2024-04-19 19:38:45
The so-called pre-screening service, when tickets were formally sold for short films, but the tapes of Hollywood studios that left the Russian cinema market were shown along with them, is no longer held in large chain cinemas.
The film “Dune: Part Two” (“Dune. The second part”), which was shown in dozens of cinemas in Moscow and St. Petersburg a month ago, was booked in only one non-chain cinema on Thursday.
At the beginning of April, the Association of Russian Movie Theater Owners issued a call to movie theaters to support Russian cinema and completely refuse “pre-screening service” from April 18 to May 12.
On the other hand, several film distribution companies, including “Atmosfera kino”, sent a letter to cinema chains, in which they “offered” not to show Hollywood films during this period according to the “pre-screening service” scheme.
In case of refusal, the distributors threatened to prevent these cinemas from showing their legally distributed films.
“Such an ultimatum – to leave chains without legal content – sounds serious,” Denis Kuskov, head of the TelecomDaily agency, admitted to RBK.
After the expiration of the mentioned term on May 12, it will become a general practice, but the volume of “shadow” cinematography will decrease to a minimum, he allowed.
After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, major Hollywood companies announced that they were withdrawing from the Russian market.
Therefore, most big-budget films cannot be shown legally in Russia.
It is true that until now Hollywood films could be viewed in Russia within the framework of the mentioned “pre-screening service” scheme.
The box office receipts of the film “Kāpa. The second part” reached 110 million rubles (roughly 1.1 million euros) in Russia during the week, according to RBK’s estimates.
True, it will not be the case that Russian moviegoers will be completely starved of Western cinema in the future.
The already mentioned company “Atmosfera kino” currently invites you to watch such films as “Civil War” and “Knox Goes Away” in Russian cinemas, among others.
2024-04-19 19:38:45