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Madrid-based
Exhibitor Draws Up 5-Year Plan
Innova Netting 400
For Spain, Argentina
MADRID, Spain – Madrid-based Innova Networks
announced plans in November for building and expansion
throughout Spain.
Plans
include converting some of the moviehouses on one
of Madrid’s popular streets, the Gran Via,
into multiplexes.
“We
plan to build up to 20 screens the first year and
reach our target of 200 screens after five years
in Spain,” Pablo Larguia, founder of Innova,
told Screen Daily.
The
company also plans to expand within Argentina beginning
in 2004 with a completion goal of 200
new screens within
five years.
According
to Screen Daily, Innova also hopes to build new or
renovated performing arts theatres
in Madrid
and Buenos Aires. 
Plans Portugal 34-Plex
NLC Unveils Largest
Multi in Middle East
TEL AVIV, Israel – New Lineo Cinemas (NLC) opened
its state-of-the-art 21-plex in a shopping mall in
Herzliyya north of Tel Aviv Dec. 2.
The
entire 3,000-seat multi boasts moving seats. Its
Cinemaxx auditorium, featuring a large-format screen
and surround sound, was supplied by U.S.-based, MegaSystems.
A 360-degree screen hangs in the facility’s
lobby.
NLC
also announced further expansion, with plans
to build what would be the world’s largest multi – a
34-plex due next year in Lisbon, Portugal.
Additional
expansion sites in Portugal include a Coimbra 12-plex,
an arthouse quad for Lisbon,
and
9-plexes
in Leiria and Cascais.
Farther
east, a 25-plex is slated for Athens, Greece as well
as a 24-plex set for Milan, Italy.
Exhib Confab in Bangkok
Digital & Piracy Hot
Topics At CineAsia
BANGKOK,
Thailand – Digital cinema and rampant
piracy in Asia were among the hot topics at the eighth
annual CineAsia exhibition convention. Held Dec. 3-5
at Thailand’s Bangkok Convention Centre and Central
Grand Plaza Hotel, the event also saw the distribution
of many a trophy.
Roger
Pollock, vice president of sales and marketing
for United International Pictures in Asia, received
the “Distributor of the Year” award at
the event’s final night banquet. Pollock spent
five years with the BBC before joining UIP. He was
appointed head of UIP’s Asian operations in
April 2000.
Indo-Canadian
director Deepa Mehta was honored as CineAsia’s “Director
of the Year” but was in Toronto shooting
her next film and was unable to attend. A screening
of
her most recent film, "Bollywood/Hollywood,” followed
the event’s opening gala.
“Award of Achievement” honors went to Somsak Techaratanaprasert,
founder of one of Thailand’s largest production-distribution companies,
and the Federation of National Film Associations of Thailand.
Other
honorees at the event included: SF Cinema City
owners Suwat and Suvit Thongrompo, who took home
the “Exhibitor of the Year” award; Chumroen
Poolvaraluck, recipient of the “Lifetime Achievement” award; and
Thomas Chung and Michelle Yeoh, given the “Producers of the Year” award.
Speaking
as director of the new digital cinema division
of the China Film Group, Chen Yang spoke to a
panel about the state of digital cinema
in
China, which
boasts 100 digital screens slated to begin operation by the end of
2004, as well as digital upgrades at 13 sites in Beijing and Shanghai.
Hong
Kong-based CinemaWorks unveiled plans to build
eight multiplexes
on the mainland, all to be located in new malls. The circuit’s
first project, an 8-plex in Nanjing (about 200 miles north of Shanghai)
is set to open in
May.
Government
officials from Thailand and Malaysia, two top
movie piracy hotbeds, provided detailed plans
for their wars against
profit-draining,
unauthorized
knockoffs.
Representatives
from both countries stressed that officials are
creating tighter enforcement procedures, strengthening copyright
protection
legislation to meet
international standards and developing public awareness campaigns
as they approach the coming year.
The
event’s schedule was also filled with screenings, including Buena
Vista’s “Treasure Planet” and “The Hot Chick,” Miramax’s “Chicago,” Fox’s “Just
Married,” Universal’s “The Life of David Gale” and
Imax’s “Santa vs. the Snowman.”
The
convention’s 95-booth trade show was situated
at the Bangkok Convention Center and neighboring
Sofitel Central Plaza Hotel. South Africa Admits Up
Circuit Targets
Black Audiences
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – Ster-Kinekor, South
Africa’s largest exhibitor, is attempting to
regain black moviegoers after a lengthy absence precipitated
by now-abolished apartheid laws.
