70% of the world’s growth likely to come from the Emerging Markets by 2030.
There were many firsts at #ecmistanbul 2018
- The first time an international cinema convention has ever taken place in Turkey and the first time that there’s been an international focus on the Turkish market during a dedicated session
- First ever international conference with a Saudi national discussing cinema on stage
- First ever presentation on Kazakhstan cinema at an international cinema convention
- First ever focused panel on Africa – this was a packed session and a real highlight
- First time Eikon presented the wonders of digitally adapting films, to suit local censorship, to an international audience
- The first time many of our delegates had ever been to a Turkish shopping centre and visited the incredible cinemas within these high class areas – changing the pre conceptions of cinema in Turkey for many of the delegates
- Plus …
- Session on Pakistan – amazing presentation which highlighted how much needs to be done in a country of over 200 million people
- Session on Angola and Mozambique – insight into the people and culture of this area
- Highlighting the untapped areas of growth including Event Cinema
Everyone who supported the event before and during the event – speakers, sponsors, delegates helped to make this a ground breaking few days.
The Emerging Cinema Markets 2018 conference would not have been possible without the support of our partners and gold sponsors – The Big Picture and SISAY Turkish Exhibitors Association alongside CGV Mars Entertainment Group, Aures, Cinema Next, Cinema Intelligence, Comscore, Movio and the Vista Group. As well as the support from all our event and media sponsors Cineplace, Cinionic, Coke, Eikon, Ferco, Influx Worldwide, JACRO, NEC, POSitive Cinema, Real D, Sony Digital Cinema 4K, TME Films, Webedia, Box Office Pro/France/Turkey, Celluloid Junkie, Cinema Technology, DCinema Today, Digital Cinema Reports, RLI, Screen International, British Chamber of Commerce Turkey, ICTA and the Middle East Council of Shopping Centres.
“The Emerging Cinema Markets Conference is crucial to the development of the new opportunities across Africa, Central Asia, the Balkans, Eastern Europe and Turkey. We would like to thank the large numbers of delegates, companies, sponsors and suppliers from all over the world who we met in Istanbul.
The conference provided suppliers, exhibitors and content providers from the regions a unique chance to come together at #ecmistanbul to explore, discuss and learn about the key developments, technical challenges and innovations that are central to the cinema industry today and looking ahead to the future. We are so pleased that so many people signed up to attend what was a very informative and interesting event and one that also offered a unique chance to network with industry experts and professionals.
Emerging Cinema Markets will take time to grow with the expertise and an appreciation by all stakeholders – exhibitors, distributors, professional services and trade supply chains. There will be challenges as well as opportunities.
Think differently if you’ve never worked in Emerging Markets before… In mature markets companies defend – cut costs, analyse the competition, follow best practices and work to established processes. This is the new frontier – the world is different.
Transparency, Integrity, Trust and Compliance are key areas which will enable the development of cinemas in Emerging Markets.
#ecmistanbul provides the ideal forum to share views, opinions and future opportunities”.
Rob Arthur, Partner at DCS Events / Senior Consultant at The Big Picture
‘The ECM in Istanbul provides a focus for markets that are re-awakening to the cultural and experiential power of cinema, and which have huge unrealised commercial potential ‘.
