Cinemas in Singapore will further limit their seat capacities to a maximum of 100 per hall to comply with the new Covid-19 measures announced this week.
Cinema operators said this allows for film screenings without the need for pre-event testing, which kicks in when there are more than 100 attendees, up to a maximum of 250.
A spokesman for Golden Village Multiplex said yesterday that under social distancing rules in force since last year, halls are already running at 50 per cent capacity, and overall seating capacity will drop even further now.
The new regulatory period runs from Saturday to May 30, during which the much-anticipated blockbuster action thriller Fast & Furious 9 will be released, on May 26.
The latest instalment in the car-chase franchise is expected to be a box-office smash over a period that has been mostly quiet after the record-setting release of monster movie Godzilla Vs Kong in March.
Ms Flora Goh, managing director of film distributor United International Pictures Singapore, said there are no plans to push back the Fast & Furious 9 release in Singapore cinemas.
"Fans can still catch its super sneaks from May 21, more than a month ahead of the US release on June 25," she said.
The 30th European Film Festival (EUFF), which runs from today to May 23 at indie cinema The Projector, will go ahead, but with changes to comply with the rules.
For films that are over the limit, the EUFF said it was working with The Projector and participating embassies to release tickets that had been set aside for embassies, to accommodate paying ticket-holders. Refunds will be made if this is not possible, with those who booked tickets earlier getting priority for screenings.
For the 9th Singapore Chinese Film Festival, which ends on Sunday, some films to be screened at the Golden Village and FilmGarde Bugis+ cinemas on Saturday and Sunday will be affected. These include The Story Of Southern Islet, Like The Dyer's Hand, Hand Rolled Cigarette and Anima.
A spokesman for the film festival said that patrons will be spread across more halls to stay under the limit of 100 audience members.
