Look Up: The Significance of Viewing Films in Cinemas

      Rechna Varma is a filmmaker and an associate professor of Professional Practice in Cinematic Arts at the University of Miami. Her fifth film, Do Not Disturb, was released in theaters last year by Dark Star Pictures. Balancing independent cinema and television, her work delves into the shifting dynamics between artistry and commerce in contemporary film. Here, she emphasizes the significance of viewing films in theaters.

      Cinephiles are becoming increasingly rare, and I’m observing their decline within my own classroom.

      I see a generation trained to focus on their phones—neglecting the transformative experience of looking up at the big screen together. You might expect me to be more concerned about the impact of A.I. on the craft and enjoyment of filmmaking and teaching. Instead, I’m witnessing something more pressing and troubling.

      For the first time in my career, during the fall semester, my Cinematic Arts majors confessed that they hadn’t seen a single movie in a theater all summer. Now more than ever, we need to re-establish the practice of going to the movies for the sake of community and culture.

      I’m not the first to observe this issue. For instance, Sean Baker recently used his Best Director Oscar speech for Anora to advocate for the theatrical experience. However, I’m getting a close-up view of the reality that future filmmakers have stopped attending movies in theaters.

      I’ve experienced this change firsthand, mirroring a trend seen in nutrition and food culture. Just as individuals unfamiliar with fresh, seasonal produce won’t seek it out, audiences deprived of artistic cinema may lose interest or even become unaware of its existence. In areas experiencing food insecurity, we find nutrient-deficient individuals; likewise, as audiences' appreciation for art and craft diminishes, they become vulnerable to consuming cheap and processed entertainment, dimming our cultural lights in both instances.

      I believe the underlying issue here is taste. Since the release of the first Iron Man in 2008, which set a high standard for superhero films, we've raised a generation of moviegoers who view their childhood through a narrow perspective of superhero fatigue, influenced by reality television, distancing themselves from the true craft of trained actors with talent rather than performative influencers.

      As Martin Scorsese noted in The New York Times in 2019, contemporary cinema has largely forsaken its status as an art form. Instead of nurturing audience appreciation for cinematic art, American cinemas predominantly offer a limited array of entertainment. This experience has shifted into a fast-food mode, with platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram providing what Dr. Anna Lembke, chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic, describes in Dopamine Nation as a relentless stream of addictive stimulation.

      The impact of removing art from our cultural diet is significant, akin to the effects seen in food deserts across the United States, as documented by the USDA. My classroom experiences reflect this decline: environments that used to be filled with passionate discussions about life have turned into exercises in reluctant engagement, similar to convincing reluctant children to eat their vegetables.

      Upon returning from summer break, I discovered that my students hadn’t watched anything they considered “interesting.” They avoided going to theaters because “nothing was playing” or “nothing looked appealing.” This could be due to redlining or the influence of numerous competing distractions for their attention.

      Let me emphasize this point: Cinema students are actively deciding not to attend the cinema. However, I’m not convinced it's a conscious choice. The film industry bears some responsibility for this shift; we cannot solely attribute it to the algorithms that underpin competitive technology.

      How Watching Movies Changed

      The industry has prioritized immediate profits and shareholder interests over cultivating future audiences for the theatrical experience. I sense that executives are green-lighting films primarily based on algorithms and derivatives instead of instinctually seeking surprise and true artistry. If we are only exposed to Ryan Reynolds films, that’s all we’ll come to desire.

      What’s even more troubling is that theater chains aren’t competing with home viewing options. I would love to find a theater free from noise issues or unpleasant odors, and if I could wish for anything, I’d want ushers back to help minimize talking and phone use during screenings.

      Just as a colorful plate of food benefits our physical health, our minds require exposure to a variety of films and storytelling styles.

      Some may find it ridiculous to equate art with necessities like food. Yet intentional artistic creation fulfills essential roles in human society: personal expression, creativity, cultural reflection and preservation, emotional resonance, social commentary, and, of course, education and intellectual engagement.

      While food sustains our bodies, art nourishes our hearts and minds. Many of humanity's greatest innovations have emerged from artistic inspiration.

      Leonardo da Vinci's detailed anatomical studies of the human body blended art and science, revolutionizing our understanding of anatomy. Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) notably influenced real-world technology, featuring tablet computers and video calling long before they became commonplace.

      Even