Near
2002’s end, the nation’s box office
saw an overall 6 percent increase, with Ster-Kinekor
exceeding that by 2 percent.
In
an attempt to boost admissions and re-establish a
black audience, the circuit began taking films
to rural areas by way of specially adapted trucks
which
enable the circuit to bring movies to schools and
public areas.
2002 blockbusters such as “Spider-Man,” “Lord
of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” and “Harry
Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” were
also instrumental in boosting box office.
In
addition, Ster-Kinekor’s movie club, whose
membership has increased from 250,000 to 1 million
during one year as a result of an aggressive
recruitment campaign, has also boosted attendance.
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Attack
in Moscow
Gunfire Ambush Greets
Russian Anti-Piracy Chief
MOSCOW – The director of the Motion Picture Association-backed
Russian Anti-Piracy Organization was greeted by a hail
of bullets Nov. 24 while motoring to a birthday celebration.
According
to The New York Times, one bullet punctured Konstantin
V. Zemchenkov’s right front tire while
a second lodged under the tire’s hubcap.
Zemchenkov
said he suspects the shooting may have been tied
to a Nov. 14 raid on a warehouse housing
pirated
DVDs.
The
attack did not prevent Zemchenkov from leading a
raid on an illegal DVD producer the following
day. That action resulted in the confiscation
of 30,000
pieces of software. Kudos For Kid-Friendly
Exhibs In Spain,
Belgium Honored
PARIS – Top exhibitors in Spain and Belgium were
honored at the Europa Cinemas conference for programming
diversity and for their emphasis on creating in-house
activities for young audiences.
Inaugural
recipients at the conference, held Nov. 22-24
in Paris, included Barcelona-based Cinemas Verdi
and Verdi Park, along with the Churchhill
and Le Parc Cinemas
in Liege, Belgium.
Europa
Cinemas is a Media Plus-backed program that
aids in circulating European and Mediterranean
films outside of their countries of origin. Bootleggers
Arrested
Italian Investigators
Break Up Online Pirates
MILAN, Italy – A technology watchdog organization and the Italian finance
police smashed on Nov. 5 an online piracy outfit that may have been responsible
for millions of euros worth of bootlegged films, software and music.
The
Business Software Alliance (BSA) has
partnered with the Guardia di Finanza
on a year-long piracy investigation which has already resulted in the seizure
of more than 100,000 counterfeited entertainment products, according to Reuters.
The anti-piracy investigation could be one of the largest in Europe.
In
addition, one piracy ringleader was arrested
earlier last year, while 10 suspects
are undergoing investigation.
Chains Snap Up Val Morgan
Hoyts, Roadshow, GU
Get OK on Ad Co. Buy
SYDNEY
- Three of Australia's largest exhibitors - Greater
Union, Hoyts and Village Roadshow - received the
greenlight Dec. 16 to purchase the nation's largest
screen advertising contractor, the Television & Media
Services (TMS) subsidiary Val Morgan.
According
to Variety, the Australian Competition
and Consumer Commission (ACCC) allowed
the deal on the condition that two of
the buyers sell their stakes
within 18 months of the acquisition.
To
secure the ACCC's approval, the chains
agreed to honor contracts with independent
cinemas, and thereafter guarantee the
indies minimum contractual
terms.
TMS
had been negotiating to sell Val Morgan,
which suffered severely after it purchased
its now-collapsed competitor Media Entertainment
Group.
CEO
Heads Down Under
UIP’s Oneile
Calls It Quits
LONDON – United International Pictures CEO Paul Oneile announced Oct.
20 that he was leaving the London-based international giant after serving only
one year of his second 5-year term.
According to Variety, Oneile decided to leave the London-based distributor
and return to his native Sydney for personal reasons.
During Oneile’s 2001 term, UIP’s box office reached an all-time
high of $1.8 billion.c
Peso
Por Pelicula
Mexican Lawmakers
OK Admission Tax
MEXICO CITY - The Mexican Congress approved on Dec. 16 a 1-peso (10-cent) admission
tax on all tickets sold nationwide.
The
law, which went into effect the first week of January,
requires all exhibitors to tag the "public-service fee" onto
the current price of admission tickets.
Major
distributors and exhibitors announced plans to file
an injunction before the Supreme Court to oppose
the fee.
Movie
tickets in Mexico currently cost around 35-40 pesos
($3.50-$4.5).
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