Starting July 2019, new movie releases will be moved to a Friday instead of a Wednesday, according to a memorandum released by Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP).
The memorandum shared by FDCO chairperson Liza Diño-Seguerra on Facebook revealed that the decision to move the nationwide opening day to a Friday is to allow more potential moviegoers during the weekend.
Liza said, “This [Memorandum Circular] is the culmination of FDCP’s efforts to strengthen our industry practices and level the playing field for all our stakeholders—from film producers, to distributors, to our exhibitors, and even the audience—through a transparent and fair set of guidelines that addresses the gaps that have long plagued our industry when it comes to screening films in commercial theatres.”
In addition to this, movies will now have “a minimum run-length of at least seven days for every film booked for theatrical release, as well as a theater assignment guarantee for the first three days to avoid movies from getting pulled out of cinemas.”
To encourage the youth to watch more films, ticket prices for students aged 18 years old and below will be priced at P200 in Metro Manila, and a maximum of P150 in provinces every Wednesday.
The new rule will be implemented 15 days after the memorandum was released in a national newspaper on June 25.
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