Following the recent announcement of the
deal between Arts Alliance Media (AAM) and Cinema Digitaal to convert over 500
Dutch cinema screens to digital, AAM has reached agreement with the 14 members
of the NVF, the Dutch Film Distributors’ Association, for its VPF-funded rollout.
The independent members of the NVF have all signed up to 10 year agreements
with AAM to help fund the conversion of cinemas in Holland from celluloid to
digital equipment. The major Hollywood studio
members of the NVF will join the scheme through their existing vpf-agreements
with AAM.
Michael Lambrechtsen,
Managing Director of the NVF said, “The Cinema Digitaal program is the only
digital cinema program supported and authorised by all of the members of the
NVF. All of our distributors look forward to working with AAM and pushing
forward with the conversion.”
Howard Kiedaisch, CEO
of Arts Alliance Media, added, “The Cinema Digitaal initiative is a tremendous
achievement and something the Dutch film industry should be very proud
of. Having all the local distributors on board is crucial to the success
of the program.”
The Dutch Film
Distributors' Association (NVF) takes care of the interests of all of the major
and Dutch independent film distributors who are members of the association. The
NVF is doing so by conferring with the Dutch Cinema Exhibitors' Association
(NVB), government agencies and other institutions in the entertainment
industry.
The unique Dutch
digital cinema rollout is managed by Cinema Digitaal, a not-for-profit
organisation formed by the Dutch Association of Film Distributors (NVF), the Association
of Cinema Exhibitors (NVB), and EYE Film Institute Netherlands. Cinema Digitaal
ensures support for all exhibitors during the switchover. The scheme is partly funded
by the Dutch government, through a grant from PRIMA (Project Implementation ICT
Agenda) and the Netherlands Film Fund (Nederlands Fonds voor de Film), and aims
at digitising the majority of the country’s cinema screens. All independents
and circuits, with the exception of Pathe, Euroscoop and Utopolis, are part of
Cinema Digitaal.
All the participating
cinemas will have DCI-compliant digital projection equipment supplied and
managed by Arts Alliance Media, which will also be upgradeable to 3D and
satellite.
