
At first glance, we didn’t think that a few LED panels would make such a big difference in movie theater attendance; however, CGR Cinemas' numbers heavily back up the immersive technology. Of CGR’s 680 screens, ICE auditoriums account for 32 of them. Even though only a small portion of their screens were tricked out, these 32 theaters generated 75% of CGR’s box office revenue in 2018. Previous ICE titles have included Sony’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, Bohemian Rhapsody, X-Men: Dark Phoenix, Mission Impossible: Fall Out, MenIn Black International, Aquaman, Annabelle Comes Home, and Shazam!. Universal’s Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw will also be shown in the format.
The ICE format will be unveiled in the Fall at the downtown location in a partnership between CGR and AEG. The companies made the announcement Wednesday but did not reveal which title would debut the U.S. project.
Which title would you like to see in the upcoming ICE Theatre?!