New films to debut on Friday instead of Wednesday

MANILA, Philippines – Film buffs in the Philippines usually know to save Wednesdays to catch a film on its first day in cinemas – but this may all soon change, according to Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) Liza Diño-Seguerra.

In a Facebook post, Liza shared that producers, distributors, and theater owners had a much-needed meeting on March 13. to discuss guidelines on the exhibition of films in local cinemas all over the Philippines.

“Yesterday was a good and progressive start because in this meeting, we were able to identify a lot of the gaps in the current status quo and ways to address them that would be beneficial to the parties concerned,” she said.

“Since the goal is to achieve concrete results, one of the achievements is the agreement to switch the opening day of cinemas from Wednesday to Friday.”

However, she said that they still have to finalize details before the move takes effect.

In her post, Liza celebrated their meeting, saying that it was a welcome change from the divisiveness she has experienced in the industry in the past.

“My main takeaway from yesterday’s dialogue is the willingness of both parties (finally) to sit, talk, LISTEN and accept each other’s sentiments calmly and in good faith. The goal is to understand and acknowledge the concerns of BOTH and work towards solutions,” she said.

“Yesterday was a good gauge to see the next hundred years of Philippine cinema. A new beginning perhaps…so we can all be hopeful for the future of this industry. At the end of the day, we have but one common goal: to support, nurture and uplift our local film industry.” – Rappler.com