Exhibition

What is exhibition? (consider cinema & home)

Film bookings The relationship between the distributor and the exhibitor.
what this means / how it works and how cinemas decide what films to book. How far in advance films are
booked.

The Premiere what role does the premiere have in promoting the film?

Cinemas main source of profit / how they make their money

Cinemas what the cinema building does to advertise a film

Local marketing what the cinemas role is in marketing a film at a local level

Prints and Logistics

Box Office Performance

Revenues

Audience What age group goes to the cinema most

Multiplexes they have attracted a broader audience. Who? How? Why?

What were cinemas like before the major Hollywood distributors invested in exhibition to create multiplexes?
Over the past twenty years cinema going in the UK has experienced something of a renaissance. Attendances
have increased from just fifty million a year to nearly one hundred and eighty million. Experts are divided about
the reasons why this should have happened. Is it that there are better quality films around that people want to
see? Is it that there are now more comfortable cinemas for people to visit?

Up until the mid 1980's cinemas in many countries, particularly the UK, Italy and Germany had received very little
in the way of investment and because of this many cinemas deteriorated. Whereas once a trip to the cinema
meant a visit to somewhere that was more comfortable than home, the state of British cinemas in the early
1980's meant that people were visiting run down, uncomfortable places.

In the 1970's large, single screen cinemas had been cheaply converted into three or four screen cinemas. This
would often mean that the audience in one screen could hear what was happening in the film on the screen next
door. This detracted from the enjoyment of the film and consequently caused a drop in audience attendance at
the cinema.

With audience attendance levels declining box-office takings waned. The Hollywood distributors found themselves
particularly affected by this. As a result of this decline, the major US studios realised that they would have to
revitalise and invest in the European exhibition industry (its worth 60% of the overall international market) if
their own production industry was to survive.

Exhibitors also begun to realise that as well as selling films to audiences, they also have to sell their own cinemas
as the best place to go and see these films.

It was the major American studios, such as Universal, Warner Bros. and Paramount who were the main investors
in the development of multiplexes around the world. Through detailed research they came to the conclusion that
many countries did not have enough screens to cater for the audience that they were trying to develop. In the
mid 1980's they also realised that the state of many cinemas in countries such as the UK was so bad that people
would not want to visit them. Thus, through the building of multiplexes, companies hoped to encourage many
more cinema goers into their cinemas and stimulate interest and excitement.

WHAT IS EXHIBITION? (CONSIDER CINEMA & HOME)

Exhibition is divided into two sections:
- Cinema the distributor is paid by the cinema for a copy of the film

- Home DVD, through downloads, through television

FILM BOOKINGS
What this means / how it works and how cinemas decide what films
to book. How far in advance films are booked.
After viewing the film from the distributors for release, the exhibitor will discuss the release pattern
and the financial deal to rent a film from the UK distributor. This is based on projected ticket sales
for a film, that is, box-office returns. The cinema programming is scheduled by a film booker.

Most mainstream films are booked from three to six months in advance, and some major US
blockbusters can be booked up to a year in advance of their UK release date.
THE PREMIERE
Creates a buzz around the release of a film as premieres attract media coverage (if they have
big name stars
attending)
Fame helps sells films and stars have loyal fan bases.
The biggest stars are those who can open a film guarantee that it will do well in its opening
weekend.
Star power can extend to big name directors like Tarantino & Spielberg.

HOW THEY MAKE A PROFIT

Money taken at the box office alone is not enough to give the exhibitor/cinema a profit after paying
the rental fee, especially if the film is a failure. The popcorn, ice-cream, sweets and hotdogs you
can buy at the cinema are known as CONCESSIONS.

The major revenue that exhibitors gain comes from popcorn sales, drinks sales etc. between
them, the top three chains sell some 16 million buckets of popcorn a year.
They are dependent on the popularity of the film they show and the work of the distributors
marketing team, to sell
more popcorn and therefore increase their profits.
Therefore they are very selective about the films they show.
HOW THE CINEMA BUILDING IS USED
TO PROMTOE FILMS
The exhibitor will have posters and advertisements as well as the date and times of the screenings
of current and future films outside their cinema for the interest of the general public. This is an
attempt to draw the attention of the public to their cinema. A passer-by who may not have the
opportunity to read a newspaper or check the internet will perhaps be encouraged by this publicity
to go and see one of the films.

