Introduction

This special issue of Comunicazioni sociali (2024, no. 3) presents a collection of historical research on Italian cinema exhibition, distribution, and moviegoing practices. Framed within the methodology of "New Cinema History," the volume shifts analytical focus from the film text to the socio-economic, spatial, and cultural factors shaping the theatrical encounter. Supported by the PRIN project "CinEx," the essays are organized into three core themes: management practices, venues and politics, and historical audience viewing models. The first theme examines historical state taxation on cinemas, the commercial distribution strategies of private 1960s theater circuits, and the supply-chain integration brought by the multiplex boom of the late 1990s. The second section explores political influences on physical venues, analyzing fascist Dopolavoro theaters in Lombardy, Italian exhibitors in colonial Tunisia, political cineclubs in post-1968 Parma, and public cinema management in San Marino. The final section evaluates historical spectatorship using early 20th-century etiquette manuals, ethnographic accounts of post-WWII male identity, and the educational film practices at the School of Barbiana. By combining quantitative data with qualitative oral history and unconventional archives, the volume highlights the evolving role of theater spaces in constructing Italy's broader cultural history