Paul Higginson, Executive Vice President – EMEA , 20th Century Fox
“Turkey has taken significant steps in the cinema industry during recent years. At SISAY, we are proud to have had ECM2018 in Turkey, the biggest cinema market in the region”
Cenk Sezgin, CEO, SISAY Turkish Cinema Exhibitors Association / CEO CineMarine
Speakers at ECM2018 are as listed below –
- Paul Higginson, Executive Vice President – EMEA, 20th Century Fox
- Asim Hakan Askar, Foreign Trade and Digital Cinema Operations Director, CGV Mars Entertainment Group
- Jean Mizrahi, Chief Executive Officer, Ymagis
- Majed Bahaffi, Development Director – AlHokair Food & Entertainment Co.,
- Fawaz Alhokair Group
- Adnan Akdemir, Chief Executive Officer, Sifisian Investments, Turkey
- Bakytzhan Mussatayev, CEO, Chaplin Cinemas, Kazakhstan
- Cenk Sezgin, CEO, SISAY Turkish Cinema Exhibitors Association / CEO CineMarine
- Till Cussmann, Senior Vice President Sales & GM Europe, Vista
- Sultan Akgül Duranay, Marketing Director, Theatrical Div.TME Films
- Kemal Kaplanoglu, Managing Partner, TME Films
- Christopher Gaunt, Chairman, British Chamber of Commerce Turkey
- Neil Floyd, Deputy Consul General & Head of Dept. for International Trade -Istanbul
- Arturo Guillen, Vice President, EMEA & India, ComScore
- Kene Mkparu, Chief Executive Officer, KomWorld, Nigeria
- Oliver Pasch, Sales Director Europe, Sony Digital Cinema
- Serge Plasch, Chief Commercial Officer, Cinionic
- Marc Allenby, Chief Executive Officer, Trafalgar Releasing
- Jean-Marie Dura, Founder, NXNW Management & Conseils
- Mariam el Bacha, Chief Executive Officer, Cinepax, Pakistan
- Malcolm MacMillan, SVP Global Exhibitor Sales & Marketing, Webedia
- Sandie Caffelle, Global Sales Manager, JACRO
- Christine Costello, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, More2Screen
- Lucy Jones, Executive Director, Comscore
- Mark Kendall, Business Development Manager – Cinema, EMEA, NEC
- John Morgan RIBA, Director, Leonard Design Architects
- Luis R Mota, Director, NOS Lusomundo Cinemas
- Simon Rees, Chief Executive Officer, CinePlace
- John Sullivan, Managing Partner The Big Picture
- Claudiu Tanasescu, Chief Executive Officer, Cinema Intelligence
- Harish Anand Thilakan, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Influx Worldwide
- Patrick von Sychowski, Editor, Celluloid Junkie
- Nick Varley, Co-Chief Executive Officer, Park Circus Distribution
- David Wallace, Director, Chapman Taylor
- Rus Wetherell, Chief Creative Officer, Eikon Group
- Jordi Wientjes, Consultant The Big Picture & Founder, Jordi Wientjes Solutions B.V.
- John Younis, Entertainment Business Unit General Manager, Baneasa
- Eranna Yekbote, Chief Architect, Era Architects
- Heather Blair, Vice President, Extended Cinema
- Rifat Oguz, Founder and CEO, Sinemia
- Mike Thomson, Senior Consultant, The Big Picture
- Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen, CEO at Novo Cinemas – 2018 Middle East Female CEO of the Year – 2018 UAE Woman of Substance (video film)
Full details of all the panels and speakers can be found at www.dcs.events
Highlight from the events included –
– 21st Century Shopping Centres – taking in the CGV cinemas at VadiIstanbul & Istinye Park*
– The Visionary Speeches by Jean Mizrahi – Ymagis and Asim Hakan Askar – CGV Mars Entertainment group plus an inspiring video message from Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen, CEO at Novo Cinemas – 2018 Middle East Female CEO of the Year – 2018 UAE Woman of Substance
– Highlights on Africa, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Pakistan
– The Emerging Cinema Markets Overview with Trends and Opportunities from Comscore and from many of the speakers
– Growth Opportunities including technology, F&B and Event Cinema
– The Big Picture Focus on Saudi Arabia: Vision 2030
The Emerging Cinema Markets Conference 2018 provided the ideal forum to share views, opinions and future opportunities. There was an informal trade show with the following companies taking part –
- CGV Mars Cinema/Entertainment Group
- Aures
- Comscore
- The Vista Group – Vista, Movio, Cinema Intelligence
- SISAY with the Turkish Ministry and Cinema Professionals & Management
- POSitive Cinema
- NEC
- Influx Worldwide
- JACRO
Companies that attended the event included –
CGV Mars Cinema Group, CGV Mars Entertainment Group, 20th Century Fox, Cinema Next & Ymagis, TME Films, Aures, Comscore, Movio, NEC, Sony Digital Cinema 4k, Vista Group, Webedia, The Big Picture, UIP, Screen International, Influx Worldwide, Cinionic, JACRO, Chaplin Cinemas, Eikon, Cinepax, Komworld , Filmhouse Cinemas Africa, Cinema Intelligence, Osram, IMAX, Ferco Seating, Leonard Design, POSitive Cinema, Banesea, Cineplace, NOSLusomundo Cinemas, RealD Europe, Trafalgar Releasing, D-Box, More2Screen, NXNW Management, Park Circus Distribution, Exhibition on Screen, Fawaz AlHokair Group, Dolby, Christie Digital, Paul Hickman Design, CineTech Middle East, Celluloid Junkie, Box Office Turkiye, Box Office Pro/France, Cinema Technology, Cinema Professionals & Management, Dentons, ECCO GmBH, Era Architects, Extended Cinema, Lightbox Cinemas, Matris Engineering, MAG Cinema, Qube Cinema, Saran Investments, Sifisian Investments – Turkey, Sinemia, Ushio Europe, iLech, Deloittes, MACCS, Wide Eye Media, Filmdom Media, National Film and Video Censors Board – Nigeria.
