Emptied by virus, Lithuanian airport turns into drive-in cinema
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Saturday, November 2, 2024


Emptied by virus, Lithuanian airport turns into drive-in cinema
People sitting in their cars watch a movie at the Autokino drive-in cinema on an airfield of the airport in Vilnius on April 29, 2020. Hundreds of movie fans flocked to Lithuania's main international airport to a drive-in cinema created in the shadow of planes grounded by the novel coronavirus pandemic. Organisers of the Vilnius International Film Festival (Vilnius IFF) teamed up with the city's airport to create the Aerocinema drive-in. PETRAS MALUKAS / AFP.

by Vaidotas Beniusis



VILNIUS (AFP).- Hundreds of movie fans flocked to Lithuania's main international airport on Wednesday night to a drive-in cinema created in the shadow of planes grounded by the coronavirus pandemic.

Organisers of the Vilnius International Film Festival (Vilnius IFF) teamed up with the city's airport to create the Aerocinema drive-in.

They want to offer people the opportunity to go out for a movie amid the month-long coronavirus lockdown that has shuttered cinemas.

"We're offering people a new type of travel through the cinema on the airport tarmac," organiser Algirdas Ramaska told AFP, standing in front of a screen as tall as a five-storey building.

"We were dreaming about it for a while, but it could only come true after aviation virtually came to a halt," he added, referring to the flight ban imposed in mid-March in a bid to stem the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus.

Social distancing measures were in place for Wednesday's screening of this year's Oscar-winning film, South Korea's "Parasite".

Around 150 cars on the airport tarmac were parked at least two metres apart, with a maximum of two people per vehicle.

"I felt both strange and excited, when I saw the sun setting, a big screen and planes all around," movie-goer Jolita Vaitkute, 24, told AFP after the screening.

"We can't enjoy flights or cinema right now (under lockdown), but tonight we got both at the same time," she added.

Tickets go for 15 euros ($16) per car with proceeds going to the Vilnius IFF, which operates on a non-profit basis.

Last year, Vilnius airport served five million passengers but it has been eerily empty since mid-March when the Baltic EU state imposed its lockdown.

Although some passenger flights will resume on May 10, Ramaska said he expected the drive-in cinema to continue operation through May as air traffic will remain low for some time.

Among the first EU members to ease lockdown restrictions, Lithuania has already reopened open-air restaurants and cafes, along with shops and libraries as infections slowed but cinemas remain closed.

Vilnius mayor Remigijus Simasius has offered cafes free use of public spaces saying he wants the capital to become "one giant outdoor cafe".

The health ministry confirmed 1,375 cases of the novel coronavirus, including 45 deaths as of Wednesday in Lithuania, a eurozone nation of 2.8 million people.


© Agence France-Presse










Today's News

May 1, 2020

In Seoul, the art world gets back to business

Italian 'Arte Povera' art critic Germano Celant dies

Art auction to raise funds for the Emergency Art Workers Support Fund in Scotland

Christie's to offer one of the largest lunar meteorites in existence for private sale

The National Gallery celebrates doctors, carers and nurses with exhibition

Brian Eno's 15 essential ambient works

Ricardo Brennand, Brazilian entrepreneur and collector, dies at 92

Their Met Gala, their way. You're invited.

Marina Adams joins Stephen Friedman Gallery

Portraits that more than meet the eye

Danish poet Yahya Hassan dead at 24

Dozens of DFW sports icons and Heritage Auctions are 'In This Together' for the North Texas Food Bank

Bollywood mourns another star as Rishi Kapoor dies at 67

Argentine tango dancers go solo awaiting embrace lost to pandemic

Emptied by virus, Lithuanian airport turns into drive-in cinema

Barber Home brings art to people living under lockdown and offers support for artists

Quality collections produce strong prices at spring fine & decorative arts auction

ICA Miami commissions new digital works from four Miami artists

VR art show is gallery of future, say organisers

Irrfan Khan: Mira Nair remembers her 'Namesake' star

Legendary drummer and afrobeat co-founder Tony Allen dies

People have gone full 1800s

Adam M. Levine begins Toledo Museum of Art directorship

Peru's Ayahuasca Industry Harvesting the Ayahuasca Vine at an alarming rate

Understanding Celebrity Net Worth Information

How NASCAR are Responding to the Coronavirus Outbreak

Exploring 5 Powerful Mental Health Benefits of Art




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez
Writer: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful