Give local exhibitors a shared audience-development campaign
access>CINEMA’s New Audience Initiative supports one film a quarter with a central marketing kit, tailored social assets and local marketing funding that participating venues can apply for.
Published 19 October 2026
The idea
Pool the work of audience definition and campaign assets across a network, while each venue chooses local partners and channels.
Evidence
The initiative supports one film per quarter with a dedicated marketing kit and tailored social assets. Participating sites can apply for local marketing funding, and extras such as recorded Q&As are supplied where possible. Its aims include more diverse programming and reaching audiences beyond existing cultural-cinema attenders.
Operator takeaway
Observed programme. Funding amounts, take-up and audience results are not published.
Try this
Test one title with a clear local promotion allowance, deciding which central assets are reusable and which need local adaptation.
Measure
First-time attendees, cost per booking, partner referrals and subsequent visits — not only impressions or asset downloads.
Watch out for
Central assets do not replace local relationships; budget time for venues to adapt them.
Operator, market and timing
access>CINEMA, Ireland. A standing programme; the current page references bookings from the Spring 2026 season. Sources reviewed 19 October 2026.
What the initiative provides
Each quarter, the New Audience Initiative backs one film with a dedicated marketing kit and tailored social media assets. Participating sites can apply for funding for local marketing, and additional material such as recorded Q&As is supplied where possible. The stated purpose includes more diverse programming and attracting people who may not otherwise engage with cultural cinema.
Why it is useful (CIA interpretation)
Small venues rarely have time to research a new audience and produce campaign material for each title. A network can do that once, while local exhibitors bring the relationships and channels that reach people nearby.
A proportionate test (CIA suggestion)
Choose one title with a clearly identified audience. Prepare a shared kit, offer each venue a modest local promotion allowance, and ask venues to name the local partners they will approach. Afterwards, review which central materials were used unchanged and which needed adapting.
What is and is not known
Funding amounts, the number of participating venues and any audience results are not published. Measure first-time attendees and cost per booking rather than counting downloads or impressions.
Sources
Primary sources
- New Audience Initiative — access>CINEMA (opens in a new tab)
Reviewed by CIA 19 October 2026
Explore related topics
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- Challenge: Programming and discovery
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- Theme: Marketing
- Theme: Partnerships
- Theme: Programming
Related ideas
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- Shared question: Reaching audiences beyond existing attendersTake cinema to the communities a fixed venue does not reach
- Shared question: Running one simple offer across many venuesRemove a registration step from a shared cinema offer
- Shared topic: Audience growthKinepolis turns coming-soon trailers into an interactive cinema event
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