Filmgarde Cineplexes shuts 2 cinemas in SG as part of transformation plan

Filmgarde Cineplexes is closing its Bugis+ and Century Square cinemas following the expiry of its current leases at the two malls. This is part of its new transformative roadmap for its cinema operations in keeping with changing trends in the film industry. Filmgarde will progressively close these outlets for reinstatement works starting in the first quarter of 2022.

The company will retain all staff in the two cinemas who will be redeployed across other divisions such as its property and hospitality businesses. Plans for its Leisure Park Kallang cinema and new business initiatives will be announced in due course. Sherman Ong, head of cinema operations, Filmgarde, said the company has been reviewing key industry trends in Singapore for some time now.

"Since 2013, Singapore’s overall cinema attendance has been on a general decline. This is in spite of an increase in the number of screens and seating capacity during the same period. In fact, from 2017 to 2019, national cinema attendance had already fallen to pre-2010 levels," he said. According to him, the onset of COVID-19 only served to accelerate and exacerbate these existing trends.

He added that the film industry, like many others, has undergone tremendous changes in this era of digitalisation. Ong also explained that the surge in online streaming platforms has fundamentally altered global content production and distribution models as well as audience behaviour and media consumption patterns.

"This has had an impact on cinemas all over the world, including Singapore cinemas which have traditionally been reliant on Hollywood and other overseas contents. As such, we feel that with the expiry of our leases, it is timely for us to shift our investments to focus on developing new areas of growth within the media industry and to expand our presence in other sectors, so as to keep pace with market demands," he added.

While cinema operations will no longer be central to Filmgarde's business activities, Ong said the company believes that cinemas, films and moviemaking are still integral for consumers and for the development of a rich cultural landscape. “Going forward, we remain committed to supporting Singapore films, local film community projects and outreach programmes through new models and initiatives in keeping with our plan for transformative actions for our legacy cinema operations," Ong said. MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to Filmgarde for additional information on its business initiatives and marketing plans for 2022.

Filmgarde is not the only company to have been impacted by the pandemic. Last August, mm2 Asia, operating under the Cathay brand, initially planned to sell its cinema business to local investment firm Kingsmead Properties for SG$84.8 million. This came as the challenges of sustaining a business took their toll on the tourism and entertainment sectors as a result of the pandemic. In December 2021, however, mm2 Asia pressed pause on the spin-off and listing of its cinema business on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange (SGX) as it did not comply with chain listing requirements.

Photo courtesy: 123RF

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