Edgar Wright’s Advice For Film Lovers During Coronavirus: Support Your Cinemas With Gift Cards Or Memberships
By Hoai-Tran Bui/March 20, 2020 12:30 pm EST
But not on Edgar Wright’s watch. The Baby Driver director put out a plea to movie lovers to save their favorite local cinemas. While the CDC recommendation against gatherings of 50-plus people, and subsequent government restrictions, prevents us from actually seeing movies at the theater, there are other ways for cinephiles to support movie theaters, Wright says.
In an essay for Empire Magazine, Wright wrote that now, more than ever, is the time for movie lovers to support their favorite local cinemas. While the ongoing pandemic prevents audiences from actually going to the theater, Wright says that cinephiles can support theaters by buying gift cards or memberships:
Wright acknowledged that this was “not a luxury that everyone can afford,” but added that those who can afford it should think of the “many hard-working staff at your favorite cinema who may have just lost their jobs. This might help ensure they have a place of work to return to.”
“After you’ve read this, why not buy a membership for yourself, or for someone close to you. Buy some gift cards. Donate where you can. Consider, if you can afford to, not asking for your unlimited subscription to be refunded,” he wrote. “Yes, you may not be able to go back in the coming months, but you’ll feel better for having helped now than if you later found your local church of cinema had been forced to close for good. I myself have been buying memberships to cinemas I frequent that I hadn’t already joined.”