The foyer is the first area in the cinema that the audience experiences. Distributors vie for space in
the foyer to display posters, standees and other film publicity material and merchandising. It is the
cinema manager's job to make sure that the publicity is current and relevant to films showing at
their cinema.

The exhibitor/cinema is the 'shop front' where the film industry 'sells' films to the audience. The
foyers are committed to publicising the films with posters, standees and concession promotions
which all advertise the film. Once you are seated in the auditorium, before the main feature,
'teaser' trailers and trailers are shown advertising films that are soon to be released all aimed at
attracting a future audience.
LOCAL MARKETING
LOCAL PRESS
The most common form of marketing that the exhibitor will undertake is to buy space in local newspapers to
advertise the films they are screening. This space can be in free newspapers and trade papers or ones which are
paid for. These advertisements will often appear on the day of the films' changeover which is usually a Friday, as
many chains do between 30-60% of their business during the weekend period. Research shows that
advertisements in local newspapers are one of the key ways in which people find out about films screening at
their local cinema though since 1997 this has been overturned by the increasing availability of access to the
internet.

PROMOTIONS AND COMPETITIONS

These are part of the overall marketing plan the exhibitor has drawn up for the distributor to maximise awareness
of the film. They can take the form of competitions in local newspapers or in the cinema foyer e.g. 'spot the
difference' games, quizzes on stars, with give-away cinema tickets, or merchandise from the distributors as
prizes. This also ensures editorial coverage of the film in the local press: it is a good two-way relationship the
film is covered and the newspaper has something which is entertaining to fill its pages.

TRAILERS
The trailer often plays in the cinema around six weeks before the release of a film and continues to play until the
film opens in the cinema. The trailer aims to raise audience awareness of a film by fixing the film title in their
minds. It gives an overall impression of the film to its potential audience making sure that the audience is aware
of the stars particularly where their names will help to sell the film. A trailer should create the desire to see the
film when it eventually opens.
 Prints & Logistics
Making so many prints of films requires substantial investment from
distributors. They will try
to reduce costs by making a smaller number of prints and releasing the film in
waves.

This is the chief reason why many films are released in the UK and Europe
some months after
their US release: to save the distributors money on reproduction costs.
 THE AUDIENCE
Remember - in this country the majority of the cinema going
public are aged between about 16 and 24 years old. Statistics
show that they are the group which have the time and money to go
to the cinema.

MULTIPLEXES
However, the location of new multiplex cinemas has also led to the
development of a more family-catered audience who are attracted to
the nearby shopping or leisure facilities as well as to the cinema itself.

The multiplex complexes are popular despite often involving a good deal
of travelling beyond local public transport. We must now consider
whether the cinema-goer is as interested in the facilities surrounding the
cinema in which the film is seen as in the actual film on the screen.
 The Digital revolution
Digital Revolution has been transforming film distribution in two key
ways:

1. Piracy has lead distributors to day and date releases, in which the film is
released in all territories simultaneously.

This requires a great deal of investment and is usually reserved for big
blockbusters.

2. The development of digital data storage and transmission via the internet has
made digital film distribution a serious possibility for the future.

50% of US and UK cinemas will be capable of digital projection by 2010 so

distributors of low budget films can distribute films digitally at a reduced cost.

In the future distributors will be able to distribute their films via electronic prints.
 Box office Performance
Data about film attendance is collected continuously, and used by the cinemas
to decide which
films o cancel and which to prolong.

Some films that flopped in the cinemas can find their audience on DVD and can
make a healthy profit some years after their initial release.

Revenues
The box office gross is the starting measure for what everyone involved will
make from the film.

In reality most of this money will go back to the exhibitors who screen the film
and the distributor to pay for the marketing costs.
 Recoupment
The profits for the film will come from other distribution windows such as DVD
sales and broadcast.

The length of time it takes to sell the film in all the available windows means
that it may be several years before all the investors receive their money and
even longer before the producer can get paid.
Key Issues in Cinema Exhibition its as simple as abc

3D cinema
Modern digital 3D is fundamentally different from the 3D cinema audiences have seen in the past.

