House to open Sam Yan branch
Chomsajee Techaratanaprasert, daughter of film tycoon Somsak Techaratanaprasert of Sahamongkol Film, is giving moviegoers an alternative with the launch of House cinema at Samyan Mitrtown, near the Sam Yan intersection.
With an investment of 45 million baht, House cinema covers 1,800 square metres on the fifth floor of Samyan Mitrtown, a mixed-use project developed by SET-listed Golden Land Property Development Plc. It is scheduled to open in September next year.
House cinema plans to offers niche movies, including quality international films, award-winning flicks, and arthouse films, said Ms Chomsajee, the founder of Temugin Co, which runs House cinema.
The company plans to start building the cinema in the second quarter of next year.
The cinema is projected to have three screens with 200 seats, 140 seats and 100 seats each.
The new theatre is expected to draw visitors because of its location in the heart of the city, close to MRT Sam Yan station.
The cinema is also equipped with the latest technology.
Moreover, Sam Yan is surrounded by established communities such as Siam, Silom and Surawong.
House cinema expects to attract 200,000 viewers per year.
Pongnarin Ulice, the co-founder of Temugin, said House cinema at Sam Yan brings something new to the market.
“Globally more people are embracing smaller arthouse cinemas,” he said.
“Viewers prefer watching movies that offer knowledge and inspiration that can be applied to self-improvement, rather than simply just for pleasure.”
Despite the growing trend of watching movies via mobile phones, he said the demand for watching films in the cinema persists.
As for the design, the company is focused on the concept of being a home people would like to hang out at together, with a relaxing atmosphere, similar to its first movie theatre at RCA.
Ms Chomsajee said the company expects House cinemas will become a leading theatre for a large group of moviegoers in Bangkok by 2022.
Their prediction is supported by three factors: a strong and loyal customer base at its theatre at RCA, Facebook followers numbering 130,000, and activities and programmes.
“Moreover, the location of House Sam Yan will help us in expanding to a new group of customers with the addition of more seats,” she said.
Ms Chomsajee said there are about 100,000 viewers at House RCA per year, and the ticket price is 140 baht.
House RCA was established a decade ago and the company has not decided whether to close or continue that theatre.
Mr Pongnarin said there are about 3,000 films produced by small and big studios across the world per year. But only about 300 films are selected to be screened in Thailand, most of which are produced by big studios.
“House cinema has been created simply because me and my friends have a passion for movies. We just want to serve our need to see some good or award-winning movies that are rarely screened in general Thai cinemas,” said Ms Chomsajee.
“We also see a business opportunity, with as many as 2,700 films, some of which have won Oscars but have never been screened in Thailand.”
She said House cinema is often the only place some movies are screened in Thailand, as many are from small production studios across the world such as those in France, Japan or Chile.
‘‘ Globally more people are embracing smaller arthouse cinemas.
PONGNARIN ULICE Co-founder, Temugin