SISAY Turkish Cinema Exhibitors Association confirmed that over 50 of their members attended the conference. We were also visited by the Mr Selçuk Yavuzkanat, Vice General Manager, Cinema Division for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Turkey.
ECM 2018 was featured on Turkish TV and filmed by NTV and Global TV crews. Bloomberg TV also conducted an interview with Christopher Gaunt, Chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce Turkey, at ECM2018.
ECM2018 gained huge LinkedIn and Twitter activity over the days. Here are some of the comments received –
“Thanks for a wonderfully productive conference. The focus on Africa will spark a huge cinema business renaissance in the region” Kene Mkparu, CEO Komworld
“We also want to thank you all for the conference. I think I speak for the whole team when I say we thought it was absolutely productive and insightful” Kene Okwuosa, Group Chief Executive Officer, The Filmhouse Cinemas
“You guys did an amazing job for the first event you organized” Mark Waldman, Director, Sales and Marketing, POSitive Cinema Solutions
“Absolute Class – Thanks a lot for inviting me. My panel colleagues were good partners and Patrick is a good moderator” Serge Plasch, Chief Commercial Officer, Cinionic
“Thank you and the team for an excellent job at ECM Istanbul. Great conference, proud to be part of the first edition. Here is to many more!” Claudiu Tanasescu, Cinema Intelligence CEO and Founder at Share Dimension.
“Congratulations Rob Arthur Julie Harriss, Dan Harriss and everyone who helped including Prill Brewin to make this first year such a resounding success. I really got so much out of it and enjoyed participating… the LED wall was amazing. Hope we can make even more of it next time” Patrick von Sychowski, Celluloid Junkie
“Patrick von Sychowski you were sensational – held the panels and topics together brilliantly” John Sullivan, The Big Picture.
“Thank you for this outstanding event which, we can rightfully say it now, fulfilled all its promises”. Aysegul Algan, Editor Box Office France
“It was action-packed two days at #ECMistanbul that finished with a bang! Well what do you expect when Harish Anand Thilakan and Amit Mehta are involved? Stay tuned for what the noise was about” Influx Worldwide
“ECM was inspiring. Great to learn about the emerging markets J Look forward to working with the region. Thanks to Rob Arthur for getting me involved” Harish Thilakan, Founder and CEO, Influx Worldwide
“Phenomenally done Rob! Appreciate having us on stage. Looking forward to more! 🙂” Kevin Hong, CBD of Sinemia, Author of The Outlier Approach, Forbes Contributor.
“What a fantastic inaugural ECM you have pulled off. Many congratulations and thank you for asking me to be involved. It was stimulating, interesting, informative and all based around networking with diverse content and you pulled in so many experienced speakers too”. Christine Costello, CEO and Founder More2Screen
“Already looking forward to the next one! Excellent conference. Thank you to all concerned” Sandie Caffelle, Global Sales Manager, JACRO
“Congratulations Rob. Well done to you Julie, Patrick and Dan,” Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen, CEO at Novo Cinemas – 2018 Middle East Female CEO of the Year – 2018 UAE Woman of Substance
“I would like to congratulate you for putting on a very successful conference … it was an excellent meet and greet session as well a great insight into the emerging cinema markets. Additionally, the location, organisation and food were tiptop. My best take-away was understanding the potential in Africa …now I can clearly see that there is a much bigger opportunity in the coming years!” Tim Barr Chief Executive Officer, Ferco Seating.
