Following on from renting out its room for private screenings, Kinepolis now offers three-hour slots to gamers for €199 to play video games on a cinema screen. Visitors bring their console with up to ten people permitted per session.

Distancing measures, a mask mandate and a ban on food and drinks remain in place during the private sessions.

With cinemas in Belgium, France and Germany still closed, distributors are slow to release new movies in these markets, which Luxembourg also forms a part of.

“Distributors are awaiting reopening in these countries,” said Christophe Eyssartier, Kinepolis group manager in Luxembourg.

Blockbusters such as Marvel’s Black Widow or the latest James Bond--No Time to Die--have been delayed. Other films have been released in cinemas and on streaming platforms at the same time.

To bolster its programme, Kinepolis has been re-running films like the Harry Potter series or other older releases.

While waiting for restrictions to lift, the chain aims to attract new customers. Around two thirds of its 21 daily slots for private screenings are usually booked, said Eyssartier.

Whether the cinema will continue renting out rooms other than for corporate events when pandemic restrictions are lifted remains to be seen, the manager said.

Kinepolis employs around 60 people in Luxembourg at its locations in Kirchberg, Limpertsberg and Belval.

Kinepolis isn’t the only cinema in Luxembourg offering private screenings. The Caramba cinema group, with venues in Rumelange and Mondorf-les-Bains, is offering bookings at €225 to €275, depending on the day, for groups of up to 15 people.

Here, too, coronavirus restrictions remain the same as during public screenings.

The CinéScala in Diekirch also offers private screenings although information on rates and availability is only available on demand. 

This story was first published on Paperjam and has been translated and edited for Delano.