Cinema taking of the members of the organising association ADICINE increased by 15 million euros last year, growing by 28%, with almost 30 fewer films released

The "Policies and new formulas for boosting box office figures and beyond” roundtable at MERCI Valladolid (© Seminci)

The 69th Seminci - Valladolid International Film Festival hosted last week, for the second year running, the Independent Film Market MERCI Valladolid, an initiative co-organised with the Association of Independent Film Distributors (ADICINE), made up of A Contracorriente Films, Avalon, Bteam Pictures, Caramel Films, DeAPlaneta, Elastica Films, Festival Films, Filmax, Golem Distribución, Karma Films, La Aventura, Selecta Visión, Syldavia, Tripictures and Wanda Vision.

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Aiming to bringing together the most outstanding titles from the catalogue of these Spanish companies to exhibitors, television channels and platforms, and to facilitate and boost relations in the industry, 140 professionals met from 23 to 25 October in the Spanish town to see 22 films due for release at the end of 2024 and in 2025.

At the opening of MERCI, distributor representatives Enrique Costa, Lara Pérez Camiña and Olimpia Pont Cháfer sent out a message of optimism to counteract the poor cinema attendance figures currently suffered in Spain. Although the market is down 4% from the previous period (October 2023-October 2024), ADICINE and independent and experimental films have increased their presence at the box office. “We are offering better new films, which sell more tickets,” they said. “At ADICINE we have listened to the feedback from many of you: fewer releases, but better ones,” they added. Moreover, these films are not all release during a certain season, but spread out during the year, and distributed by more companies.

The representatives confirmed that ADCINE member takings have increased by 15 million euros and have received two million more cinema-goers. Turnover has increased by 28%: from 39 to 51 million euros, at almost eight million tickets, with close to 30 fewer new releases.

David Rodríguez Sánchez-Redondo and Joaquín Vegas, from the company Comscore, provided details of the drop in cinema-goers: according to their data, the market has fallen in number of spectators by 12% compared to last year, which amounts to 31% compared to the reference period (2017-2019, before the pandemic), which was the best three-year period in the history of cinema in Spain. These figures are similar to other countries, including the United States, with a global average decrease of 18-21%. However, there has been an increase of spectators attending original version sessions, reaching a 9% share in 2024, one point higher than in 2023.

The conclusions presented by Comscore also reflect an increase in romantic comedy among audience preferences, as well as animated films. On the other hand, drama films from independent distributors have lost up to 12% of their distribution share, while family films and blockbusters are on the rise. Women make up the majority of cinema-goers and they receive their information from the press in 25% of cases. Although social media are the most used channels among young people and for the most commercial film releases, posters and cinema trailers remain influential.

In order to address the poor attendance figures in Spanish cinemas and the successes of independent films, MERCI organised a round table discussion entitled "Policies and new formulas for boosting box office figures and beyond.” Reflections on the current situation of content, distribution windows and spectators were given by Rocío Juanes de Toledo, Secretary General of ICAA; Gervasio Iglesias, Deputy Director of Film for TVE; Milagros Mayi, Director of the Acquisitions Area of RTVE; Juan Antonio Mayoral, Chairman of NAECE; Javier Pachón, Vice-chairman of PROMIO; Álvaro Positivo, Chairman of FECE; and Lara Pérez Camiña and Enrique Costa, Co-Chairs of ADICINE.

One of the participants at this round table, Milagros Mayi, was presented with the MERCI 2024 award by José Luis Cienfuegos, Director of Seminci, in recognition of her work in helping to promote and disseminate independent cinema during her long career in the industry, and in particular her commitment to the presence of independent cinema on TVE.

(Translated from Spanish by Alexandra Stephens)