CineLife Entertainment™, the event cinema division of Spotlight Cinema Networks, has revealed it has set an industry record for event cinema distribution in less than one year of being active in the event cinema arena. The re-release of John Carpenter’s Halloween has become the largest domestic classic revival of 2018, appearing on nearly 900 screens. In addition, the re-release has reached international success, with screenings in a total of 25 countries, catapulting its worldwide distribution to over 1,600 screens.
John Carpenter’s Halloween premiered in cinemas forty years ago, changing the landscape of horror cinema. It stunned audiences worldwide and became known as the most frightening motion picture ever made.
Director John Carpenter has recently shared, “I’m thrilled to have the original make its way back into theatres, as we prepare for the release of the sequel. Having both back in theatres this fall is remarkable.”
The re-release of the original Halloween came just ahead of the release of Halloween (2018) – the direct sequel to John Carpenter’s horror masterpiece. The success of the re-release has propelled excitement and anticipation for Halloween (2018). The sequel has been number one at the box office since its opening weekend and has had the largest October opening of all-time.
“We are thrilled to work with CineLife Entertainment to bring the most fear-provoking and enduring horror movie of all time to such a significant number of cinema screens around the globe,” said Malek Akkad, CEO, Compass International Pictures.
“A year ago, our event cinema distribution division did not exist, and now, we are breaking records. It is enormously exciting to see the impact CineLife Entertainment is making in a short period of time. This provides us with a very promising opportunity to expand our best-in-class services to event cinema and exhibitors globally,” said Jerry Rakfeldt, CEO, Spotlight Cinema Networks.
Event cinema is one of the fastest growing segments of the theatrical exhibition industry where specialty films like documentaries, musical theatre, opera, dance, anime and classic films are released in theatres for limited engagements. This segment of the industry is expected to exceed $1 billion by 2019.
Spotlight Cinema Networks is the only cinema advertising company dedicated to serving the needs of art house and luxury exhibitors for cinema advertising, preshow entertainment, event cinema and digital display distribution. The company is a national advertising vehicle with a focus on the top 25 DMAs providing cinema advertising, in-lobby promotions and integrated experiential programs for advertisers targeting affluent and highly educated moviegoing audiences. In December 2017, Spotlight Cinema Networks launched CineLife Entertainment™ to acquire and distribute event cinema and alternative content titles in the U.S. and international markets. Spotlight Cinema Networks is owned by Wagner-Cuban Companies and Arthouse Marketing Group, and represents the top exhibitors in these genres, including segment leaders Angelika Film Center, Laemmle Theatres, Landmark Theatres, Cinepolis Luxury Cinemas, Flix Brewhouse and Silverspot Cinemas. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, with offices in New York and Chicago.
