Late July saw British Airways again link with the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) for the summer’s Silent Picturehouse project.
Five stand-out, travel-inspired films were screened simultaneously amidst the railway arches of London’s Vinopolis.
The movies, all of which aim to evoke travel in different ways and various formats, were chosen to help people travel the world from the luxury and comfort of their own seat in London’s South bank pop-up cinema.
The BA experience element of the initiative sees cinema-goers use wireless headphones to watch the films – thus recreating the airline’s in-flight entertainment experience.
The event consisted of five films on five screens over five nights.
It invited guests to pull up a bean bag and immerse themselves in movies inspired by flying to exotic locations and enjoy being served Taittinger and hot dogs by BA hostesses who swept up and down the aisles.
To further push the partnership, BA launched a short web film revolving around the tagline: ‘Travel the world from your seat’.
The partnership was also promoted through a celebrity-filled launch event at Vinopolis to further boost publicity.
This launch party saw TV and radio stars – such as James Corden, Alex Zane and Edith Bowmen – test out the series’ Sennheiser headsets.
The series was sold out and included within every £15 Silent Picturehouse ticket for the films – The Beach, Top Gun, Jaws, Skyfall and Slumdog Millionaire – were the usual cinema-going trappings; hotdogs, popcorn, ice-cream, sweets and treats (plus a slightly more upmarket and unusual cinema glass of champagne)
The choice of films also reflects the wide range of destinations which the airline flies to.
Comment
Quite whether the concept of wearing wi-fi headphones genuinely enables viewers to immerse themselves more completely in a movie is up for debate.
Pop-ups may seem a bit passé to some. But British Airways is certainly both capitalising on the current niche trend for Silent Cinema and also showcasing the freedom of movement and additional comfort provided by its now on-board wireless headsets for its in-flight entertainment.
The initiative follows not only last year’s heavy Olympic sponsorship work, but also its innovative pop-up live orchestra event at its Heathrow T5 headquarters (which thus far has racked up an impressive 250,000 YouTube views).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRKKmY5yCv0
Links
British Airways Silent Picture House YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESv9LlQz02k
Silent Picture House Website
http://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/offers/partners/silent-picture-house-offer
BAFTA
