TANGERANG, KOMPAS.com - It is not difficult to find cinemas in major\ncities, especially in the Jabodetabek area. These film-watching venues\nare usually located on the top floors of malls, offering a variety of\nfilms with studio capacities of up to hundreds of viewers.<\/p>\n
Entertainment that is considered ordinary for most Jabodetabek\nresidents becomes a luxury for many people in remote areas, who have yet\nto be reached by big-screen access. Some have even never experienced\nwatching a film in a cinema.<\/p>\n
This disparity in entertainment access became the origin of mini\ncinemas in Alfamart minimarket outlets.<\/p>\n
One day, Timothy stopped by an Alfamart in the Jalur Puncak 2 area\nand saw a group of children playing around it.<\/p>\n
Out of curiosity, he asked where they usually spent their time.<\/p>\n
The response he received was quite surprising; the children,\naccording to Timothy, treated Alfamart as a \u201changout\u201d spot to enjoy the\nbright, air-conditioned, and comfortable atmosphere.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I was shocked, realising that their experience of coming to\nAlfamart might be equal to Indonesians, urban people, coming to a mall,\u201d\nhe said during the opening of the Alfamart mini cinema at Ruko Agricola,\nGading Serpong, Tangerang, Banten, on Wednesday (1\/4\/2026).<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to bring equality in access to entertainment for all\nIndonesian people because, as we know, there are still many in the\noutskirts, in remote areas, people who don\u2019t have it, who have never\nwatched a film in a cinema in their lifetime because there is no\naccess,\u201d explained Timothy.<\/p>\n
In their residential environments, the available facilities are\ngenerally just simple grocery stores.<\/p>\n
When asked why they didn\u2019t occasionally go to a mall, the answer\nagain opened a new perspective. Besides the considerable distance of\nabout 24 kilometres, comfort was also a barrier.<\/p>\n
Many of them felt awkward entering a large building, not to mention\nthe confusion in finding parking spots.<\/p>\n
Of course, economic factors were the main obstacle. Some admitted\nthey once wanted to watch a cinema but backed out because the prices of\nfood and drinks were deemed too expensive.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause the snacks are really expensive, the price can be three to\nfour times higher than those sold at Alfamart. That\u2019s why we\u2019re here,\u201d\nsaid Timothy.<\/p>\n
Beyond that, Timothy also emphasised that the presence of these mini\ncinemas aims to support players in Indonesia\u2019s film industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Indonesian filmmakers, we also want to be present so there is\ngrowth. So Indonesian filmmakers, if they want to produce film works,\nthey don\u2019t have to worry because there are alternative screens,\u201d said\nTimothy.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/the-story-behind-alfamart-cinemas-starting-from-limited-access-for-remote-communities-1775106595", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }