Russia’s cinema sector posted a record holiday haul for the period from December 31 to January 8, according to data from the Unified Automated Information System. Ticket sales across the country reached 4.5 billion rubles, with 13.4 million admissions. This marks an absolute high since at least 2014, as there is no consolidated data for the prior period.
Compared with the previous year, the revenue for the same window stood 22 percent higher, up from 3.7 billion rubles and 10.9 million visitors. During that season cinemas were allowed to show Hollywood films, which contributed to the growth.
Overall, the holiday box office even exceeded the New Year distribution figures from December 31, 2019 to January 8, 2020, when 15.4 million people attended and tickets totaled 4.3 billion rubles.
rental leaders
The top grossing title was Cheburashka directed by Dmitry Dyachenko, which surpassed 3 billion rubles at the box office. The film opened on January 1 and features Sergey Garmash, Olga Kuzmina, Fedor Dobronravov, Sergey Lavygin and Polina Maksimova in leading roles.
In an interview with Ascend, Vitaly Shlyappo, the producer and writer of the film, noted that the project attracted viewers who would not normally visit cinemas. He explained that the spike in earnings came from audiences trusting personal recommendations and online conversations, even among casual moviegoers.
Shlyappo described the success as surprising for the filmmakers. He said the key was reaching the broadest possible audience, with adults grasping the appeal on their own level and children understanding it too.
The second place belonged to the fifth installment of the animated series Ivan Tsarevich and the Gray Wolf, released on December 29, 2022, which grossed 404 million rubles to date. In third place was the second installment of the comedy Naughty, released two weeks before the holiday, earning 453 million rubles.
Analysts note that strong ticket sales in Moskino reflect a family-oriented cinema strategy. The combined networks Formula Kino and Cinema Park describe their results as solid, while acknowledging that sustaining performance on a single title year-round is not feasible.
Cinema chain losses
Following the start of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, several major foreign studios including Warner Bros, Disney, Sony, Paramount and Universal Pictures exited the Russian market. Rental fees fell by 50 to 70 percent in 2022 as many foreign titles were no longer released locally.
Some cinemas experimented with a free pre-session service in which a ticket for a Russian film allowed the viewer to watch a foreign title as a preview, a practice that drew varied responses from industry observers.
Industry data from the Cinema Owners Association and Comscore indicate that about 125 cinemas in Russia, roughly 6 percent, ceased operations after February 24. A sizable portion of cinemas reduced the number of open halls, with the maximum share of closed halls reaching 41 percent in July.