Overview of the business for the week of April 20th.

We begin our industry news summary by highlighting a new video series from the US Chamber of Commerce entitled, "Path Forward: Navigating the Return to Work". This twice-per-week series kicked off last week, focused on topics to "help business and community leaders find the answers they need to develop a responsible reopening strategy."  We discuss a report published recently by Ernst & Young (with the support of NATO) that measures the impact that a film's schedule for release to theaters and VOD/Streaming has on its financial returns.   We report on an announcement by the Cannes Film Festival last week that they are now looking for "alternative means" to hold this year's event which do not involve bringing crowds to Cannes' famous Promenade de la Croisette - because it's not currently allowed as per the French government and health authorities. We include an article from the AP's Jake Coyle discussing the tug that the cinematic experience is exerting on the hearts of movie-goers stuck at home. We conclude our news summary with two articles on how exhibitors and studios are beginning to map out their plans for re-starting operations as restrictions on gathering and conducting business begin to lift.

This week's report from Gower Street breaks down the suddenly muscular studio release calendar for the second half of 2020, brimming with major releases as months of spring releases have been pushed back. 

Jeff Kaufman, the Sr. VP of Film and Marketing at Malco Theatres, contributes his perspective on the Spring that Wasn't for the film industry and how exhibitors are eyeing recovery beginning with the second half of the year.

In the Hollywood Report, Martin Grove predicts that the demographic which will be most eager to venture out to theatres once they re-open will skew younger, hovering around the 25-year olds, plus or minus. The best fare to lure this audience may be a well-chosen reparatory mix that ith appeal to that audience - HORROR! 

Our report concludes with the Weekly Film Calendar listing upcoming studio releases for the nine weeks beginning June 12th, recently announced studio release changes, the MPAA's latest film ratings and a list of the top 10 grossing VOD and DVD releases.

Screendollars helps exhibitors stay informed about the schedule of Hollywood film releases, important industry news and how to maximize earnings from in-theater advertising. We encourage exhibitors to contact us to learn more about Screendollars in-theater advertising and marketing programs.