Backstory

The fall of film admissions since 2015 continued, taking a 6 percent dive in 2018, a drop that still was not as steep as expected amid an ongoing economic crisis and soaring inflation rates. Concentration remains an issue, with the top 10 films grabbing 46.4 percent of attendance. Still, while Argentinian moviegoers are buying fewer tickets overall, local films were able to carve out a slightly bigger slice of the pie last year, amassing 14.6 percent of the market against 2017’s 12.8 percent. “The powerful market share last year was based on an unusual amount of local mainstream films that grabbed most of the attendance,” says producer Axel Kuschevatzky, head of Viacom’s Telefe Films, whose films accounted for 70 percent of all tickets sold for domestic productions. “It’s easy to tell that next year will probably be the best year for Disney, particularly in Latin America, where family movies have a lot of weight. In a region with higher birth rates than, say, Europe, family movies perform very well, and they will surely have a great impact,” he adds.

Talent to watch: Benjamin Domenech

A producer and co-founder of indie production company Rei Cine, Domenech recently raised his profile by partnering with Pedro and Agustin Almodovar’s El Deseo as well as Canana (founded by Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal) for the Argentine Academy best-picture winner Zama. Rei Cine also partnered with K&S and Viacom’s Telefe for the Venice Film Fest Gold Lion contender The Accused.

Box Office Stats

Overall Box Office For 2018: $149M

Highest-Grossing Domestic Film: El Angel – $5M

Highest-Grossing Foreign Film: Incredibles 2 – $ 11.7M

Key Films In Berlin: Los miembros de la familia (Panorama), Far from Us (Forum), Breve historia del planeta verde (Panorama)

Key EFM Titles: Rosita (Kafilms), Vergel (Kafilms), All Inclusive (Kafilms), 4x4 (Latido Films)