As multiple cinema exhibitors around the world have started to reopen doors to patrons, and cinemas across the GCC having already welcomed more than 5 million moviegoers in 2021, the Saudi Arabia cinema market continues to grow, with the Kingdom well on track to realising the goal of Vision 2030 – open more than 350 cinemas with 2,600 screens.
Saudi Arabia officially opened its cinematic market in 2018 with the launch of its first cinema by AMC, post its 35-year ban. The initiative was a part of Saudi’s 2030 vision of development towards the economic and social sectors.
In promoting culture and entertainment, one of the goals of Vision 2030 is for the government to specifically attract local investors and create partnerships with international entertainment corporations to develop a market of SAR 30 billion in recreational services, with SAR 10 billion solely for the development of the cinema sector in Saudi Arabia, which is projected to directly contribute SAR 1 billion to the GDP.
Since the opening of the first cinema by AMC Cinemas at King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) in April 2018, followed by VOX Cinemas opening the second location at Riyadh Park Mall in May 2018, Saudi Arabia witnessed exponential growth in 2019, with a total of eleven 11 cinemas and 103 screens by the end of the year.
At the start of 2020 (prior to the COVID-19 lockdown), three more cinemas opened its doors to moviegoers in the city of Riyadh and Dammam, increasing the totals to 14 locations and 134 screens. When cinemas reopened post the lockdown in UAE and Saudi Arabia in June 2020 – with strict sanitisation and social distancing protocols in place, Saudi Arabia continued to expand its cinema landscape, adding 14 more locations and 130 screens across the country.
As of June 2021, Saudi Arabia has a total of 33 locations and 309 screens, proving to be GCC’s booming cinema market at present.
The latest Saudi issue by Campaign Middle East – Saudi Arabia Report 2021, has brought together the creative and marketing talent of Saudi Arabia to produce a catalogue of the media landscape in the Kingdom, and also shines light on Saudi’s post-COVID cinema landscape.
Access the complete cinema report and read what Avinash Udeshi, Chief Operating Officer, Motivate Val Morgan and representatives from leading cinema exhibitors in Saudi Arabia have to say about the unprecedented potential for growth in the country.
Sources: PWC, Arab news, The National and Arabian Business
Zain Saudi Arabia – mobile network operator in KSA, recently booked an integrated cinema campaign with Motivate Val Morgan – through OMD, for the launch of 5G technology in KSA.
The on-screen component included a 30 sec. ad which screened for a period of 4 weeks (12th December 2019 to 8th January 2020) at the following cinema locations:
The off- screen component included an advertisement (of the same content) on the LED screen at the entrance of VOX Cinemas – Riyadh Park from 12th December 2019 to 8th January 2020.
Integrated cinema campaigns provide greater brand visibility and enable brands to target cinemagoers across multiple touchpoints.
Contact us for more information on integrated cinema campaigns across our regional circuit.
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VOX Cinemas opened its fourth location in KSA at The Roof in Riyadh on Thursday 14th March 2019.
The cinema features 8 screens with a total seating capacity of 558 seats, and includes a Kids screen – dedicated to young movie fans.
In addition to its signature Candy Bar, VOX Cinemas – The Roof also offers a range of F&B options such as a specialty Nutella bar, Pizza Al Taglio — a new concept serving freshly baked pizza slices, and Kitchen 35 — a grab-and-go café serving coffees, juices, sandwiches, salads and pastries.
VOX Cinemas presently operates a total 39 screens – 27 in Riyadh and 12 in Jeddah, and according to its country manager for Saudi Arabia – Mohamed Al-Hashemi, the cinema chain aims to have 110 operational screens in the Kingdom by the end of 2019.
As the exclusive cinemas advertising partner of VOX Cinemas – across the region, we at Motivate Val Morgan would like to congratulate VOX Cinemas on the opening of The Roof in Riyadh, and warmly welcome this new location to our circuit in Saudi Arabia.
Contact us for more information on cinema advertising opportunities in KSA.
For more information on locations and movie timings, visit https://ksa.voxcinemas.com/
Related Articles:
VOX Cinemas Opens at Al Qasr Mall in Riyadh
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VOX Cinemas Opens in Saudi Arabia at Riyadh Park Mall
Sources: Arab News and Images Retail ME
Wego – travel search website and mobile application, recently booked a cinema campaign (in collaboration with VisitBritain) through Motivate Val Morgan at Reel Cinemas (UAE), VOX Cinemas (KSA) and AMC Cinemas (KSA).
An engaging off-screen ‘Foyer Display’ embedded with augmented reality technology was installed at Reel Cinemas – The Dubai Mall in UAE from Wednesday 27th February to Thursday 5th March 2019.
Technique:
When a cinemagoer stands in front of the screen, the image of the cinemagoer, together with a background of one of Britain’s most iconic sites (Buckingham Palace, Big ben, etc.) would display on the screen.
Objective:
To encourage cinemagoers to search, compare and book a trip to Britain through Wego.
A similar display was also set up at VOX Cinemas – Riyadh Park Mall in Saudi Arabia from Monday 11th March to Sunday 17th March 2019.
