Kwesi Collisson on LinkedIn: Concert Film ‘Usher: Rendezvous In Paris’ to Hit Theaters in September (2024)

Taylor Swift fervently believes in the power of numbers, so in recognition of this historic opening here are some jaw dropping ones 93 million- the US opening weekend estimate is three times the previous doc/ concert film record holder-Justin Bieber: Never Say Never165- the number of minutes in this supersized film that achieved an A+ CinemaScore82 and 80 - the % of the audience that was female and 12-34 respectively 95-the number of AMC theaters in the top 100 grosses60-the sky high percent of grosses coming from pre sales- a cadence resembling concerts not films This film took an unconventional route to theaters including being distributed by AMC: an exhibitor, announced only six weeks ago and having no Thursday previews planned till the day beforeHad they done traditional Thursday and Friday showtimes the question of whether the film beats Joker for highest October gross would have been settled resoundingly. The film would have blown past 100 million More critical is focusing on implications for future:Which artists, studios and exhibitors will attempt to replicate this model? And with what results ?

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#AMCEntertainment Holdings (NYSE:AMC) shares added more than 4% on Friday after the cinema chain revealed it achieved $26 million in ticket revenue on Thursday on demand for advance tickets for the #TaylorSwift The #ErasTour concert film which will be hitting the big screen on Friday, October 13.Following the announcement of the film on Thursday, Swift fans set a new record for ticket sales for a single title on one day at AMC, smashing the previous record of $16.9 million held by Spider-Man: No Way Home.Within three hours of the tickets going on sale for the concert, it also broke the first-day 24-hour ticket sales revenue record, which was also held by Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021.The cinema chain said, in response to the high level of demand, that it would be adding additional showtimes to increase capacity to screen the concert film.More at #Proactive #ProactiveInvestors #NYSE #AMC http://ow.ly/R9UQ104SXZj

Again, smart move by AMC and Taylor. We’re likely to see more of this in the future, where theatres will become more and more used for exhibitions of concerts, and other types of events, instead of solely being reserved for traditional film screenings or film festivals. Media and entertainment is rapidly changing. And with emergening generations so are people’s preferences when it comes to what type of content they want to spend money on, on “whom” they want to spend it on, and how, and where, they prefer to consume it. Basically, 1 important question for exhibitors to ask is: What’s in it for the consumer / attendee? In other words, what is / are some unique incentivize(s) to make them want to leave the comforts of their homes, and spend that $30 + bill? In the case of Taylor, it’s the power of her brand, and the experience of her record-smashing Eras tour that many didn’t get to see. There will also likely be even more than just the documentary offered when the fans get to the theatres - there will probably also be limited edition merch and / or other forms of marketing revenue. While AMC and Taylor are certainly leveraging on an incredible fanbase; for any fan, there are incentives to be gained for them here as well. It’s the perfect “win-win” scenario for all parties involved, which is any exhibitor’s dream.

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SYNC AS A SAVIOR FOR THE MOVIE THEATER EXPERIENCEThe 2024 movie calendar is starting to heat 🔥 up just in time for spring. But last year’s lingering dual release success of Barbie and Oppenheimer, coined “Barbenheimer” by many, casts a long shadow on upcoming releases. Lindsey Bahr’s recent piece for The Associated Press is a breakdown of this year's CinemaCon 🎞️, which occurred earlier this month. Theater owners/chains, distributors, exhibitors, and major studios all understand the "Barbenheimer" phenomenon is not easily replicated. Where can they all find a middle ground to enhance the theatrical experience?Not surprisingly, sync could be the answer. Using high-profile artists or tracks in low to mid-level budgeted projects to bolster marketing potential. Featuring more sync-centric special event screenings of concert films like Taylor Swift’s Era’s Tour or Renaissance: A Film by Beyonce. Partnering with labels and up-and-coming artists to promote new music 🎶 through diversified movie 🎥experiences. The potential sync provides the theater industry is continually expanding. What was your recent favorite movie theater experience? #search #discovery #movies #television #music #tvmusic #filmmusic #socialmediahttps://lnkd.in/eqfJJ7H3

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FOOD 4 THOUGHTThe entertainment industry notoriously has been about "who you know" but in the past 15 or so years it's paving the way for cutting out the "middle-men" and self producing/releasing. Have you heard the latest?: Taylor Swift and her team chose to finance and distribute The Eras Tour concert film independently, bypassing traditional Hollywood studios, which allowed them to increase potential earnings and be the sole beneficiaries of the film's profits. The movie will be shown in over 1,000 theaters across the US, with AMC receiving 43% of box office revenue and Swift keeping the remaining 57%. Exhibitors believe the film has the potential to have an opening weekend that exceeds $100 million.https://lnkd.in/g8GzvAkAFrom what I'm reading, Hollywood typically takes ~70% of movies earning. If and when this trickles into all other vertices, what are you creating? Are you providing value? Do you know your value? Please comment below how you provide value to those around you, don't be shy. Let's learn and grow together!

