Focus Features to stream some movies on Facebook for free

MANILA, Philippines – Focus Features, the American studio behind movies such as Atomic Blonde, 50 Shades of Grey, and The Zookeeper’s Wife, is experimenting with a way for movie studios to make use of Facebook’s streaming platform, Facebook Live: it’s hosting free movie nights. 

Called #FocusFridays, the studio shows a free movie every Friday, US time. They started last August 25 with 2004’s The Motorcycle Diaries. They continue with 2005’s The Constant Gardener on September 1 and finish with 2004’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind on the 8th. Converted from Pacific Daylight Time, the movies screen on September 2 and 9, at around 9 am in the Philippines. 

Focus Features is the first film studio to experiment with free movies on Facebook Live, although The Verge reported that US pizza chain Domino’s also streamed Ferris Bueller’s Day Off as part of a promotion. 

Focus Features’ scheduled movies are a throwback to the days before on-demand streaming. But unlike most on-demand streaming services today, these are free.

The scheduled screenings are also likely to strengthen growing comparisons between traditional television and Facebook and its nascent video platforms. – Rappler.com