Check out the ads that featured in cinema during the Eid al-Fitr 2024 long weekend!
The spirit of Eid al-Fitr once again filled the region, transforming the long weekend into a vibrant celebration. Families and friends flocked to shopping malls and entertainment hubs, eager to connect and revel in the festivities.
With more than 14 highly anticipated movies from various genres and languages being released, movie theaters resonated with laughter and excitement as audiences rushed to see the latest releases on the big screen. This festive atmosphere provided a perfect platform for brands to capture hearts and minds through cinema advertising.
From riveting ads by fast food chains, automobile companies, and airlines, here are the commercials that lit up the big screen during Eid al-Fitr 2024:
McDonald’s – FTM Dune: Part Two
Country: Qatar
Operator(s): Select VOX locations
BYD – FTM Dune: Part Two
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select VOX & AMC locations
Almarai – FTM Kung Fu Panda 4
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select VOX, Muvi, AMC & Reel locations
Birmingham University Dubai – Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
Country: UAE
Operator(s): Select VOX locations
Lulu
Country: UAE
Operator(s): Select Royal, CinemaCity, Cinépolis, Oscar, Reel & VOX locations
WWE 2K24
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select AMC & Muvi locations
Abdul Samad Qurashi
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select AMC, Muvi & VOX locations
Dallah Hospitals
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select AMC, Muvi & VOX locations
Disabled Children’s Association (DCA)
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select AMC, Muvi, Reel & VOX locations
Green Farms
Country: KSA
Operator(s): Select AMC, Muvi & VOX locations
National Transformation Program (NTP)
Country: KSA (Saudi Arabia)
Operator(s): Select AMC, Muvi & VOX locations
Gulf Air
Country: Bahrain
Operator(s): Select VOX locations
Oman Post / Asyad Express
Country: Oman
Operator(s): Select Cinepolis & VOX locations
Royal Opera House
Country: Oman
Operator(s): Select VOX locations
Burger King
Country: Egypt
Operator(s): VOX locations
Garnier
Country: Egypt
Operator(s): VOX locations
Hardees
Country: Egypt
Operator(s): VOX locations
Misr Life Insurance
Country: Egypt
Operator(s): VOX locations
Noon
Country: Egypt
Operator(s): VOX locations
CBK
Country: Kuwait
Operator(s): VOX Cinemas
Kuwait Finance House (KFH)
Country: Kuwait
Operator(s): VOX Cinemas
Porsche
Country: Kuwait
Operator(s): VOX Cinemas
Think cinema for ‘attention-grabbing’ advertising! Contact us for cinema advertising opportunities alongside special events and celebrations.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia celebrated Saudi Founding Day on 22nd February, with Saudi nationals and residents joining in on the celebration. National holidays are highly celebrated by Saudis as they look forward to such days during the year, and Saudi Founding Day is no exception.
Cinemas were abuzz with moviegoers eager to watch the latest blockbusters, and renowned KSA brands took advantage of this unique opportunity by securing on screen adverting in a bid to establish connections with captive cinema audiences on the big screen.
From ads promoting products or services, to brands showing their solidarity with the people of Saudi Arabia and supporting the country’s growth and development, here are the ads that took over the big screen in celebration of Saudi Founding Day 2023:
Architecture & Design Commission
Start Date: 25 February 2023
Locations: Multiple AMC, Cinépolis, Muvi and VOX locations
Banque Saudi Fransi
Start Date: 20. February 2023
Locations: Multiple AMC, Muvi and VOX locations
Ministry of Culture
Start Date: 13 February 2023
Locations: Multiple AMC, Cinépolis, Muvi, Reel and VOX locations
Monsha’at
Start Date: 20. February 2023
Locations: Multiple AMC and Muvi locations
Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites
Start Date: 20. February 2023
Locations: Multiple AMC, Cinépolis, Muvi and VOX locations
Riyad Bank
Start Date: 23 February 2023
Locations: Select VOX and Muvi locations
AMC The Walk 7 – Al Hofuf offers luxury auditoriums, best-in-class projection, sound and seating, and is the latest effort by AMC in an ongoing program to provide state-of-the-art cinemas across Saudi Arabia.
AMC Cinemas has opened its twelfth location at The Walk in Hofuf, KSA. The 7-screen cinema with a total of 362 seats, which includes a PRIME at AMC screen, is another impressive step in the rapid evolution of the cinema experience in Saudi Arabia.