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How is the movie theater evolving, and how are they diversifying content and business models? In this first article that I wrote for CJ Newsroom, I look at how the “Barbenheimer” duo led to the resurgence of the movie theater business. <Barbie> in particular set in motion a cultural phenomenon that includes communal theater-going experiences, as well as the rise in premium format showings.Here is a summary:Taylor Swift’s <The Eras Tour> film, which is released theatrically tomorrow 10/13, became the best first-day ticket seller of 2023 on the ticketing service Fandango–a level of performance previously achieved by superhero films and franchises. Keeping up the energy shared at her tour, Swift’s concert film will boost theatergoing in movie theaters that otherwise expect delayed openings due to the writers’ strike. Like the audiences of <Barbie> awash in hot pink, the spectators of Swift’s film are encouraged, by the singer herself, to come to the screening in their merchandise, sing, and dance along with the filmed concert. Movie theaters are no longer what they used to be—mainly showing professionally made, high-budget films in silent auditoriums. Movie theaters are now becoming more expansive and inclusive spaces that veer more closely towards live events, amplified by the audience’s active engagement. For example, CJ CGV in particular not only has premium formats, but also has been showing alternative content including K-pop concerts, musicals, e-sports, and even originals from various OTT platforms including TVING–CJ’s streaming service.Dear movie-goers: please gear up in your favorite merchandise and get ready to sing, laugh, and burst into tears with your favorite actors and singers on the screen.For more, please see the full article here:#movietheater #amc #cgv #taylorswift #barbie #oppenheimer #barbenheimer #erastour #kpop #esports #tving

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Entertaining article, but sharing because I want to spark a train of thought. Join me on this ride as it has been nagging at me all through the strike: how is the exhibition model going to change in quarter 2 of the 21st Century? Let's be real -- audiences are different now. We can blame the pandemic, or inflation, we can also blame new technology. But now there is the additional element that is significant changes to studio spending habits. Share your thoughts, though, I want to know your POV.My Q: How will giants like #AMC and/or #Cineworld react to new media-digestion habits post-strike?Also: How do we convince audiences to go back to the movies when they could watch the same content from the comfort of their homes, uninterrupted, on their large 4K screens with Dolby Atmos surround sound (pausing to go to the bathroom as needed)? If it isn't a film with a marketing budget exceeding the production budget (*cough* Barbie *cough* Taylor Swift), then how do we effectively drive in-person engagement with the film?

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https://lnkd.in/etv7-jhhExtractsIn its opening weekend, the pop singer’s concert film, “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” raked in about $96 million in the box office in the United States and Canada, movie theater chain AMC said Sunday. That makes it the highest grossing concert film domestically for an opening weekend, according to AMC.AMC, which also is the distributor of the film, expects “Eras” to play “to big audiences for weeks to come,” Elizabeth Frank, the company’s executive vice president of worldwide programming and chief content officer, said in a statement.“Eras” also made about $32 million in international sales. It was No. 1 at the box office in the United Kingdom, Mexico, Australia, Germany and the Philippines. “Eras” is set to be released in Brazil, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong on November 3.The $96 million in domestic box office sales dwarfed its competition, including “The Exorcist: Believer” and “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie.”The Eras tour, which started in the spring and continues through much of next year, has been an economy-boosting cultural phenomenon.In cities where Swift performed, ridership on public transit spiked and hotel occupancy skyrocketed. Santa Clara, the tech-rich city located in Northern California, briefly became “Swiftie Clara.” In Seattle, dancing Swifties caused seismic activity that one seismologist said was equal to a 2.3 magnitude earthquake.“Eras” gives fans who couldn’t score a ticket (because of the Ticketmaster debacle or their cost) a chance to sing, dance, dress up and swap home-made Eras bracelets with other Swifties. The movie, directed by Sam Wrench, is nearly three hours long and was filmed over three nights at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles this summer.There were heightened expectations leading to the release of the film, which can be seen in 3,855 theaters in the US and Canada alone. AMC said earlier this month that the movie had already exceeded over $100 million in advance ticket sales.“It took less than 24 hours for the Taylor Swift The Eras Tour concert film to shatter AMC’s US record for the highest ticket-sales revenue during a single day in AMC’s 103-year history,” AMC said at the time.Swift, a 12-time Grammy winner, announced the movie in late August, posting on Instagram that tickets were already on sale.“I thought I had seen everything with the Barbenheimer phenomenon,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore, which tracks box office numbers. But “this Taylor Swift movie seemingly came out of nowhere … and here it is now in theaters, generating blockbuster-movie style opening weekend numbers.”

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Is Taylor Swift about to save cinema? Probably not.Why? Because it doesn't especially need saving. Blockbuster numbers for Barbie, Oppenheimer, Barbie, Avatar and others have shown that global audiences still love the concept of cinema when the product is right.But if one audience has been badly under-served by cinema for a long while, it is probably teen and tween girls. Barbie proved that audience is more than willing to show up. And this weekend that is going to happen all over again, with swamped cinemas and sold-out shows. Advance sales are $100m, but the global number this weekend will likely be double that. Let's hope under-served audiences then get to see more productions aimed at them getting the green light. Cinema needs this shot in the arm during a quiet autumn. Exhibitors have bills to pay and nervous investors. The ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike means the release slate for next year is not locked. Swift, and then Beyonce in December, can help keep momentum going. Because when audiences visit, have a great time, and see exciting trailers, they go again. A virtous circle.Final thought: the last ten years have shown a dwindling of star power, in favour of CGI and well-realised fictional universes. Perhaps Taylor will lead the charge for a dose of old-fashioned movie stars taking precedent again? We shall see..#taylorswift #movies #cinema #boxofficehttps://lnkd.in/e43gGZ4Z

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Here’s another space for struggling movie theaters to move into: live concert releases. With Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour coming to theaters, AMC has partnered with Swift’s team to collect over $100 million in advance global ticket sales. It’s expected to bring in between $200 to $250 million in total revenues. There are even talks about Beyoncé releasing a live taping of her “Renaissance” tour as well. Not only will the movie bring in high revenues for theaters worldwide, it will also fill up a void that was left by premieres delayed by the recent SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike. I think that this movie release goes to show that in order to survive in the streaming landscape, movie theaters need to continuously think outside the box. It’s definitely an interesting case study for movie theaters to continue to grow!https://lnkd.in/eacQuHdZEsquire Group Inc.

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