In the 2000s, 15 million spectators were identified. Last year, they were even more than 10 million, despite the loss of growth due to the pandemic. This is what we have learned from figures on the evolution of cinema entrances since the beginning of the century, published by the Federal Statistical Office (OFS).
If we come back to Swiss successes, the film that has generated the most entries in the cinemas since 1976 is “my vie of zucchini”. More than 125,000 people went to Swiss obscure rooms to see the animated film of Valaisan Claude Barras. In second place, we find “Ciao Ciao Bourbine” by Zurichois Peter Luisi, a comedy released in 2023. Third in the ranking: “Grounding” retraced in 2006 the last days of Swissair.
Sometimes it is predictable to know which film will make a card, other times it is surprise, as with “welcome to the ch’tis”, “untouchable” and “a little extra”, which have had Unexpected success for the past two decades. “This is the beauty of our profession, you never know which films will appeal to the public,” smiles the director of cinemas of Neuchâtel, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Bienne and Delémont. Blockbusters work better than 25 years ago, underlines Edna Epelbaum. And conversely, “the flops become even bigger flops,” she adds.
Streaming is not the number one threat
-In September 2014, Netflix entered the Swiss market. Being able to watch hundreds of thousands of films, without getting out of home, enough to overshadow the cinemas. However, the streaming platforms only had only a limited impact on the number of entries sold, according to the FIFGs of the OFS. These online services are not the greatest enemies of the 7th art, confirms the director of Cinemont/Cinepel cinemas. For Edna Epelbaum, the great threat is to be the leisure offer, more and more extensive.
The end of the cinema is not planned for tomorrow, reassures the operator. The covid has certainly turned upside down, but the branch is now recovering from the pandemic. Last year, spectators were 450,000 to give themselves moments of escape against the large screens of Neuchâtel, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Bonna and Delémont, according to Edna Epelbaum. In recent years, the 7th art has also found new means to diversify, she rejoices. Concerts, operas, or conferences, cinemas are only reserved for films. /los
