While the federal and state governments are currently (and in all likelihood also after today’s deliberations) are still lingering in maximum uncertainty, the audience has already expressed its solidarity umpteen times – and in fact it is above all its encouragement, the operators time and again courage makes it possible to reopen its doors to people who can’t wait to see films on the big screen again after the lockdown has ended. And what is by no means a secret: For their personal favorite cinema, film fans like to accept a little longer distances. A prime example of this is the Gieseking family, with whom the operators of the Cinecitta had correspondence that was particularly dear to them – and that they would like to share with other people in the industry. Here you can read it in full:
“Dear Ms. Weber, dear Mr. Weber,? Dear ladies and gentlemen, ?? my husband and I have been big fans of the Cinecitta Nuremberg for many years.
This statement will not surprise you that much, but when I tell you that we are from Hanover, it is something special! In the family and friends we were initially laughed at for going to Nuremberg at least once a month to go to the cinema there. It is now the case that we are asked in astonishment whether something is wrong with us when we have not been in Nuremberg for a long time. Our nephews (now 19 and 21 years old) have also been there many times and have become big fans of the Cinecitta and Nuremberg.
Our Nuremberg trips almost always have the same sequence: ?? Friday after work with the ICE Hanover-Nuremberg? 2 nights in the Novotel at the train station and on Sundays the ICE takes you back to Hanover. ?? A film is usually planned for Saturday, but when there is a lot of choice, we’ve often treated ourselves to two films. In between we enjoy the old town of Nuremberg and the southern German flair while strolling and shopping.
An integral part of our cinema event is always the visit of the Italian in the Cinecitta (the stone oven pizza is unbeatably delicious)! Then there is a cocktail to get in the right cinema mood and then off to the cinema – our absolute favorites are of course the deluxe cinemas, there are no comparable cinemas in Lower Saxony. We have ALL been burdened by Corona for almost a year and of course we try to adapt, pay attention and observe the applicable Corona hygiene rules. My husband and I have always remained loyal to you and when you opened your gates in between, we were back.
We think YOU did a great job, the hygiene concept worked and the staff were great before Corona and even more so under the special circumstances: Always friendly, courteous and happy! Unfortunately, our last visit to you was already so many months ago (October) and that brings me to the reason for my email, which I wanted to have written for a long time. By a great coincidence, we were in Nuremberg and the cinema last year on the exact weekend on which YOU celebrated your 25th anniversary. When we got into the cinema, I found a cinema voucher on my seat! My husband and I were very happy and hope that we can redeem this voucher soon. We still have a few vouchers at home that are just waiting to be redeemed, because whenever it’s our birthday, we of course also want a cinema voucher for the Cinecitta – family and friends are now no longer over our weekend- Cinema trips are astonishing, there is only one question left (so recently our brother-in-law): “When is a cinema actually named after you :-)))!” ??
We keep our fingers crossed for you and for ourselves that we will be able to find our way back to a normal life very soon and that it is possible to deal with Corona in order to be able to enjoy traveling, culture and togetherness again. ?? Your cinema concept works and we hope “You have the stamina to get through these tough times.” We are already looking forward to our next weekend in Nuremberg with a visit to the cinema and will definitely be with our nephews :-)! If ‘Top Gun’ or ‘007 James Bond’ were also at the start, our luck would be hard to believe! ??
Greetings from Lower Saxony to the beautiful Franconia, YOU stay healthy and hopefully see you soon … ?? yours? Frank and Sonja Gieseking “
* This answer was written by managing director Laura Weber:
“Dear Gieseking family,
we were very happy to receive your message!
In these difficult times, the support of loyal customers is particularly important and such encouragement helps not to lose courage in the face of the endless lockdown and the threatening virus mutations. A natural disaster of this magnitude was not included in our planning. However, we will surely survive the crisis and are confident that an unrestricted film visit will be possible again by 2022 at the latest.
Since cultural institutions are not exactly the top priority when it comes to prospects for easing, we reckon that we will have to hold out for a few more weeks. We hope, however, that a reopening of the cinemas from April – with similar restrictions as after the first lockdown – can be targeted. We firmly believe that the cinema experience is justified in the future and that streaming cannot be an adequate replacement in the long run. There is an essential difference between watching a film in optimal picture and sound quality on the big screen in community with others or in the home theater. We will continue to strive in the future to offer visitors the latest technical standards in connection with a pleasant atmosphere and we would be delighted to see you often in the Cinecitta ‘.
With best regards, the Weber family and the Cinecitta ‘team “
* What then came this answer:
“Dear Ms. Weber,
we were delighted to hear from you yesterday.
The prospect that we might be able to start our journey to Nuremberg again in April puts you in a good mood 🙂 We absolutely agree with you: The cinema / streaming discussion is limping. Of course we ALL enjoy one or the other film on the sofa in the evening that we had enjoyed in the cinema months / years ago, but that would never replace the cinema. In the family and colleagues / friends we agree that a cinema experience with the right sound and a special atmosphere cannot be replaced by the largest television set. Cinema stays cinema and sofa stays sofa 😉
In the week before last, my husband organized a Cinecittakarte for us – so far we have always pre-ordered and paid for on the Internet or directly on site in Nuremberg – but now it’s time to give our favorite cinema a helping hand and so we are happy that our Cinecittakarte filled to the brim just waiting to finally be used.
Even if your hands are tied at the moment and the long-awaited blockbusters are a long time coming, we would watch one or the other action flick or older films (Jurassic World, San Andreas, Jumanji,) again!
In the movie ‘Edison ‘my husband and I had the cinema all to ourselves last year. Of course it was a shame that there weren’t any other guests in the afternoon show, but who can claim to have had a private screening ?! The family celebrated us for this event :-)))
My husband and I have no objection if you use our letter to the editor, including our names. We wish you all the best, you and the entire Cinecitta team will continue to hold out and then we will keep our fingers crossed for each other that we can start again soon: Gieseking’s are definitely at the start!
Frank and Sonja Gieseking from Hanover ”
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