Of the 2,714 high-end digital screens in the UK in 2011, 1,475 (54%) were 3D-capable
digital screens. Some of the popular 3D screenings in 2011 included Arthur Christmas,
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger
Tides and two documentaries, TT3D: Closer to the Edge and Cave of Forgotten Dreams.
BFI Handbook 2012

3D films have existed in some form since 1915, but had been largely relegated to a niche in the
motion picture industry because of the costly hardware and processes required to produce and
display a 3D film, and the lack of a standardized format for the business. Nonetheless, 3D films
were prominently featured in the 1950s in US cinema, and later experienced fleeting popularity at
various points during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
What makes modern digital 3D different from its previous incarnations is first of all the
technology. Digital technology allows the right eye/left eye images which create the stereoscopic
effect to be matched perfectly in every frame. Previously even slight imperfections in this process,
inevitable in the 'hand-matching' that was necessary with 35mm 3D, meant that the brain had to
work harder to make sense of the two images, leading quickly to tiredness and even nausea on
the part of the viewer.

Second, it is probably not unfair to say that the creative people behind earlier 3D films were at
best journeymen within the industry. Modern digital 3D has attracted the foremost creative talents
of our age - James Cameron, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Martin Scorsese amongst them.

Finally, previous interest in 3D was generally prompted by a cinema sector experiencing pressures
and urgently looking to find new ways to attract audiences to the big screen experience. While
there is no room for complacency, the current cinema sector is comparatively buoyant - the
drivers of 3D are as much creative as they are economic.
3D technology of course costs money for both the film maker and the cinema to offer the
experience. This is generally reflected in an uplift on ticket prices for 3D films which enables the
industry to continue making more 3D films and bringing them to UK and global audiences. In
terms of market share, in 2011, 47 films were released in 3D, taking circa 231.5 million at the
box office, circa 22 per cent of the total annual UK box office for 2011.

At the end of September 2012, the UK cinema sector had 3,368 digital screens (around 88 per
cent of the total UK screen base) with 1550 of these screens being capable of offering 3D.

Digital cinema

The advent of digital cinema offers the opportunity to enhance the cinema-going experience in
terms of picture quality, more diverse programming and in offering audiences the chance to
experience cutting-edge digital 3D. The transition to digital cinema in the UK is now approaching
completion. At the end of June 2012, there were 3,216 digital screens - around 84 per cent of the
UK screen base - of which some 1,535 were 3D-enabled. While the benefits to the cinema-goer
will become increasingly apparent, it remains the case that the key financial benefits from these
developments accrue to the distributor.

Distribution of films is currently via 35mm celluloid prints, which are expensive to produce and to
transport. Digital technology offers the opportunity for the distributor to produce and transport
copies around the country (via the internet or satellite) at a significant cost saving. Against that,
while as systems develop these are likely the come down to a degree, the costs for many cinema
exhibitors of converting theircinema will remain prohibitively expensive. The CEA therefore
strongly believes that it is the studios and distributors, rather than the exhibitors, who should
meet the bulk of the costs for this transition.
In the US and Europe, various third party organizations have proposed financing and installation
plans to exhibitors, backed by agreements with the studios. Under these plans, the third parties
raise the necessary finance to buy and install digital equipment in cinemas, with the studios over
time paying "virtual print fees" (VPFs) to the third parties for the use of the equipment.
As a result the Association The Association therefore supported the establishment of the Digital
Funding Partnership (UK) [DFP(UK)] a grouping of small and medium-sized operators brought
together to negotiate the best possible funding deal to support digital conversion.

DVD release window

The theatrical window is the number of days between a films official theatrical release and its
release on DVD/video rental. Over the last 10 years, the size of the window in the UK has fallen
significantly, from around from 27 weeks in May 1999 to an average of 17 weeks at the current
time. Changes to the release window are a matter for negotiation between the studio and
exhibitor concerned. But in general the CEA would be concerned about any changes which might
have a negative impact on the UK cinema industry

Cinema is not the music industry, where existing business models are widely seen as broken. UK
cinema admissions have been steadily rising for the last 25 years. Many cinemas have invested
huge amounts of their own money in improving the cinema-going experience, most recently
through digital 3D. Without a clear window between a film's theatrical release and its release on
other platforms, such as DVD, that investment is at risk.

