Ticket Pricing Strategies

Scheduling is one part of a film's success but for most people all it boils down to is how much are the tickets going to cost. Recent blockbusters have brought this question more into focus. Have studios gone too far or perhaps not enough when it comes to setting ticket prices?

*REVISED* July 11 Thursday Actuals

Which scary film will viewers choose on this frightening weekend of summer?

Who will viewers choose: the horror film that blows your mind or the wannabe horror film for kids on the scariest weekend of this summer?

                            vs.                         

July 4 Thursday Actuals

June 27 Thursday Actuals

Will Man of Steel suffer from breakout-itis?

School is mostly out and here comes Epic to save the day. Oh and a superhero called the Man of Steel is heading into theaters too.

June 20 Thursday Actuals

Scaring children will be easy once we get out of college

The summer's most anticipated animated release will enter theaters this July. Monsters University, the prequel to Monsters Inc., is set to seize upon the Pixar name and its release date to make as much money as possible.

June 13 Thursday Actuals

Look up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Superman!

The last weekend of June is known to audiences as a big weekend. It is the start of the 2nd summer season where films see big returns. In the past 5 years, a film from this weekend has placed in the year end top 10 and 4/5 scored a top 5 hit. This year, Man of Steel is poised to extend the streak to 6 years due to Superman being a high profile film and with a little help from a well-oiled marketing strategy from WB.

May 30 Weekend Estimates

Honey, how many of these things will we have to go to?

Part 1. Part 2.

Nothing will prepare parents for the upcoming wave of animation movies this summer. They will be bombarded with animation from the small all the way to the big moneymakers. It is a very unusual summer for animation due to the big studios clumping animation together through May-August in the US. HK will be getting some day-date with US but when you add in the smaller animation films from Japan and the delayed Hollywood animation films, it is going to be tough decision after tough decision for parents as little kids will want to watch animation films this summer. The last 2 years has seen about 6-7 animation films hit the big screen from May-August but 2013 will be even worse for parents (but better for kids).

May 23 Weekend Estimates

Fast & Furious 6 preview

Among this year's crop of summer blockbusters, one film stands out in particular. Long known as being non-interesting to viewers, The Fast & Furious series has grown from that of a weakling to a formidable opponent.

The Re-Emergence of the Thailand Movie Industry in Hong Kong [Next Thai movie: Long Weekend, June 6!]

If your only exposure to Thailand movies is Ong Bak, well you have been missing out the past couple of years. Once famous for action, horror films have replaced them and has injected new life into Hong Kong's box office and into Thailand's movie industry. You only have to look at the most recent weekend to see how.

Pee Mak Phra Khanong Hong Kong poster (พี่มากพระโขนง)

May 16 Weekend Estimates

Ranking the online websites of theater chains

Have you ever had the frustration of going online to buy a ticket only to see an error or get so annoyed with loading times that you try to find others way of buying a ticket? This is where we see which sites are up to snuff and which ones don't make the cut.

The Power of Release Dates

Release dates in the movie-going business is everything. Put out a film on the same weekend as a blockbuster and watch it get crushed but place it on a weekend where no film will control all the screens and maybe it could turn into a hit. In HK, this premise is the same. Let's look at some recent highlights and lowlights to gain a better understanding.

Pink is the new black is so yesterday

New trends have emerged over the past couple of years. Now, more than ever, distributors have gotten more strategic over the placement of their films. There have been some wild successes but massive failures as well. Here are some of the more interesting trends that have taken place in the past few years.

I told you I don't want to join your super secret boy band.

Duh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh...oops, wrong superhero.

Pretty much the weekend that everyone has been waiting for is finally here. Strap yourselves in, folks.