[
] ( https://www.cnbeta.com/topics/45.htm )
In response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, some Hollywood studios announced an immediate suspension of the release of new films in Russia. Unexpectedly, some Russian cinemas can still play films such as Batman on the big screen, but this is not the credit of the film company. The source of these films is pirated websites. With the continuation of the terrorist events caused by Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, the world has felt the geopolitical and financial impact.
Dozens of countries that support the defense of Ukraine have imposed unprecedented sanctions. From severe restrictions on the Russian banking system to a simple refusal to do business, the aim is to limit Putin's ability to wage war.
At the public level, entertainment companies in the United States and the European Union have also suspended business, which means that Netflix, spotify and similar services have become a thing of the past in Russia. Hollywood studios paramount, Disney, Warner Bros. and Sony announced a moratorium on the release of new films, which means that blockbusters such as Batman will not be seen on the big screen in Russia, at least for the foreseeable future.
Russian film industry sounded the alarm
After Hollywood's unprecedented moratorium on the release of new films, the Russian Cinema owners' Association issued a strong statement. The group, which represents 700 cinemas and 2600 screens across the country, said the collapse of the entire film industry was imminent.
The Association warned: "We are concerned about the high possibility of liquidation of the entire film industry in the Russian Federation in the context of large-scale and unprecedented sanctions imposed by some countries. Unfortunately, the quantity and quality of Russian films distributed to the public cannot meet the full demand for the content of cinemas. In addition, the distribution of some Russian films has been postponed or completely cancelled for reasons we do not know, even though they have been approved To the state's financial support.
The association called on the Russian Ministry of culture to help, predicting an 80% loss of revenue. It is not clear whether any assistance has been given, but at the same time, some cinemas have taken drastic action to keep people in their seats and not close down.
As long as there is will, there is a way
Around mid April, posts on Russia's popular social media website (VK, Telegraph) showed that cinemas in several regions would start showing Hollywood blockbusters, including those that should not appear at this time: Batman (Warner Bros.), Netflix and Pixar are just some of the films mentioned.
Just a few days later, the screening activities in several Russian cities were in full swing. On April 21, a special event was held at WIP Contemporary Art Center in Moscow to show Batman. The ticket price is about 500 rubles (US $7.00), and the organizers regard the screening as a performance art performance in response to Hollywood's departure from the Russian market.
Of course, the source of the film is unofficial. Pirated copies - with Russian dubbing - were downloaded from an unknown BT website. Using the same or similar sources, additional film screenings were also conducted in cinemas in several other places, including grinvich cinema in Yekaterinburg.
The broadcasting of pirated Russian films in dispute
At the time of writing, the cinema still allows customers to book pirated movies online, including Batman, which has five performances today alone.
Who is behind these illegal screenings? Given that film piracy is illegal in Russia (despite recent news reports that it has changed), it is not surprising that some cinemas try to keep a distance from illegal acts.
In the picture above, grinvich cinema points out that Batman was "compiled and released" by a private event organizer. The site's press office commented that "grinvich cinema does not show Batman directly, but admitted that it has reached agreements with some" companies "to rent its three screens.
Although the responsibility for screenings will be decided by the court, several groups in Russia are publicly promoting these screenings. The most prominent are "Kino non stop" and "world movies on the big screen", which promote the screening of pirated films on their VK social media accounts.
Small scale screenings are also arranged in a less formal way, with movie audiences crowded into small rooms at no charge. However, regardless of the scale, the industry agreed that such screening was illegal and represented the return of Russian films to the "Dark Age".
A statement from the cinema Owners Association said: "The illegal public display of pirated or stolen film copies in cinemas has separated the Russian film industry from the legal field and brought us back to the dark period of illegal business in the 1990s. As far as we know, such cases are mainly due to the lack of effective response measures by the government to the current severe situation of Russian cinemas and the inability of the Russian film industry to provide enough attractive films for the majority of cinemas in the short term Audiences were interested, and despite impressive support for the film industry at the expense of the national budget, it still caused panic in the industry. "The association notes that the Russian copyright law has not changed, so it is impossible to allow piracy. In this way, unlicensed screening violates civil and criminal law.
"We condemn the illegal screening of films in Russian cinemas and call on the entire professional film industry to prevent this practice," the association concluded.
If Russia does not stop hostilities against Ukraine, there is no film to see in the country. How to solve this problem is unclear. There have been reports in Russia that film fans have spent a lot of money to watch the latest films in other countries, but this is neither realistic nor sustainable.
Now it seems that large-scale piracy has firmly returned to the public agenda, and it is certainly unlikely that Western companies leaving the scene will take any measures. Many posts on social media expressed support for piracy, saying that if Western film companies did not quit, there would be no need for illegal screening. Although this is generally correct from a simple point of view, solving the problem of why they quit in the first place also provides a clear road map for restoring some normal state.