Significant changes to the release window could cause a marked reduction in cinema admissions,
particularly for those smaller operators who can only play a film several weeks after it is
released. Hundreds of cinemas up and down the country would be put at risk by any significant
reduction in admissions. The impact of this would be lost jobs and businesses. But more
importantly still, it would result in less film choice and less opportunities for the public to see
movies where they were intended to be seen the cinema."proved to be problematic. While
there is a greater representation of Asian cinema than usual for a multiplex, reflecting the local
demographic, the commitment to art house cinema appears to have fallen victim to the
Hollywood juggernaught. Multiplexes claim to offer a wide range of choice, but in reality, across
the country they will all play the same 8-10 core titles.

Although audience choice was a central part of the success of the multiplex what actually have
multiplexes allowed exhibitors to do?

Summary of UK cinema admissions and the number of screens in operation 1985-2002

Each screen of the multiplex has a different seating capacity so that the exhibitors can cater for
very popular mainstream films with a large audience attendance alongside lesser known art
house or specialist films with a limited audience.

These multiplexes have allowed a range of films to be shown, usually with different start times,
and allowed customer choice to be central to the visit to a multiplex. Sophisticated sound and
image technology has been installed into these multiplex cinemas which offers the audience a
more exciting experience.
Multi-Screen Cinema

Slightly different to the large, out-of-town multiplex - the multi-screen cinema is an upgrade of
the old 1970s flea-pits. Not only were these old cinemas renovated, but the old large single
auditorium cinemas with an audience capacity of fifteen hundred people, were divided into three
to eight screen cinemas. These became known as multi-screen cinemas. The multi-screen
cinemas echoed the multiplex notion of offering a choice of films in a modern, comfortable
environment. However, they attracted a different type of audience from the multiplex due to
their city centre location. Very few can offer the large car parking facilities of the multiplex but
most are easily accessible by public transport and are convenient for those working or shopping
in the city centre.
3. The Subsidised Sector (Community Cinemas)

A number of venues across the country, both full time and part time, are revenue funded by
grant in aid from various sources. Each venue and organisation has to hit certain criteria before
funding is given (business plans, strategies for education, marketing and artistic programming,
financial forecasts, etc. are required). The venues may also get funding from local authorities, the
National Lottery, sponsorship, Europe and also, of course, from the box office.

Their programmers endeavour to put on the widest range of cinema possible, combining film
screenings with a range of special events such as regional filmmaking forums, director/actor
workshops, digital video work and mixed media events. Some venues instigate their own
festivals and touring programmes.

4. Commercial Art House

A number of commercial cinemas across the country now mix art house and multiplex
programming, the most local being the Picturehouse (including the Ritzy), Curzon or Everyman
chains.

Q5. Find out more about these art-house chains? How are they different from the
At the moment, both distribution and exhibition sectors are going though a time of massive
change. The Government set up the UK Film Council in 2000 to create a 'sustainable UK film
industry' and there has been many changes in the funding system with various lottery schemes,
new Regional Screen agencies being created and the development of regional Arts. More
positively, as discussed earlier the UKFCs Specialised Prints and Advertising Fund gave 1 million
in 2003 to selected distributors who wanted to create more prints and more marketing for
selected non-mainstream, specialised films, which in turn will hopefully increase audience
access.
With the BBFC now gone, will the BFI step up and continue their good work?

Cinema is not just about films Live Opera in the Cinema

Alternative content (AC) or non-feature film programming like live theatre and opera has become
a regular feature over the past five years in the UK as more cinemas become equipped with
digital screens. The availability of a digital screen base has allowed a wider range of content on
the big screen, allowed interactivity between the screen and the audience and potentially
improved the use of auditorium capacity during typically quiet periods. Also, since alternative
content events usually have only one or two screenings they tend to generate higher occupancy
rates than feature films.

In the last few years such events have ranged from live or recorded operas, ballets and pop
music concerts to film screenings with live question and answer sessions and live sporting
events. There were 109 alternative content events screened in UK cinemas in 2011, more than
double 2010s 54 events, according to Screen Digest (Figure 10.4).

