Birmingham’s Mockingbird Cinema sells out as Oscars buzz brings crowds back to the big screen
More than 2,000 tickets snapped up at Digbeth’s independent cinema as film fans flock back for the cinema experience
An independent cinema in Birmingham has seen a surge in audiences ahead of the Oscars, selling more than 2,000 tickets across the weekend.
The Mockingbird Cinema in Digbeth, which has just over 100 seats, says crowds have been lining up to catch films on the big screen — something the venue says it hasn’t seen before.
Programming director Lee Nabbs says the weekend has been unusually busy for the small independent venue.
“It’s been crazy,” Lee said. “Obviously we’re quite small, but we’ve had around 2,000 admissions over the weekend from Friday to Sunday and we’ve only got about 120 seats. It’s been great for the region, great for cinema and it’s been really fun.”
Lee believes the cinema experience itself is what keeps bringing people back, even as streaming services continue to grow.
“I think people like to come to the cinema to escape,” he said. “When you’re at home the phone’s going, someone’s ringing, the doorbell’s going. At the cinema you sit in the dark, forget what’s going on in the world for a couple of hours and just enjoy the film.”
He added that nothing quite compares to watching a film on the big screen.
“It’s never as good watching it at home as it is on the big screen with a good sound system,” Lee said.
Lee says his passion for cinema started when he was young.
“I remember watching Home Alone at the cinema as a kid and it was amazing,” he said. “There’s nothing like that experience and I think ever since then I’ve just loved cinema.”