Report From Korea
by Marty Shindler
Since my first job in the entertainment industry, tracking and reporting the profitability of films for a major studio and handling distribution accounting, I have always had an interest in monitoring the movie business. This goes beyond the work The Shindler Perspective regularly does for our clients, as it adds a new dimension to the hands-on market research we do.
In our travels, we try to take in the local theater scene, observing the theaters, surrounding facilities, and general demographics of the crowds, to get a flavor for the exhibition business. So when we were in South Korea on a business trip in April, we visited theaters in Seoul and Busan, South Korea’s two largest cities.
South Korea is now the world’s fifth leading country in box-office receipts, having surpassed Germany in 2005.
Our hotel was near the Megabox 16 in the Coex Center Mall in Seoul. I recently read in Variety that it is the world’s busiest multiplex. On our previous trip to South Korea last November, the Megabox 16 was still projecting 35mm film. Now all of its screens use digital projection.
We visited the CGV IMAX Theatre at CGV Yongsan 11. The multiplex is adjacent to the iPark Mall, a large technology marketplace that sells all sorts of high-tech consumer products.
In Busan, Korea’s second largest city, we visited three theater locations. The first was the Lotte, located on the top floors of the upscale Lotte department store. Next was the Megabox, also atop a bustling shopping area, and finally the CGV, site of an IMAX theater that is set to open in June.
We found it interesting that the Busan theaters were located on the top levels of shopping centers and were accessible by elevator or escalator. In contrast, the Seoul Megabox 16 is located in a busy underground mall, and the iPark CGV theater is also located in a mall. All of the theaters we visited integrated the movie experience with friendly dining and shopping environments that encouraged customers to extend their visits, rather than just seeing a movie and leaving.
In Busan we also visited the Busan Film Studios. The modern facility has all the facilities needed to produce a movie, TV show, music video, or commercial, including a very large blue screen/green screen area.
From what we observed, South Korea has gotten it right. I am not surprised that they are moving up the box office ladder.
Marty Shindler is CEO of The Shindler Perspective, Inc., an organization specializing in providing a business perspective to creative, technology, and emerging companies. Marty may be reached at Marty@iShindler.com. Visit the firm’s web site at iShindler.com.