As in earlier years, in 2011 with 43 events, opera was the most popular form of alternative
content, followed by ballet with 17 events. The Met Opera had previously been the company with
the most screenings of its performances but its success attracted other cultural institutions into
the cinema. In 2011 these included the Bolshoi, the ENO, La Scala, the Vienna State Opera and
the Zurich Opera House. Popular music was also well represented with 13 events, which included
recorded shows of live performances mixed with interviews and documentary, and also live
Community Cinema

The screening of feature films in the UK is not limited to cinemas belonging to the major cinema
operators. There is a thriving sector of voluntary providers which make a wide variety of films
available to local communities which are often underserved by the commercial operators. This
sector is often referred to as community cinema.

Members of local communities are generally more involved in the programming of such cinemas
than their commercial counterparts. Screenings of films in this sector are in venues such as
village halls, mixed arts spaces, independent cinemas and the like.

Exhibition
Definition:showing films in cinemas or on DVD. Media attention through
opening nights and premieres.
How the audience can see the film: in cinemas, at home, on DVD, through
downloads, through television, including premieres, the box office take in
the opening weeks; audience reviews which includes those of the film
critics, ordinary people, cinemas runs; awards in festivals, The Oscars,
BAFTAS, etc.

Examples:
The Boat That Rocked opened on wide release in over 400 cinemas in April
2009. The film flopped at the box office for a number of reasons: the critics'
reviews, poor weather putting off cinema goers, and perhaps the lack of a
strong female character. The film also flopped on American release in
November 2009. However, young people and older people like the film:
sales in Morrisons and other supermarkets seem brisk before Christmas as
many are buying the DVD as a present to cheer people up during these
dark winter months. Slumdog Millionaire almost never got distribution. Its
early US distributor, Warner Independent was a victim of the economic
downturn and went out of business. The film's makers then struggled to find
a distributor! Then Fox Searchlight stepped up and "the rest is history". The
8 out of 10 Oscar nomination wins ensured that the film has been the
greatest British success in awards and in box office for nearly 60 years.
THREAT OF PIRACY

http://
www.theguardian.com/film/2014/jul/17/
digital-piracy-film-online-counterfei
t-dvds
THREAT OF TECHNOLOGY AT HOME T
O CINEMA
http://
www.techradar.com/news/home-cinem
a/are-cinemas-under-threat-from-v
ideo-on-demand-1044059
 Film Exhibition-Cinema
Many countries including Britain did not have multiple cinemas
until 1980s. Most were independent or part of a national specific
chain.
Investments from American Studios came about because of the
concern that there were not enough cinemas for the audience
could view these films.
1980 Warner Bros and Universal started investing in multi screen
complexes, but they could not just show their own films. This kind
of monopoly was outlawed in 1948 in a paramount decree, but
these cinemas could exhibit a substantial amount of their own
films.
Multiplex cinemas are generally built on the outskirts of town
and the visitors are also likely to eat there and go bowling.
These cinemas generally show mainstream films with the most
recent technology to attract wider audience for the most profit.
 Independent
Owned by independent or small companies i.e
lighthouse cinema Wolverhampton and the
Electric in Birmingham.
Do exhibit some mainstream films, but also offer
different USP they focus on niche films
independent art house films and have different
cliental.
Not the same about of choice as multiplexes this
is because exhibitors rent the films.
These cinemas generally in old building.
Who are the types people that go to these places?
 The Exhibitor
The role of the exhibitor is the publicity and
marketing of the film, they rent the film
from the distributor for a period of time.
They look for films that match their
clientele, but also offer advertising space to
distributors to promote their up and coming
films. With promotional material, trailers
between films to suit the target audience
and even use promotions and competitions.
They will advertise in local media.
Importantly the distribution and exhibition
are closely linked. Think about promotions
for 3d films all released at the same time,
also discounting films if you keep your
glasses, ways to get you to come back.
How clever is Orange Wednesday?
Link:
http://newsroom.orange.co.uk/2009/02/04/o
range-launches-pound-7m-marketing-
campaign-for-orange-wednesdays/
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2013
/feb/14/keanu-reeves-future-of-cinem
a