“It was a success for us” Fabrice Blum, Head of Business Development Cinemanext
“Great job – you pulled off an amazing feat. These markets need attention and should benefit from your input. You have a year to work your magic. Maybe some of us will have good stories to share next year due to being here this year.” Heather Blair, VP at Extended Cinema.
“That was great! Thank you to the team from ECM for the opportunity to present at this amazing conference” John Morgan RIBA, Director, Leonard Design Architects
“Overall, enjoyable, informative, entertaining and great value” Malcolm Macmillan, Webedia
“Conference sessions filled with content … Well done and thank you for the invitation and the opportunity to participate!!” Musa Moses Comertpay, Brand & New Market Development
“Well done Rob and all your team. Really pleased to hear a great success. See you there in ‘19” Julian Baker, Managing Director, Ellis Williams Architects
“Excellent idea, content and delivery” Nigel Dennis, Qube Cinema Inc / NDCinema Ltd
LinkedIn Post Event – 7 days 5,448 views (as of 1st Dec)
From:
- 328 London, United Kingdom
- 137 Greater Los Angeles Area
- 81 Greater New York City Area
- 74 Istanbul, Turkey
- 67 Glasgow, United Kingdom
- 61 Greater Chicago Area
- 58 San Francisco Bay Area
- 45 Paris Area, France
- 39 Sydney, Australia
By:
- 226 CEO / Executive Director
- 156 Founder
- 133 Business / Corporate Strategist
- 119 Operations Specialists
- 89 Project Manager
- 83 Marketing Specialist
- 81 Business Development Specialist
Q&A with Rob Arthur – Celluloid Junkie – Nov 2018:
Q: There has been a great deal of interest in the cinema sector in the Middle East recently. What makes this conference about it unique?
There’s been an enormous amount of interest in the Middle East, and primarily the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia over the last year, and while those markets are of significant focus at the Emerging Cinema Markets Conference, when we were developing the research we found so many markets had limited box office data available but had large populations and strong under-lying economic growth potential including Central Asia, the Balkans, Turkey and the African continent.
As an industry we shouldn’t just focus on one new market, when there are several out there which are equally as compelling and could grow into larger opportunities.
There’s been a “Gold Rush” mentality or frenzy around the industry over the last 12 months and that could lead to mistakes, which I have seen happen in other new market openings. Best to get the best possible advice and then proceed – that’s what we’re aiming to deliver.
Over 650 million people live in the target markets but there are only 170 million cinema ticket sales officially recorded. GDP in the area is $5,200bn with Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Iran, UAE and Egypt being the biggest markets.
With cinema admits per capita averaging less than 0.3 per annum, there is scope to grow capacity by over 10,000 screens; ticket sales by half a billion and gross box office by $2.5 bn at a modest average ticket price!
- Access to screens and films
- Reduction in piracy levels
Add to that the developments in other markets including Pakistan and Nigeria!
What we have found when listening to those we have connected with to speak or to attend as delegates is that they have never been given a forum to present or exchange views and ideas. They are generally asked to attend other events and listen to experts in other markets who may have limited knowledge or interest in their market.
Q: DSC Events is a new company but you both have a long experience in this field. What prompted you to launch this venture?
When I first started to develop the concept for the Emerging Cinema Markets Conference, it was important to test the market and best understand what was possible. This all started before the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia had issues any licences. From the feedback, I knew there was significant interest, and that it required a great deal of industry expertise and knowledge. I approached Julie and Dan Harriss to see if they would be interested in developing the event with me. We’ve all worked in the industry for many years and while we are small team, we all know what is required to put on a great event – speakers – programme – sponsorship – venue. We all work well together as a team – Julie focusses on the sponsorship; Dan on the organisation and planning; myself on the programme and speakers.
- Where did it all start?
