To push for Philippine cinema’s growth and development, new policies have been introduced via the MC which applies to both local and foreign films, including the switching of the theatrical release of local and foreign films nationwide from Wednesday to Friday to accommodate more potential moviegoers during the weekend. Every film booked for theatrical release must also have a minimum run-length of at least seven days. Moreover, the theater assignments will be guaranteed for the first three days to avoid movies from getting pulled out of cinemas.
“Full screens” must be assigned to the film booked for the first three days of its run. This means there will be no “screen splitting,” or a double booking and exhibition for a single theatre screen.
An equitable ratio between Filipino films and foreign films should also be observed in regular playdates to give local films a higher chance of being seen by the audience, except in cases where a national film festival, such as Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP) and Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF).
To encourage watching local films at the cinemas among the youth, the recommended national average movie ticket prices every Wednesday for students of ages 18 years and below will now be priced at Php200 in Metro Manila and a maximum of Php150 in provinces.
Meanwhile, films that have been theatrically released should be screened to other platforms in the country only after a holdback period 150 days after the first day of exhibition to maximize the movies’ revenue opportunity in local cinemas.
The policies and guidelines will take effect in about two weeks.
