Autism-friendly screenings for families at HPPH

Families are a really special audience to us at Hyde Park Picture House. They allow us to show some of the most magical films on the big screen. The lights go down and we escape to the magical worlds of Studio Ghibli, or we get wrapped up in a big bear-hug from favourites like Paddington. And, even more importantly, the families themselves bring so much magic into the cinema as their imaginations are fuelled by cinematic marvels and their wonder at our historic building.

We realise that, although cinema-going can feel like an adventure for families, there are also challenges. For example, sitting still for the length of a film doesn’t feel natural to most of our younger audiences. With this in mind, we have created a strand of our programme called Hyde & Seek, dedicated to families, with adjustments to improve their experience. Our Hyde and Seek screenings are more informal than our regular screenings, so if you and your children need to roam around the auditorium at points – don’t be afraid to!

For Autistic and neurodiverse audience members, lots of aspects of cinema can be stressful and overwhelming. We’re keen to make Hyde Park Picture House a safe and happy environment for all which is why we have introduced regular Autism-friendly screenings at 11:00 on Sundays. These were previously called Relaxed screenings, but we have changed the name to avoid confusion since there is a relaxed, informal element to all our Hyde & Seek screenings, with specific additional adjustments at our Autism-friendly screenings.

You will find the following adjustments at our Autism-friendly screenings:

• There is a relaxed attitude to audience noise.
• Cinema light levels are raised slightly.
• Film volume is lowered slightly.
• People can move around the auditorium and in and out as needed.
• No trailers or advertisements.
• Screen capacity is reduced.
• Hand dryers are turned off in bathrooms.

The unexpected can be a barrier in itself for some audiences, so you can find more information about access at the Picture House, including familiarising yourself with the building before visiting, here on our access page. If you have any questions before visiting, our friendly team are always happy to help and can be contacted on info@hpph.co.uk or 0113 275 2045. We are always striving to improve so we would also love to hear your feedback.  

Since there is a limited capacity at our Autism-friendly screenings, pre-booking is advised as they usually sell out. We also ask customers to let us know if they can no longer attend, if possible, so we know if there is space for other people to attend.

We have recently increased the number of regular Hyde & Seek screenings on weekends. As well as our Autism-friendly Hyde & Seek screenings at 11:00 on Sundays, we have regular Hyde & Seek screenings at 11:00 on Saturdays and 11:30 on Sundays.

You can find all our upcoming Autism-friendly screenings here.