peter.christopher
@guardian.co.tt
CinemaONE is hopeful it can end a financially trying year with blockbuster success given recent strides made in T&T’s vaccination efforts.
In the company’s third quarter financial statement for June 30, the company confirmed a net loss of $3.5 million which served as a bigger dip that their 2020 loss of $1.9 million for the same period.
Revenue was also down with the company recording $2.2 million compared to 2020’s figure of $5.8 million while gross profit was $1.5 million compared to 2020’s tally of $3.9 million.
The company’s grim figure was not unexpected given the closure of cinemas in late April.
Chairman Brian Jahra said in the financial report, “At the onset of the recent third lockdown, CinemaONE refocused on cash preservation and liquidity actions. By reducing cash outlays and limiting the erosion of net working capital to 15 per cent with a period closing net working capital balance of $4.1 million ($4.8 million in 2020), the company is positioned to sustain a protracted theatre closure period.”
CinemaOne chairman Brian Jahra.
Jahra, however, noted there were positive performances prior to the closure of movie theatres.
He said, “CinemaONE was encouraged by the performance for Godzilla verses King Kong for the first two weeks of Q3 followed by the resilient audience demand for Mortal Kombat, which was particularly impressive despite a mid-April government restriction on food and beverage consumption on cinema premises.”
Jahra also added that these results “created a rationale for cautious optimism regarding consumer behaviour for entertainment expenditure on cinematic experiences, even during a pandemic.”
With this in mind the company is hoping that the theatres may reopen to capitalise on upcoming attractions given the trajectory of our vaccination effort.
“CinemaONE notes the promising local acceleration of the COVID-19 vaccine programme and the strong pipeline of compelling Hollywood international releases which are currently being distributed worldwide as approximately 80 per cent of global cinemas have reopened,” Jahra said.
He added the company is managing for readiness to immediately capitalise on upcoming September and October releases such as Disney’s Shang Chi, Sony’s Venom, and MGM/Amazon’s James Bond action thriller No Time to Die, along with the best selection of current summer blockbusters which are propelling the global cinema rebound.