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CINEMA EUROPA · ROW 4 · NOW WITH A PHONE JAIL

ScreenTime for ScreenTime

You at the film. Your phone in jail.

More than 6 hours a day on the small screen? At Cinema Europa you can get a free seat in row 4, as long as seats last. With the relaunch, the offer comes with a catch: your phone goes into a 3D-printed phone jail, locked with a key for the length of the film.

Participation subject to seat availability. Cinema Europa · Calea Moșilor 127, Bucharest.

Two volunteers holding 3D-printed phone jails, next to the “Phone Jail” box in the Cinema Europa foyer.
The relaunch's phone jails, in the Cinema Europa foyer.

>6h

a day on your phone
the relaunch criterion

R4

free seats
subject to availability

3D

printed phone jails
with padlock and key

THE IDEA

A break from scrolling. A film from start to finish.

You open your phone for one thing and find that another hour has gone. ScreenTime for ScreenTime starts from that familiar habit and invites you to make room for a film: to leave the house, choose a story and watch it to the end, in an auditorium with other people.

Through Cinema Europa, Susțin turns a few seats in the auditorium into an invitation to take part in culture. Free access gives a concrete reason to come, and the phone jail helps you keep the phone break you chose to take.

An orange 3D-printed phone jail, with padlock and key, held in someone's hands.

THE RELAUNCH BONUS

The phone gets a place of its own.

The phone jails are 3D-printed cases in different colours, with bars and a padlock. The phone stays locked for the length of the film and is released when you leave the auditorium.

The act of locking it marks the start of an evening in which your attention can stay on the film.

You at the film. It behind bars.

A bit of humour, a real padlock and a story to follow to the end.

HOW TO TAKE PART

Row 4 comes with a catch

01

You check your screen time

If you spend more than 6 hours a day on your phone, you meet the relaunch criterion. At the door, the team checks eligibility and the seats available in row 4.

02

The phone goes to jail

You accept a phone break for the length of the screening. The 3D-printed phone jail closes with a padlock and a key. The phone stays locked while you watch the film.

03

You step into the story

You get the free seat, subject to availability, and enjoy the film. On the way out, the phone is released. You will survive.

Check the Cinema Europa announcements for the screenings included. The team confirms availability and the procedure at the door.

See the cinema's programme ↗

WHERE WE STARTED

First, a row. Now, a key as well.

In August 2025, the campaign was presented publicly as a trade between time spent on the phone and a ticket to Cinema Europa. The mechanism then asked for a screenshot of your weekly average and a threshold of more than 5 hours a day. The relaunch raises the threshold to more than 6 hours and adds the phone jails.

The idea reached the marketing press and the lists of things to see. Today we keep the invitation to the cinema and add a concrete way of putting the phone on pause.

ROW 4 · HISTORICAL RESULT

1.705

beneficiaries reported June–September 2025

The Susțin annual report records 1,705 beneficiaries of the Row 4 initiative between June and September 2025. This is the programme's historical result, before the phone jail version.

Susțin Annual Report 2025 · p. 12 ↗

THE PEOPLE AND THE OBJECTS

It happens in the foyer.

Susțin initiates the project and runs it through Cinema Europa. The cinema's team and volunteers connect the idea to the experience in the foyer: they explain the mechanism, welcome the audience and help participants use the phone jails.

The relaunch photographs capture this side of the project: the people, the coloured cases and the moment the phone gets a break.

A phone locked inside an orange phone jail, held by a participant.
The phone jail in action, at Cinema Europa
Three team members with coloured phone jails, around the table in the foyer.
The Row 4 relaunch, with its team and its people
The padlock being closed on a phone jail case, on the foyer table.
The moment the padlock goes on
The “Phone Jail” box full of coloured cases, on the table at the auditorium door.
The box of phone jails, at the auditorium door

POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENTS · PROPOSALS

How we could open up more seats

A seat offered by a partner

A company could fund free seats and the production of additional phone jails. A partnership with a contribution that is easy to follow: how many seats it made available and how many were used.

One question on the way out

Voluntary feedback, a few seconds long: “How was the film without your phone?” The answers and the number of participants could guide the next editions, without asking for access to anything on the phone.

These are proposals, not mechanisms already in place.

BEFORE YOU COME

A few natural questions

Who can get a free seat?+

People who spend more than 6 hours a day on their phone and accept the phone jail mechanism. The seats are in row 4, subject to availability.

Is the seat guaranteed if I have more than 6 hours?+

No. Being eligible does not guarantee a seat. Check the Cinema Europa announcements for the screenings included and talk to the team at the door.

What happens to the phone?+

It is locked in a 3D-printed phone jail, with a padlock and key, for the length of the film. It is released when you leave the auditorium. The team explains the procedure before you take part.

Can I buy a regular ticket?+

Yes. If you do not fit the campaign or the free seats are taken, you can choose a regular ticket from the programme, subject to availability.

HOW THIS LINKS TO OUR IMPACT AREAS

The free seats open access to cinema for people who would not otherwise make it into the auditorium, and the evening becomes an occasion to take part in culture in the neighbourhood.

SDG 10 · Reduced inequalities SDG 11 · Sustainable cities and communities See all impact areas

You have scrolled enough. Which film are we watching?

Discover the Cinema Europa programme and ask about Row 4. You will find us at Calea Moșilor 127, Bucharest.

See what's playing ↗ I want to contribute to the project

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