The “cinema makers” Madita and Jürgen Burth have hit the jackpot with their eighth open-air cinema in the courtyard of the Brechenmacher School in Bad Saulgau. Between 400 and 700 visitors attended each performance on five evenings at the “open-air cinema”. They were offered an all-round feel-good package that included the right selection of films, excellent catering, a supporting program and great weather.
Family shares the work
“We are simply happy with how the open-air cinema was received this year,” said Jürgen Burth, who was responsible for the open-air event with his daughter Madita, while his wife and son maintained the daily cinema operation in the city center.
The weather certainly contributed to the success, which was kind to the organizers, something that cannot necessarily be said about last year. Another crucial point is the selection of films. “We make sure that we meet the tastes of the visitors. This includes not showing heavy films, which is what we offer in our cinema in the city center,” says Jürgen Barth. Light, summery comedies are the right “fare” for this.
This film was the highlight
A highlight this time was the film adaptation of the successful novel by Colleen Hoover: “Just One More Time”, which is also shown daily in the Bad Saulgau cinema. Over 700 cinemagoers wanted to see this bestseller adaptation. “80 percent of them were women,” says Jürgen Burth.
It wasn’t just the children who had fun with the family film “Despicable Me”. Parents were also happy about the return of Gru and the Minions. (Photo: Wolfgang Lutz)
This year, Madita Burth convinced her father to have a family evening again. 300 children and their families were there when “Gru & the Minions” went on another adventure. But until that time came, Madita Burth had thought of a few things for the children: They could work with clay balls and shape them into millions. The children also had a lot of fun throwing cans and coloring in pictures.
A Minion menu for the kids
But then the kids started to get hungry and the Minion menu came at just the right time. With popcorn, of course, which was constantly being made fresh, as were all the drinks and the delicious burgers from the food truck.
“It is important to me that all visitors feel comfortable with us. This also includes the 50 deck chairs, which were always occupied. Here you could really lounge around and enjoy a fresh drink,” says Jürgen Burth.
A different audience is addressed
He found that the audience at the open-air event was largely different and did not often find their way to the cinema. They loved the great outdoors, the starry sky and the many lighting effects that also put the many trees in the schoolyard in the right light.
For Jürgen Burth, it is also important that he can offer professional equipment every year that promises pure cinema fun, and he is referring in particular to the oversized screen, which of course is not completely free. “We alone would not be able to manage the whole thing financially. We are dependent on the sponsors who make it possible for us to hold such an open-air cinema. We are grateful for that.”
Commitment for next year
But at the moment, the joy of the successful cinema event simply outweighs everything else and: “We will definitely hold another one next year, because the open-air cinema has become an integral part of the culture in Bad Saulgau,” Jürgen and Medita Burth are sure.
