Boxoffice - April 2019

GLOBAL REVIEW
LATIN AMERICA
BY JOSÉ G. MÁRQUEZ & FERNANDA MENDES, EXIBIDOR
Admissions in Argentina suffered a slide of 6.3
percent, going from 47.6 million viewers in 2017
to 44.6 million in 2018, according to INCAA, the
country’s national film agency. In Peru, journalist
Maikoll Calderón cited an attendance slide of 2.5
percent: from 51.7 million admissions to 50.4
million in the same period. Mexico also saw a dip
in attendance but made up for it at the box office.
The market went from 348 million tickets sold in
2017 to 332 million the following year, falling by
4.6 percent, but brought in $72 million in 2018
against 2017’s $51 million, according to comScore.
On a more alarming note, admissions in
Venezuela decreased by 33.9 percent year-overyear—from
21.2 million to 14 million, its worst
tally since 2002, when it registered 14.5 million
tickets sold.
Sebastian Leilo’s Una Mujer
Fantástica (A Fantastic Woman)
won the 2018 Academy
Award for Best Foreign-Language
Film for Chile.
>> The Latin American market was affected by
a series of crises in 2018. Apart from the region’s
usual mix of political, economic, and social upheavals,
the cinema industry also contended with
the proliferation of digital home entertainment
platforms. It equated to smaller crowds overall,
but despite a significant decrease in admissions
from several key markets in 2018, the industry
remains optimistic.
Colombia, for example, emerged as the country
that experienced the most significant growth in
the region. Admissions in the territory grew by 2.2
percent from 2017 to 2018, from 62 to 64 million
tickets sold.
Chile, which took home the Academy Award
for Best Foreign-Language Film in 2018 for Una
Mujer Fantástica, saw a modest bump—going from
27.7 million admissions in 2017 to 27.9 million
in 2018, according to the country’s Ministry of
Culture. Sebastian Leilo’s Academy Award winner
wasn’t able to deliver the box office push expected
from an Oscar; the art house title only registered
54,000 admissions in its home country.
CREATIVE SOLUTIONS >> Exibidor asked several
leading industry executives to sum up their
thoughts about 2018—and where they see the
cinema sector headed in 2019.
“Although exhibitors and distributors in the
region expected more from 2018, cinema in the
region—with a mix of a number of stand-out hits
against the effect of the World Cup—has been
able to maintain, on average, a significant volume
of its audience,” says Luciano Taffetani, senior
sales manager for Dolby in Latin America. Taffetani
adds that despite the downturn, business
remained positive in the region for the cinema
technology company.
Juan Carlos Chaves, senior director of cinema
sales for Christie in Latin America, cites measured
growth for his company in 2017, particularly in
Mexico and the North American market. “We’re
optimistic about this year. We should see more stable
growth in screen count, especially in the second
half of the year,” he says.
Mexico was also a key market for GDC Technology,
says Michael Fernandez, the company’s
vice president of sales, “especially with our partner,
Cinemex.” Fernandez says he believes moviegoers
are attracted to the latest innovations in premium
auditoriums, such as immersive seating, VIP the-
226 APRIL 2019