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The Indonesian Cinema Management Association (GPBSI) announced yesterday that cinema chains throughout the country will simultaneously reopen starting July 29.
GPBSI comprises several movie theater chains in Indonesia such as Cinema XXI, CGV, Cinepolis, Dakota Cinema, and Platinum Cineplex, among others.
The agreement among the cinema operators was taken based on a decree issued by the Health Ministry as well as the joint decree of the Ministry of Education and Culture and Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy.
Cinemas are officially permitted to resume operations starting this week, but members of GPBSI said that it would take around two to three weeks to prepare for the implementation of COVID-19 health protocols before they can start welcoming moviegoers in the so-called new normal.
In the statement, the association recounted that cinema operators are currently preparing health protocols for visitors and conducting employee training. They’re also set to hold talks with people in the film industry regarding the readiness of films and promotional materials that will be carried out after cinemas reopen.
Cinemas across the country have been closed since March, following confirmation of the first COVID-19 cases. Some of Indonesia’s largest cinema chains in Indonesia said that they have been conducting regular maintenance and cleaning, such as spraying disinfectant liquids, during the closures.
“Let’s all pray that every preparation will go on well so that cinemas can go back doing operational activities and give positive contributions to the growth of the creative economy sector, especially the country’s film industry,” GPBSI head Djonny Syafruddin said in the statement.
In Jakarta, a decree issued by the city’s Tourism and Creative Economy Agency stated that the entertainment and recreation sector is allowed to reopen on July 6 to 16. There are several limitations regarding cinemas, including forbidding children and the elderly from entering theaters.