Additionally, two Arabic on-screen ads were booked to screen at VOX Cinemas – Riyadh Park Mall and Red Sea Mall (Jeddah) and AMC Cinemas – KAFD (Riyadh) from Thursday 14th March to Wednesday 20th March 2019.
The first ad – which screened for a period of 3 days, features two female actors posting a video of themselves against the backdrop of one of the most cherished British icons – the Big Ben.
The second ad – which screened for a period of 4 days, features a male actor driving along Britain’s countryside when his friend unexpectedly appears by the side of his window.
Interested in booking a similar on-screen and off-screen campaign through Motivate Val Morgan?
Contact a member of our sales team for more information of cinema advertising opportunities across our circuit covering UAE, Lebanon, Oman, Egypt, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
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Source: Wego
Saudi Arabia made history in April 2018 with the launch of its first cinema at King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) – operated by AMC Cinemas, followed by a 4 screen VOX Cinemas at Riyadh Park Mall in May 2018 – featuring IMAX and Kids experiences.
VOX Cinemas has subsequently cut red ribbons at 3 more locations in the Kingdom:
Red Sea Mall (Jeddah) in January 2019 – featuring IMAX, Kids and Gold Class experiences
Al Qasr Mall (Riyadh) in March 2019 – featuring MAX and Kids experiences
The Roof (Riyadh) in March 2019 – featuring a Kids experience
The Kingdom recently marked another historic milestone with both a private (Wednesday 13th March 2019) and public screening (Thursday 14th March 2019) of a Saudi film titled Roll’em at VOX Cinemas – Red Sea Mall.
Roll’em – written, directed, shot and produced over three years, features an all-Saudi crew (from the actors to the sound director). The brainchild of director Abdulelah Al-Qurashi, co-producer Abdulrahman Khoja, and screenwriter Yasser Hammad, tells the story of a Saudi filmmaker named Omar Nizar who meets a retired 1970s cinematographer while on a journey to discover his home city of Jeddah.
With diverse characters and an incredible cast, this family-friendly movie will show a different image of Jeddah.
“It’s a Jeddawi film to the core. The post-production was in Egypt. The areas where we don’t have expertise in we had to outsource, but everything that had to do with the creative work is purely Saudi,” said Hammad in an interview with Arab News.
“The idea (for the characters) came up from a joke actually. I was pretending to be an old cinematographer and using Hejazi words and the accent. It inspired me to create a character,” he said.
“We had our inspiration from actual film directors from the 1970s in Saudi Arabia that no one knows about. They tried to pursue the same dreams we had, but failed because of their circumstances.” he added.
Hammad said having the film screened in Jeddah “is like a dream come true,” adding: “Without this city, I wouldn’t be able to create art.”
Roll’em is the first of many more local projects to be released. Experts believe that Saudi Arabia could produce $1 billion in revenue over the next 3 years, and by 2030 it could be among the 10 biggest film markets in the world.
Sources: Arab News, Vogue Arabia and Variety
Saudi Arabia saw the opening of its second cinema – a four screen VOX Cinemas multiplex with a total seating capacity of 330. The cinema opened to the public on Friday 4th May 2018.
The new cinema – located at Riyadh Park Mall– comes two weeks after the kingdom’s first public cinema screening in Saudi Arabia.
“Tonight’s cinema opening represents another historic moment in the transformation of the Saudi economy under the Vision 2030 plan,” Saudi Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Awwad S. Alawwad was quoted as saying at the opening. “It is great to have the second cinema open in the kingdom within a span of less than two weeks.”
“This is just one example that shows the fast pace of development in the kingdom,” he added.
The opening of the new cinema is part of a broader effort by VOX Cinemas to expand in Saudi Arabia, where the company has said it will invest an additional $533.2 million to open 600 screens over the course of the next five years.
VOX’s parent company, Majid Al Futtaim, has already announced project investments valued at $3.73 billion across its mall asset, fashion, leisure and retail offerings, a commitment that is expected to create over 114,000 direct and indirect job opportunities.
Additionally, through a partnership with 20th Century Fox, the distribution arm of Majid Al Futtaim Cinemas will exclusively distribute Fox content to cinemas in the kingdom. In 2018 alone, the company is planning to release a number of hotly anticipated films including The Darkest Minds, The Predator and the James Cameron produced Alita: Battle Angel.
Other cinemas currently under design include Majid Al Futtaim’s Mall of Saudi and City Centre Ishbiliyah – both expected to open in Riyadh in the coming years.
As the exclusive cinema advertising partner of VOX Cinemas, Motivate Val Morgan congratulates VOX Cinemas on the launch of their new multiplex in Saudi Arabia and proudly welcomes VOX Cinemas – Riyadh Park Mall to our circuit.
Contact your respective Account Manager for a detailed presentation on on-screen cinema advertising opportunities at VOX Cinemas – Riyadh Park Mall.
For more information on locations and movie timings, visit https://ksa.voxcinemas.com/
Sources: Arabian Business and Gulf News