Following the launch of The Walk 7, AMC aims to reach a large number of movie lovers around Saudi Arabia, a goal which is in line with the government’s plan to diversify entertainment content as well as provide new experiences to a range of audiences in several cities and governorates across the Kingdom.
Together with the opening of Tabuk Boulevard 7, AMC presently operates 82 screens across 13 locations in 9 cities of Saudi Arabia.
*Stay tuned for more on the launch of Tabuk Boulevard 7.
Motivate Val Morgan congratulates AMC Cinemas on the opening of AMC The Walk 7 – Al Hofuf, and warmly welcomes this location to our cinema circuit in KSA.
Source: AMC Cinemas
The cinema industry successfully ushered global audiences back into theatre in 2022 largely owing to the steadier flow of blockbusters in comparison to 2021, with Top Gun: Maverick, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Avatar: The Way of Water leading the long list of successful titles this year.
While 2021 was a dress rehearsal for the future of cinemas, 2022 has proved that cinema is back for real. This was especially evident in Saudi Arabia, when the country overtook Italy in annual box office revenue (in US$ terms), highlighting the prominence of cinema in the region.
Box office in 2022 had its first test with Scream which grossed nearly US$1M in the UAE alone and marked the successful return of the horror genre in the region since the pandemic. This was followed by the chartbuster performance of Matt Reeve’s The Batman, which earned a combined US$12M in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and Marvel’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which earned US$6.7M in the UAE.
Summer blockbusters highly contributed to the recovery of the global box office in 2022, with Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick grossing a combined US$21.2M in the UAE and Saudi Arabia and over US$1.5 billion globally. Jurassic World: Dominion and Minions: The Rise of Gru also performed well, grossing over US$1.7M and US$1.64M in UAE and Saudi Arabia, respectively.
August to October was a challenging phase for cinemas in the region due to a weaker movie release schedule owing to pandemic-related delays. The year however ended on a high note with the release of James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water, which earned close to US$10M in the UAE in its opening weeks. Arabic titles such as Bahebek, 3amohom, and Men Agl Zeko also topped the 2022 charts across GCC.
Here’s our 2022 wrap-up featuring the top movie releases in the eight countries we cover, the most watched genres across the region, the top 15 cinema ads booked through us that lit up the big screen, and last but not least, the new cinema locations added to our circuit and our milestones:
UAE
Saudi Arabia
Egypt
Oman
Kuwait
Bahrain
Qatar
Lebanon
The 15 blockbuster ads (in no particular order) – booked through Motivate Val Morgan, that lit up the big screen in 2022 (also featured in Campaign Middle East):
Brand: Mercedes-Benz Burmester
Title: Innovations by Mercedes-Benz: Dolby Atmos
Media Agency: OMD
Brand: NEOM
Title: Trojena – Journey To New Heights
Media Agency: Starcom
Brand: Emirates
Title: Gerry the Goose Flies Better
Media Agency: UM MENA
Brand: Rolex
Title: Rolex & Cinema – The Path
Media Agency: Mindshare
Brand: Sephora
Title: Amna Al Qubaisi – Emirati F3 Driver – Redefining Beauty with Sephora
Media Agency: Spark Foundry – Publicis Media
Brand: Malabar Gold
Title: Brides of India
Brand: Hermès
Title: Terre d’Hermès
Media Agency: Havas Media
Brand: Thailand Tourism
Title: Amazing Thailand
Media Agency: Media Republic
Brand: Hayatna
Title: Grow Your World With Hayatna
Media Agency: Hearts & Science
Brand: Riyadh Book Fair
Media Agency: Blue Horizon
Brand: Infiniti QX60
Title: Take the Wheel
Media Agency: OMD
Brand: Jindal Shadeed
Media Agency: United Media Services
Brand: Theeb
Brand: Yas Island
Title: Yas Yas Baby
Media Agency: Initiative Media
Brand: Al Nahdi Pharmacies
2022 saw our cinema circuit expand with several new locations:
Our dedicated cinema buying platform – CinePlan and CineMeasure, was launched, which enables data-driven, audience-based buying across our network of cinemas in the Middle East. The platform was also recognized as one of Campaign Middle East’s Top 10 Media Milestones of 2022.
Get ready for an exciting year at the movies in 2023! Here are the top 20 movies to look forward to over the year ahead:
For more on the movies coming out in 2023, be sure to check out our sizzle reel
FIFA booked an integrated cinema campaign through Universal Media (UM) Qatar to promote the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2022™ at select locations of VOX, Reel, Muvi, AMC cinemas in UAE and Saudi Arabia.
