Israel opens floating cinema for coronavirus-safe viewing
People sit in boats as they watch a screening of a movie during a preview for the members of the media of Tel Aviv municipality's "sail-in" floating cinema, which the municipality says aims to provide a solution to cultural outings that have been limited by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, at HaYarkon Park's boating lake in Tel Aviv, Israel August 20, 2020. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Movie-goers boarded boats floating on the shimmering waters of a Tel Aviv lake on Thursday for a test screening at Israel's first "sail-in" cinema.
With indoor film theatres shut because of coronavirus restrictions, Tel Aviv municipality launched the floating cinema to allow residents to catch a movie in the open air while still keeping a safe distance from each other.
The floating cinema provided seating aboard 70 pedal and rowing boats set in the Yarkon Park lake, two metres apart to maintain social distancing, Tel Aviv municipality said.
People sit in boats as they watch a screening of a movie during a preview for the members of the media of Tel Aviv municipality's "sail-in" floating cinema, which the municipality says aims to provide a solution to cultural outings that have been limited by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, at HaYarkon Park's boating lake in Tel Aviv, Israel August 20, 2020. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Two films will be screened every evening during the last week of August, the municipality said. Thursday's screening, attended by about 200 people, was a pilot event which featured the family comedy "Paddington 2".
"It was an amazing evening. Great to see a cinema corona-style. We had an amazing time. The whole family enjoyed it. Good move Tel Aviv," said Galia Resnick, 42, a high-tech worker from Tel Aviv.
After successfully containing the coronavirus in May, Israel has been grappling with a second wave of infections and has reported almost 100,000 COVID-19 cases in total and 795 deaths.
Ducks swim as people sit in boats and watch a screening of a movie during a preview for the members of the media of Tel Aviv municipality's "sail-in" floating cinema, which the municipality says aims to provide a solution to cultural outings that have been limited by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, at HaYarkon Park's boating lake in Tel Aviv, Israel August 20, 2020. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
(Reporting by Rami Amichay and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Giles Elgood and Lisa Shumaker)
People sit in boats as they watch a screening of a movie during a preview for the members of the media of Tel Aviv municipality's "sail-in" floating cinema, which the municipality says aims to provide a solution to cultural outings that have been limited by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, at HaYarkon Park's boating lake in Tel Aviv, Israel August 20, 2020. REUTERS/Ronen ZvulunPeople sit in boats as they watch a screening of a movie during a preview for the members of the media of Tel Aviv municipality's "sail-in" floating cinema, which the municipality says aims to provide a solution to cultural outings that have been limited by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, at HaYarkon Park's boating lake in Tel Aviv, Israel August 20, 2020. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
