Cinemas in Transition: How Implicit Policy Affected the Network of Cinemas in Lithuania (1990–2001)

This article explores how Lithuania’s network of cinemas transformed between 1990 and 2001 as the country’s film sector shifted from a centralized Soviet system to a market economy with fragmented governance. Following the transfer of cinemas to municipal control, the Ministry of Culture largely neglected the sector, leaving cinema operators to navigate financial, legal and technical challenges independently. The absence of a film policy strategy contributed to widespread privatization, closures, and the rise of informal circulatory networks. It also resulted in restricted access to financial support and unequal labour conditions. Drawing on archival sources, an analysis of media discourse, and Bourdieu’s theory, the article demonstrates how implicit policy allowed economic capital to prevail over cultural capital in relation to film exhibition infrastructure in Lithuania.