New data from Copenhagen-based Will & Agency reveals that European kids have a much more fluid view of what “films” should look like, and they are most interested in moviegoing as a way to log family time. 

The firm’s Keeping up with Children as an Audience study builds out from a survey of 374 seven- to 11-years-olds across 12 different European countries (Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Switzerland and Wales). 

Interestingly, kids don’t go to the movies because of the film they’re seeing; they tend to be far more excited about the experience of being together with friends and family. As far as ambience goes, they expect a spectacle, big comfy seats and big screens. But beyond these basics, there’s a lot of opportunity for theaters to benefit from new strategies for attracting kids that lean into and enhance their desire for a fun experience, says Rikke Flodin, partner at Will & Agency/PUBLIKUM (Will & Agency’s AI-powered data platform). The social aspect is key, adds Anne Schultka, project manager at KIDS Regio, which collaborated on the research. 

Some European content producers are already making moves along these lines. Acamar Films is running games, face-painting, coloring activities and meet-and-greets in theaters that are screening episode compilations from its animated series Bing. The studio has sold more than 200,000 tickets to these events in the last four years. MIAM! Animation developed a similar theatrical experience for the release of its film L’hiver d’Edmond et Lucy in December 2023, providing its cinema partners with DIY craft kits for making tree decorations based on the movie’s characters. 

The Will & Agency study also highlights that young digital natives can feel just as invested in short TikTok and YouTube videos as they do in feature-length movies. “Kids think of 13 seconds as a film,” says Flodin. “Their definition of film is changing.”   

Some of the big-screen brands that European kids are most interested in include Spider-Man, Marvel and Kung-Fu Panda, according to Flodin, who adds that this speaks to how their access to North American exports is much greater than their access to local European programs. Although it’s worth noting that because European kids can travel so easily between neighboring countries, they have a very different idea of what “local” content means, and many of them don’t realize the content they like comes from other countries. This insight is important for the industry because it illustrates how well European content travels, says Flodin. 

Flodin presented these findings at the KIDS Regio Forum in Germany at the end of June, and they plan on sharing the full report on October 31 following a presentation at the Cinekid Festival in Amsterdam.    

Photo courtesy of Felix Mooneeram via Unsplash.