In 2023, Batalha Centro de Cinema, in Porto, received more than 50,000 spectators during the 626 film sessions held, having dedicated a quarter of its programming to Portuguese cinema, it was revealed today.
Reopened in December 2022, after a rehabilitation process, the cinema center received 50,549 spectators between January and December 2023, an average of 81 per session, according to data revealed today by Porto City Hall on its official website.
Among the more than 50,000 spectators, around 6,000 were students from the 42 institutions that took part in the Batalha Schools program, which included 41 film screenings designed for different levels of education, from pre-school to secondary school.
Over the past year, there have been 626 film screenings, with the retrospective dedicated to Canadian director David Cronenberg – “À Voltas com Cronenberg” – standing out as the “most followed”, with a total of 3,113 spectators over 36 screenings, which corresponds to an average of 86 spectators.
Among the thematic cycles presented, the most attended was “Sobre-vestir: Histórias de Cinema e Moda”, with an average of 125 spectators.
Also according to the report released today, of the 315 film screenings that made up the Cinema Centre’s program, 69 were dedicated to Portuguese cinema (which represents almost a quarter of the program).
Batalha also presented 21 performances and film-concerts and welcomed 138 guests for talks and lectures.
In 2023, the municipal facility also hosted 11 film festivals in the city – including IndieJúnior Porto, Fantasporto and Porto/Post/Doc – which reached a total of 22,000 people over 311 sessions.
Porto’s historic cinema, renamed Batalha Centro de Cinema, reopened its doors on December 9, 2022, after three years of renovation work that cost five million euros.