The on-screen campaign included a 30 sec. commercial booked for a period of 4 weeks – 27 October 2022 to 23 November 2022, at select locations of:
UAE – VOX and Reel
KSA – VOX, AMC and Muvi
The commercial follows La’eeb (the official mascot of the FIFA World Cup 2022) as he auditions to fulfill his destiny as the tournament’s mascot. La’eeb encourages everyone to believe in themselves and spread the joy of football to everyone, through the catch phrase ‘Now is All’.
The off-screen component of the cinema campaign included the distribution of 50,000 FIFA branded popcorn tubs featuring La’eeb, to moviegoers at select VOX locations in UAE and KSA starting 10 November 2022.
Contact us for more information on branding options and integrated cinema advertising opportunities across the Middle East!
Related Articles:
Armani Code | Integrated Cinema Campaign | KSA
AMC Garden 5 – Hail offers luxury auditoriums, best-in-class projection, sound and seating, and is the latest effort by AMC in an ongoing program to provide state-of-the-art cinemas across KSA.
AMC Cinemas has opened its eleventh location at Garden Mall in Hail, KSA. The 5-screen cinema with a total of 549 seats, which includes a PRIME at AMC screen, is another impressive step in the rapid evolution of the cinema experience in Saudi Arabia.
Following the launch of AMC Garden 5, the cinema exhibitor aims to reach a large number of movie lovers around Saudi Arabia, a goal which is in line with the government’s plan to diversify entertainment content as well as providing new experiences to a range of audiences in several cities and governorates across the Kingdom.
AMC presently operates 71 screens across 11 locations in 7 cities of Saudi Arabia.
Motivate Val Morgan congratulates AMC Cinemas on the opening of AMC Garden 5, and warmly welcomes this location to our cinema circuit in KSA.
Source: AMC Cinemas
Related Articles :
AMC Cinemas Opens at Ajdan Walk in Al-Khobar
The fifth edition of the hugely successful META Cinema Forum was held between 25-29th October 2022 at the Atlantis the Palm Island, with renewed optimism following the opening of several large-format cinema screens a few months after the industry began operating at full capacity.
As many as 56 exhibition stands displayed the latest products, services, technology from a select group of industry suppliers, technology providers and industry stakeholders at the convention.
Over 500 delegates, visitors, buyers, sellers, and other industry stakeholders attended the event, which also addressed the shortage of feature films, documentary films, and other film genres in the region.
More than 44 industry officials and experts shared their perspectives on the current market situation, challenges, and solutions through speeches, presentations, training, and workshops etc.
Industry leaders and officials who attended the META Cinema Forum included Toby Tennant, Senior Vice-President for EMEA Theatrical Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures International; Tonis Kiis, Senior Vice President for International Distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures; Paul Higginson, Executive Vice-President, EMEA of Universal Pictures International; Toni El Massih, Managing Director – Cinemas, VOX Cinemas; Andrew Such, CEO of AMC Cinemas; John Schreiner, Senior Vice President for Theatrical Development in EMEA, at IMAX Corporation and Zaur Darabadeh, Chairman of the Board of CinemaPlus, among other global leaders.
The forum witnessed powerful presentations from Saudi Arabia, Asia and Africa regions, the future of the large-format cinema halls as well as the prospects of the streaming services, technology disruptions and other subjects. Experts also addressed the demand-supply mismatch in film contents and theatre facilities across the Middle East and Africa.
Apart from the Middle East and African countries, cinema industry stakeholders from Turkey, Asia and CIS countries also joined the META Cinema Forum, making it a truly global cinema industry convention.
Leila Masinaei, Managing Partner, Great Mind Events Management –organizer of the META Cinema Forum, said: “META Cinema Forum has successfully repositioned the region’s cinema industry in the global map, so much so that large-scale investment has widened the theatre facilities across the region. The industry is currently gearing up to increase the supply of good quality contents and regional blockbusters that will pull more viewers to the cinema halls.”
“META Cinema Forum has now become a global industry convention for which international cinema industry suppliers, technology providers and other industry stakeholders prepare and launch their latest innovations. As a result, we can see a number of global cinema industry suppliers have lined up new products and services for the industry,” she added.
The two-day mega cinema industry conference was followed by a three-day META Film Fest, which kicked off with the screening of three short films from the UAE: Deadline, Children of All and IDI, and screened over 70 shortlisted full feature films, documentaries, and short films from Iran, Jordan, Sweden, Korea, Egypt. The main attraction of the festival was the gala premiere of Emily by director Frances O’Conner.
