Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Cinema Management in the Czech Republic in 2020

This master´s thesis focuses on cinema management in times of crisis. The main goal of the thesis is to assess how and to what extent the covid-19 pandemic affected the management and performance of cinemas in the Czech Republic in 2020. The thesis consists of three parts. The first part outlines the basics of crisis management theory, the second part describes the overall impact of the pandemic on the audiovisual sector and particularly on cinemas and the last part represents research among cinema managers. A questionnaire survey was chosen as a form of research and it examines what measures were taken by cinema management as a result of the crisis, the extent to which crisis management tools are applied in Czech cinemas and whether individual approaches to crisis management depend on factors like the legal form of cinema or the size of the municipality in which the cinema is located. The research shows that, as a result of the crisis, the management of Czech cinemas had to take extensive austerity measures, get additional funding and reconsider dramaturgy and marketing strategy. However, only a fifth of cinemas approached the crisis systematically with the use of crisis management. A more proactive approach to resolving the crisis has been seen in cinemas from larger cities.