Support your favourite cinema without paying a cent
Closed movie theatres are taking their toll on Hollywood and cinema operators alike. But there’s a really easy way you can help – for free.
Cinemas will remain closed throughout the Corona pandemic. The lockdown is having serious consequences for both Hollywood and cinemas. After all, no audience equals no income. But rent and staff still need to be paid. Many jobs and livelihoods are threatened.
But there’s good news. You can help. It’s easy and it’s free.
How to help your favourite cinema
Cinema operators not only make money by selling tickets and popcorn but also with ads shown before films start. So what you can do to do to help is watch commercials on hilfdeinemkino.ch. This generates income that goes straight to the cinemas. The more advertising spots you watch, the more income for the cinema.
This is how it works:
- Go to www.HilfDeinemKino.ch and select the cinema you want to support. Simply click on the red flag marking your cinema’s location. By the way, this also works for cinemas in Germany.
- After selecting your cinema, a pop-up window will open. Confirm your selection by clicking on «High Quality» or «Low Quality».
- Next up, you get to view cinema ads that would normally be shown before the movie starts. All you have to do is watch.
That’s it. That’s all it takes to help your favourite cinema.
By the way, the #hilfdeinemkino campaign also supports cinemas that are normally ad-free. Because the site has only just been launched, there’s currently only one ad you can watch. Further commercials will be added over the course of the next few days. Is your company interested in showing ads via #hilfdeinemkino? Simply send an e-mail to info@weischer-cinema.ch.
Alternatively, you can click on the «donate» button to give a small sum without watching an ad. Both PayPal and credit card payments are accepted.
Then there’s a trick my colleague Dominik told me about. It lets you simultaneously watch an infinite number of commercials for all cinemas.
Save cinemas on a large scale
Dominik: There’s a way of saving your favourite cinema without having to invest any time in watching ads. Admittedly, it’s not entirely legitimate, but how on earth are you supposed to choose between Abaton and Riffraff? Allow me to show you a way to help as many cinemas as you want. All at the same time. Without interrupting your work.
- Install Chrome
- Open #hilfdeinemkino website
- Right click at the top to open the menu for the tab
- Click «Mute Site» / «Website stummschalten»
- Open a new browser window with CTRL/⌘+N
- Go back to the #hilfdeinemkino site
- Play ad
- Switch to the second window with ALT/ ⌘+TAB
- Get back to whatever you were doing. The ads are now playing in the background.
This trick makes use of two mechanisms. On the one hand, by pressing ALT/ ⌘+TAB, we’re using the multi-window function all operating systems have. On the other hand, we’re using the tab muting function offered by the browser. The same also works with Firefox, Safari, Edge and pretty much any other popular browser.
Luca: Thanks, Dominik!
Who’s behind #hilfdeinemkino?
The site is operated by Weischer.Cinema – a family and owner-run company that’s been in cinema advertising for over 60 years. For the past eight years, they’ve also been active in Switzerland.
Weischer.Cinema usually makes its money with classic advertising in cinemas or with digital outdoor ads. Those are the kind of ads displayed on LED screens you come across at tram stops. This kind of advertising is also known as Digital out of Home or DooH.
According to their homepage, Welscher.Cinema live and breathe cinema. That’s why the family-run business is on a quest to support as many cinema operators as possible. What’s important to know is that all the money raised on hilfdeinemkino.ch goes directly to the cinemas. Weischer.Cinema state that none of the proceeds are going to them.
By the way, if you don’t have time to watch advertisements, you can help the cause by sharing #hilfdeinemkino on social media. The more people hear about it, the better.
I'm an outdoorsy guy and enjoy sports that push me to the limit – now that’s what I call comfort zone! But I'm also about curling up in an armchair with books about ugly intrigue and sinister kingkillers. Being an avid cinema-goer, I’ve been known to rave about film scores for hours on end. I’ve always wanted to say: «I am Groot.»