Travelling to Central Asia, as I consultant to the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development in Kazakhstan is a genuinely moving experience – working with such amazing people – Head Office, Management, Staff on the ground in Almaty and Astana. But it was not what I expected…
There is no shortage of enthusiasm and excitement for cinema and film, but access is so limited. The younger generations are flocking to new cinemas. They love social media and Korean culture, like most teens, and have devised Q Pop as the local variant of K Pop!
Cinemas and the Restaurants surrounding them are the social hubs and major footfall drivers. These developments are world class standard but ticket prices and reflective of lower income levels.
The Emerging Cinema Markets require focus, as well as learning and development support but are often overlooked at the larger industry gatherings.
Q: The geographical coverage of this event is more than just the Gulf or Middle East. Was that always your plan and what has guided the geographical focus of the ECM Conference 2018?
The geography is important as we needed to find a location which meets the needs of all of the target markets and yet is fairly neutral and accepting of all cultures and nations within the target markets. The individual nations across the region do not have a large number of cinema operators at present and so it was important to spread the net wider to encourage more countries to attend, but also keep it relevant.
I travel and work in Kazakhstan and find the route via Turkey to be the easiest option. Many Turkish businesses trade into those markets, the Balkans, Middle East and Africa so it became more obvious as the location.
Q: Can you tell us why you decided to hold it in Istanbul? Would someplace like Dubai not be a more logical choice?
Dubai is a great city, but Istanbul is a traditional and historic trading city reaching out to all of the target markets. It has an edge, colour and vitality which delegates and speakers will really enjoy if they haven’t been before.
The film market in Turkey is one of the most advanced that I have ever witnessed, and yet receives very little attention outside of the market. 40 million tickets were sold to local productions last year and accounted for over 50% of all tickets old. Other markets can learn and develop so much from the expertise in Turkey.
We compared costs to develop a conference in Dubai – hotels, travel, set-up and sponsorship costs and compared them to Istanbul. Delegate and travel cost for Emerging Markets plus exclusions via visa controls from Africa and central Asia to Western Europe had an impact on our decision, as Turkey has a broad range of trading relationships and is accessible from all regions.
Q: What Can you tell us about the cinema scene in Istanbul itself and what the conference delegates can expect to see of it?
We arranged a Shopping Centre tour along with CGV, the major operator in Turkey. The shopping centres are world class as are the cinemas which have IMAX, 4DX, Screen X, Tempur beds, Gold Class and Kids screens, as well as Marvel boutiques. The quality of the cinemas and shopping centres is very relevant to the Emerging Cinema Markets because this world class standard is being delivered at a low average ticket price more reflective of what is possible in Emerging Markets with economic challenges.
Q: What do you see as the major cinema themes, both for the region and the conference itself.
Africa, Turkey and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be key parts of the programme. All have different challenges, but all have aspirations to develop and grow.
All stakeholders need to be able to work together to deliver the opportunities that are possible in Emerging Markets – from the vision of a shopping centre or real estate developer; to studios and film licencees aiming to grow market; financiers supporting the investment; and operators of cinemas opening up in new markets. IT systems such as Vista and Movio as well as ComScore will play a vital part in the development as more accurate, transparent, trustworthy data and information is required to enable the opportunities to be fully realised.
Q: Apart from hearing from regional and international experts and industry figures, what else can delegates expect?
The Shopping Centre tours will be a great opportunity to meet new friends and see new places. A key aspect of this conference is to introduce a new network of colleagues to the cinema industry. I’ve met so many people on my travels to discuss speaker and programme opportunities and cannot wait for them all to be in one place and meet each other. I am sure that lifelong friendships will be developed and the opportunity to feel less alone and more connected to the global cinema community will be embraced by those in attendance. Being part of the network is a key part of our aims in developing this conference, as we know how important that is to all stakeholders.
Q: What is Hollywood’s approach to the region been and how is that being balanced with local or other forms of content?
