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| Author | Tom Linay |
DCM was present at CineEurope 2019 which was held in Barcelona last week. Exhibitors and distributors from around the world met at the annual conference to celebrate the best of the upcoming big screen content and showcase the best innovations in exhibition.
The biggest talking point was the first presentation from Disney, after the high-profile acquision of 20th Century Fox. They wasted no time in wowing the crowd, bringing out Tom Hanks to talk about Toy Story 4, which opened in UK cinemas last weekend.
Focussing on the Fox titles, they announced the upcoming Kingsman film's title, The King’s Man, a prequel to the previous films in the series, and gave an extended look at Terminator: Dark Fate, in cinemas this October. Frozen II and Star Wars: The Last Skywalker were rapturously received and 2020 looks to be another great year, with Mulan, Jungle Cruise and two original Pixar films, one of which is Pete Docter’s first since the wonderful Inside Out, Soul.
Warner Bros also gave took the opportunity to showcase their upcoming DC Comics films - Joker, Birds Of Prey and Wonder Woman 1984, and gave an extended look at the sequel to the biggest horror film of all-time, It Chapter Two. For an older audience, The Good Liar, featuring two British acting heavyweights in Helen Mirren and Ian McKellen, looks to be a particularly exciting prospect.
Paramount wowed the audience with two major films, Ang Lee’s Gemini Man, which showcases high frame rate 3D technology and Top Gun: Maverick, which promises to feature the greatest aerial photography ever seen on the big screen.
Universal Pictures were another studio in rude health as they previewed the upcoming Downton Abbey film and one of this year’s big festive films, Last Christmas. One of their big franchises, Fast & Furious, was also heavily featured, with this August’s Hobbs & Shaw and next year’s Fast & Furious 9. Animation plays a big part in their upcoming slate too, with Abonimable, Trolls: World Tour and Despicable Me prequel, Minions: The Rise Of Gru. Finally, Universal will be handling the distribution of Bond next year for the first time and while no new footage was shown, their excitement for it was evident.
Of the smaller distributors, StudioCanal have the lavish adaptation of The Secret Garden to look forward to in 2020, while Shaun The Sheep: Farmageddon is a new standalone film from one of Aardman’s best loved characters this October. STX took the opportunity to highlight their increasingly growing range of mid-budget films, including My Spy, 21 Bridges and Hustlers, starring Jennifer Lopez, Cardi B and Lizzo.
Across the four days, it was easy to see why excitement remains high for the big screen, after last year’s record breaking admissions. Even without Sony Pictures, Lionsgate and Entertainment One presenting, there was plenty to excite the exhibitors present and prove the slate is in great shape for the next couple of years.