Cinema Trends & Insights: Installment #1

Global entertainment and media exceeded $2 trillion last year - and  growing.  Serving up a vast array of content for billions of viewers, readers, listeners, players, and fans, mass entertainment is inescapable as it reaches into every corner of the world.

At the heart of the entertainment industry is the cinema.  It acts as a window into current events and in many ways forecasts the future.  Moviegoers respond and relate to what they view on a cinema screen - it is an emotional experience.  Whether a rabid film fan or infrequent moviegoer the cinema plays a role in shaping our social insights and personal sentiments.

Consumers know which genre of movies are the top grossers and thus drive the industry. So, it is important to know what trends and issues are motivating viewers to either sit in their living room or go to the local cinema.  It is important to know what impacts users regarding the cinema-going experience and how this information translates into retaining old and developing new audiences.

Top Trends In Movies

SciFi movies generate more ticket sales than any other genre, followed by Romantic Dramas/Comedies, and Horror movies.  It is interesting to note, however, that Horror movies generate the highest level of social engagement (blog posts, tweets, social pages and postings) grabbing 53% of all movie social conversation.  In contrast, the top-grossing high-impact, scifi/fantasy movies muster only 20% of all social chatter.  This indicates that fan engagement is strongest in the Horror genre.  Romantic movies (generally referred to as RomComs) receive the most positive sentiments from viewers garnering a full 55% of positive social chatter.

In contrast, the dominating genre of SciFi generates only a 49% positive sentiment on social media conversation. It is also of note that SciFi movies have seen a shift from specialized fan-based to a more general audience appeal which has attracted larger audiences both young (18-34) and old (44-65) age groups.

Another trend is the increase in out-door cinema, be it at drive-in theaters or the (more recent) movies-in-the-park. Over the last five years, the movies-in-the-park experience has increased a whopping 4,500% in admissions.  This trend driven by affordability along with a dating option.  This trend, I believe, will continue to outpace general growth in cinema attendance.

Installment #2 of this Post 'Cost of Going To The Cinema' will continue next week