Pandemic costs film and cinema industry R1.2bn

THE 2020 South African Box Office report has laid bare the devastation the Covid-19 pandemic has caused the film and cinema industry after box office revenue declined by R1.2 billion in 2020.

The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) recently released the report, which depicts the performance of films released at the Box Office in South Africa.

“2020 has been a challenging year globally. At cinemas, the number of films released, and their box office gross, declined significantly. This is due to the lockdown that was imposed in March 2020. Cinemas had to close in response to the coronavirus pandemic,” the report stated.

It is usually compiled biannually, however, due to the national lockdown, all cinemas closed between March 26 and August 27, 2020, and the data were only available from January to March 2020, then August to December 2020.

“Cinema chains like Ster-Kinekor, Nu Metro, Cine Centre as well as other independent cinemas closed. This has had a significant impact on the performance of theatrical films as their lifespan on circuit was cut short,” the report stated.

According to the report, 2020 started strongly for box offices, with January 2020 recording R86.9 million compared with R32.2m in 2019, however, in February and March the figures began to decline with the news of the pandemic.

Between August and December 2020, cinemas were able to operate, however, their reopening did not result in more revenue as regulations only permitted a limited number of people at cinemas.

“A total of 96 titles were released in South Africa in 2020, a significant drop from 190 titles released in 2019. The total gross box office for 2020 amounted to R214m, a decline from R1.22bn generated in 2019,” the report said.

The total gross box office for 2020 is the lowest in the past 10 years, with the total box office gross made in South Africa in 2012 the second lowest with R786m.

The report further revealed that of the 96 films released in 2020, only six were produced in South Africa, and generated about R7.6m in revenue.

“2020 was the worst-performing year for South Africa-produced films,” the report said.

English and Afrikaans film Vergeet My Nie was the top-performing local film after it received about R3.7m in cumulative gross box office revenue following about six weeks in circulation at 53 screens nationwide.

Meanwhile, the highest-grossing film in South African cinemas in 2020 was the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence franchise blockbuster Bad Boys for that earned over R51.5m in