Fortune favours the British movie industry

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: Years back, there was despair about plummeting homegrown British cinema given the supremacy of the American studio blockbusters. It appears that the winds of fortune have turned in favour of the British movie industry all over again. While most of Europe reported a downturn in ticket sales in 2007, the UK (along with Italy and the Czech Republic) bucked the trend. British cinema-goers generated nearly $1.8 billion (Rs 7,200 crore) in ticket sales last year, up 8% from 2006, while admissions rose 3.7% to $162.4 million (Rs 640 crore).

While the power of the US releases at the UK box-office remains undisputed, I am only emphasising the increased market share (21.2%) of UK-produced films. This said, it does seem a bit ironical and unimpressive that local productions are still unable to grab a hefty slice of the market in their home country. But the marked improvement in this share (both at home and abroad) over the years gone by, offers hope that there is indeed an appetite for British properties.

The top ten films at the UK Box Office in 2007 was led by Harry Potter & The Order of The Phoenix, followed by Mr Bean’s Holiday and Hot Fuzz. UK titles that have already performed well in 2008 (so far) include The Bank Job ($5.7 million) (Rs 23 crore), Penelope ($6.4 million) (Rs 26 crore) and The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep ($9.1 million) (Rs 36 crore).

Hollywood holdovers

After the completion of the first quarter, Hollywood has seen a fairly decent result in the US, if not a spectacular one. The receipts in 2008 are currently more than $1.98 billion (Rs 7,900 crore), 3% above the same point last year. A significant amount of this year’s taking has come from 2007 hold-overs: I Am Legend, Alvin and the Chipmunks, National Treasure: Book of Secrets and Juno.

The year has seen its first $100-million (Rs 400 crore) grosser as Horton Hears A Who, but has yet to see the equivalent of 300, launched a year ago with a $70.8-million (Rs 310 crore) opening weekend on its way to a $210-million (Rs 840 crore) domestic gross. The best action performers so far in 2008 have been Cloverfield, 10,000 BC, Jumper and Vantage Point, none of which has topped the $80-million (Rs 320 crore) mark, though 10,000 BC nearly has, I think.

Foreign investment