By Ilodigwe Kenneth
Opeyemi Ajayi, the national chairman of the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria has, in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday, expressed both delight and optimism concerning the patronage of cinemas nationwide.
The CEAN chairman disclosed that a mouthwatering revenue of N603, 588, 722 was generated in August alone, from a total of 212, 192 tickets sold across the country: an increase of over 36% from the N482, 528, 117 netted in July with 218, 395 viewers admitted into cinemas.
While he remarked that cinemas nationwide aren’t doing bad for themselves, acknowledging the month of August as particularly encouraging, Ajayi has encouraged more Nigerians to visit the cinemas in the promise that they’ll both find relief and an avenue to “unwind” there.
Concerning the increase in revenue generated in August despite the 14.98% drop in box office revenue from June’s N567,899,087 to July’s N482, 528, 117 with a total of 210, 299 and 218, 396 (3.85% increase) admitted viewers respectively, Mr. Ajayi commented on the fact that Nigerians, despite a significant turnout in cinemas in July, due to a string of public holidays, spent less on cinema ticket sales. The improvement recorded in August’s revenue must also result from an improvement in ticket sales.
The cinema industry has, in the year, experienced a rattling turn of events ranging from the naira liquidity crunch to the election’s impact on movie release and cinema attendance. The economic fluctuations we have witnessed with the industry so far kicked off in February with a huge drop from N819 million in January to N278 million. However, the industry has made several quick recoveries and a cumulative stride towards covering the economic gap.
In July, cinemas nationwide showcased blockbusters like Lust Lobe and Other Things, Mission Impossible 7, Insidious, Orisha, Oppenheimer, Hotel Labamba, and Unforgivable to an enamoured audience. In August, cinephiles seeking entertainment were treated to more thrillers: Akudaya, Meg 2, Teenage Mutant Ninja, A Bag of Trouble, Blue Beetle, Mikolo, The Modern Woman, Retribution and Kesari.
Ajayi has urged cinema lovers to anticipate movies like Equaliser 3, A Bag of Trouble, Something Like Gold, The Nun, Mami Wata, Kanaani, A Haunting in Venice, Expendables 4, A Weekend To Forget, The Creator, and The Dive and My Big Fat Greek Wedding, to be featured in September.