The film festival also attracted several international and regional celebrities including Cris Mejia, Nayla Al Khwaja, Emirati film director, Maria Bello, and Casey Shannon, Shalila Samavati, Pegah Ahangarani and Neslihan Yeldan among many others.
Motivate Val Morgan was one of the media partners for the META Cinema Forum and a supporting partner for Meta Film Fest 2022.
Source: META Cinema Forum Press Release
Saudi Arabia celebrated its 92nd National Day on 23rd September 2022, commemorating the birth of the modern Saudi nation.
This year’s theme and slogan was ‘This is our Home’- appreciating the cultural diversity of the country that makes everyone feel at home, whether they are Saudi nationals or expats.
Cinema was a popular medium for brands to convey their wishes to the nation this year. From French multinational retailer of personal care and beauty products – Sephora, to Saudi based telecom provider – Salam, STC and more… here’s a look at ads that lit up the big screen to honour the Kingdom’s national day:
Sephora
The cinema ad by Sephora features Saudi expressionist artist Ghada Al Rabea – a strong Saudi woman, who holds her culture at high esteem, but never shies away from her passion for art.
Commercial Duration: 15 Sec
Locations: Multiple VOX locations
Monsha’at
The Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority – Monsha’at booked a national day cinema ad celebrating the nation’s identity, culture, leadership and growth over the years.
Commercial Duration: 127 Sec
Locations: Multiple AMC and Muvi locations
Banque Saudi Fransi
The Saudi based banking group’s national day campaign celebrates the vision and achievement of Saudi Arabia as a nation in various sectors.
Commercial Duration: 30 Secs
Locations: Multiple AMC, Muvi and VOX locations
Salam Mobile
Saudi Arabia’s new mobile service Salam mobile in their National Day ad features a virtually performed ballad about the nation’s heroic history by well-known Saudi artists from across the nation.
Commercial Duration: 180 Sec
Locations: Multiple AMC, Cinépolis, Muvi and VOX locations
Saudi Electricity Company
KSA’s energy provider Saudi Electricity Company in their National Day ad emphasized its commitment to illuminate the nation’s future – “she is home to us, and we are the light for.”
Commercial Duration: 86 Sec
Locations: Multiple AMC, Cinépolis, Muvi and VOX locations
STC
Saudi Telecom Company commemorates this year’s national day by highlighting the nation’s support and empowerment for the advancement of its people.
Commercial Duration: 60 Sec
Locations: Select AMC, Cinépolis, Muvi and VOX locations
Virgin Mobile
Virgin Mobile in a tactical campaign, promoted their ‘National Day Special Offer’ on the big screens of cinemas across the country.
Commercial Duration: 15 Sec
Locations: Select AMC, Muvi and VOX locations
With National Days of Oman (18th November), UAE (2nd December), Bahrain (16th December) and Qatar (18th December) around the corner, contact a member of our sales team for more information on cinema advertising to mark these special days!
META Cinema Forum brings cinema stakeholders from the Middle East, Africa, Asia, CIS countries and Turkey to address the demand of theatre facilities and shortage of film contents in certain markets while the overall industry shows strong growth in the MEA region.
The next edition of the META Cinema Forum will address the demand-supply mismatch in film contents and theatre facilities across the Middle East and Africa which will be held from October 25 to 26, 2022, at the Atlantis the Palm, Dubai.
Cinema industry stakeholders from Turkey, Asia and CIS countries will join the META Cinema Forum, making it a truly global cinema industry convention that has become one of the must-attend global cinema conventions.
More than 500 industry delegates, experts and participants will discuss and debate the opportunities and challenges faced by the industry stakeholders at the META Cinema Forum. More than 60 suppliers will display the latest products and services that boost the moviegoer experience. The two-day mega cinema industry conference will be followed by a three-day META Film Fest that will screen over 40 shortlisted full feature films, documentaries, and short films along with premieres of highly anticipated releases of 2022 at the VOX Cinemas at the Nakheel Mall.
“META Cinema Forum has become an international platform for the global cinema industry community to build partnerships and bridge the content gap, and to discuss ways to expand cinema chains into emerging markets,” Leila Masinaei, Managing Partner, Great Mind Events Management, said.
META Cinema Forum also complements the development of the creative economy whose contribution could make a significant impact in the Middle Eastern and African countries. It will boost the Dubai Creative Economy Strategy that aims to transform the emirate of Dubai into an international destination for creativity and the capital of the creative economy by 2025.