Hollywood is starting to wake up to the Emerging Markets, but slowly. Black Panther’s performance in Africa was outstanding, but on so few screens. Turkey being the 19th largest international market is somewhat overlooked, and Kazakhstan generally is not perceived to be dynamic a 21st century economy with some of the most amazing cinemas and shopping centres on the plant. One of the outputs from the conference will be to lobby Hollywood and provide the key outputs from this year, which will enable greater participation for the studios in future years. Local content is essential to each of the markets – Arabic, Kazak, Turkish, Nigerian, French African – will be required to grow the market particularly in less cosmopolitan regions who will respond to local language content in larger numbers.
I have been so impressed with the Kazakhstan industry approach to galvanising and growing the local film market from 4 productions to 54 in the space of three years! They are doing this based upon commercial success and creating a vibrant local market but not at the expense of Hollywood. It is highly complementary and supporting ever increasing visitation rates.
Q: Saudi Arabia has obviously been a big focus for the cinema sector this past year. Putting aside the recent political problems, where do things stand in terms of the roll-out of cinema in the Kingdom?
The roll-out of cinemas in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is continuing at a pace with AMC and Vox already open. It is of no real surprise that Vue are not progressing, and it’s probably more important to note that others already operating in the region are better suited to the types of operation required in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Significantly more cinemas will open in 2019 as development plans come to fruition. We’ve engaged with the Middle East Council of Shopping Centres and Retail Leisure International for the conference, as the development needs to move on from the bureaucracy of government and industry policy to development of sites and schemes which deliver a cinema operator and new markets. There are very few cinema licences left so it will be interesting to see who grabs the last available. We’ve put an interesting session into the conference from Eikon to show how film classification and censorship issues can be overcome at a local level and this will be of particular interest to KSA, given their robust censorship of Hollywood films.
Q: One of the regions that often gets overlooked is Central Asia, but you Rob have spent a lot of time there recently. What is it that people should know about this market?
I work as a consultant to the European Bank of Reconstruction and development in Kazakhstan. Prior to arrival I had little idea of what to expect. It is genuinely moving to work with such amazing people – Head Office, management, Staff on the ground in Almaty and Astana. I’ve had the opportunity to see all of the cinemas in both cities; sample the local food and drinks and be so well looked after. They really like me as their Braveheart connection (being Scottish seems to be a big plus!)
The business is developing well with local film production in Kazak (not Russian) being the favoured language amongst the younger generations flocking to new cinemas. They love social media and Korean culture, like most teens, and have devised Q Pop as the local variant of K Pop.
Restaurants and Brasseries are opening up at a apace and many I have been invited to are very high quality. Shopping Centres are world class as are the brands.
At one site – Mega Mall in Almaty – the cinema was closed earlier this year – seven screens, poorly designed and constructed seven years ago. Seems like a sad day, but the developer has signed up to build a 15-screen cinema with a PLF screen, kids halls and VIP lounges. This time they will get it right as the expertise is in place to deliver world class cinemas, but is a lesson for other Emerging Markets – make sure you get the best possible advice from industry experts.
Q: What do you get asked the most about by people interested in going?
Beyond…Why Istanbul?! The main question we get asked is who else is going and can they speak!!! There is a keen interest in learning how to engage with new markets and how to develop that network.
Q Why Istanbul?
When we asked where would be best to host the conference, Istanbul was the obvious choice – an excellent network; great facilities and a mature and highly developed film and cinema market
Q: What would surprise people to hear have been some of the biggest issues in putting together an event of this scale.
A key part of putting on a great conference is to be seen and be available in the region – that’s a real challenge, but I think we’ve just about managed it this year!
Currency devaluations; politics between nations, religion are the big ones which we’ve manoeuvred through. The good thing about the industry and Istanbul is that it is engaging and inclusive so issues that could be greater elsewhere are overcome and manageable in this wonderful city. We’ve had some great advice from our local connections and also from the U.K. Dept for |International Trade / British Chamber of Commerce Turkey.
The other more practical part is trying to balance everyone’s expectations. We may be used to using email and WhatsApp, but I have had to write so many personal invitation letters to the conference which is the expectation in in some markets!
We all have to think not how we do things but how we can adapt and support those ideas into how each of the markets can develop with our support and at a pace to suit.
Please credit ECM2018/Celluloid Junkie.
HOSTS OF ECM2018
GOLD SPONSORS
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