A recent report, The Future of the Creative Economy, by Deloitte, shows that the creative industry employed nearly 20 million people in nine countries.
“The nature of the creative economy will continue to change and specific businesses and sectors will thrive or decline. New sectors could emerge entirely. However, we can be optimistic that the creative economy as a whole is likely to grow over time,” Deloitte said in its research paper.
The Dubai Creative Economy Strategy aims to double the contribution of the creative industries to the GDP of Dubai from 2.6 per cent in 2020 to 5 per cent by 2025. It also seeks to more than double the number of Dubai-based creative companies from 8,300 in 2020 to 15,000 by 2025, and more than double the number of creators based in the emirate, from 70,000 in 2020 to 140,000 by 2025.
META Cinema Forum is the first and so far, the only cinema industry-focused convention in the Middle East and Africa region that has one of the fastest growing entertainment industries in the world where governments and the private sector are investing heavily in entertainment facilities to diversify economies and reduce dependency on a single economic sector.
The event brings all the stakeholders on a single platform to brainstorm on the growth of the industry and identify opportunities going forward. It will host seminars, awards, premieres of new movies, workshops, and masterclasses, and showcase new products and exclusive slate content presentations.
META Cinema Forum is backed by all the leading industry players. The event is supported by VOX Cinemas as the Strategic Cinema Partner, and the National Film Authority joining as Supporting Partner. Other leading industry partners include Universal Pictures International, Warner Bros. Entertainment, AMC Cinemas, Cinepolis Gulf, Maison SU, Cinemarine, CineBodrum, FilmHouse Cinemas, Golden Scene, Cinema Plus, Dolby, ME Cinemas, Starz Play, Cinepax and Empire Entertainment.
Motivate Val Morgan is a media partner for this year’s META Cinema Forum.
Source: META Cinema Forum
Saudi box office did a total of US$238 million in 2021, a 95% increase compared to the previous year.
Saudi Arabia in 2021 continued its exponential growth as a theatrical box office market with revenue totaling US$238 million for the year, a 95% increase compared with 2020 when the total intake had been $122 million, according to figures provided by Comscore.
Four years after the removal of the kingdom’s 35-year-old ban on movie theatres, Saudi Arabia has now achieved the status as the West Asian region’s top theatrical market in terms of gross box office, surpassing the UAE, which achieved a box office of US$130m for the year 2021.
Saudi cinemas witnessed the release of 340 new films in 2021, up from 222 films in 2020. The top-grossing 2021 title was Egyptian comedy Waafet Reggaala (A Stand Worthy of Men), which did US$15 million, making it the country’s top grosser ever since moviegoing was reinstated in January 2018.
Spider-Man: No Way Home was the top-grossing Hollywood title in Saudi Arabia in 2021, earning US$11.2 million and continuing to do well in 2022, ranking the No. 2 spot on the chart. It was followed by Cruella, which grossed US$9.1 million, and Guy Ritchie’s Wrath of Man, which made US$8.3 million in Saudi cinemas.
Egyptian comedy, Mesh Ana (Not Me), featuring local megastar Tamer Hosny, weighed in at No. 5 on the 2021 Saudi box office chart with US$8.2 million, while another release from Egypt Mama Hamel (Mom Is Pregnant), about a 60+ woman who is somehow expecting a child, came in at No. 10, pulling US$5.9 million.
Saudi Arabia’s surge in box office grosses is clearly driven by the increase in multiplexes across the nation. The number of multi-screen movie theaters in Saudi Arabia grew from 33 locations at the start of 2021 to 53 locations by December 2021, an increase of 20 new locations, according to Comscore.
According to figures revealed in December during the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah by Bahaa Abdulmajeed -an official from the Saudi Investment Ministry, Saudi Arabia now has 430 screens and counting, and has an ambitious target of reaching 2,600 screens by 2030. Several analysts, including PwC, see Saudi as becoming a billion-dollar movie market in the next few years.
Currently, Saudi-owned Muvi Cinemas operates the highest number of local cinemas, with 21 locations (including its drive-in cinema) across the Kingdom. They are followed by VOX Cinemas with 15 locations. U.S. theater chain AMC Cinemas with 10 locations, Lebanon’s Empire Cinemas with 5 locations and Mexican-owned Cinépolis Cinemas which now operates 2 multiplexes in Saudi.
Top 10 Box Office Hits in Saudi Arabia in 2021
Source: Variety
