FINAS WANTS CINEMA OPERATORS TO ASSIST IN CREATING CENTRALISED DATABASE

From Hasnah Jusid

BUSAN, Oct 2 (Bernama) -- The National Film Development Corporation Malaysia (FINAS) will ask cinema operators to expedite the sharing of detailed audience and ticket sales data by location to facilitate the establishment of a more systematic centralised database similar to that of South Korea.

FINAS chief executive officer Datuk Azmir Saifuddin Mutalib said the database would be similar to the Korean Box Office Information System (KOBIS), which will assist film industry players in understanding current audience preferences.

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He said that currently, each cinema operator uses its own system to gather information, with reports manually submitted to FINAS on a weekly basis.

“FINAS requires a system that connects and engages with all cinemas. With the aid of artificial intelligence (AI), this system can generate reports and identify film trends, enabling film producers to plan their productions.

“This new database will also serve as a tool to monitor both local and international ticket sales, thus assisting FINAS and the government in collecting entertainment tax from ticket revenues,” he told Bernama here today.

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He said this after attending a meeting between Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil and Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) chairman Park Kwang-su, Korean Film Council (KOFIC) chairman Han Sang-Jun and Busan Cinema Centre chief executive officer Kim Jae Hin.

Fahmi, after the meeting, urged FINAS to study the use of KOBIS, which has been in place since 2004, to help identify the issues faced by the film industry.

Azmir Saifuddin said during previous discussions between FINAS and cinema operators, they expressed a willingness to share data but requested the government to consider reducing the entertainment tax.

“If the entertainment tax is reduced, Malaysian cinemas would certainly support FINAS in implementing this system,” he said.

In the meantime, Azmir Saifuddin shared that during a meeting with KOFIC, they learned that South Korea imposes a three per cent tax on both international and local movie ticket sales, which is channelled into the film industry development fund.

“I believe Malaysia should also consider this and it has been discussed even before I joined FINAS,” he said.

Meanwhile, producer and film festival consultant in Asia and Europe Lorna Tee said highlighted that a centralised database system would enable production companies to better understand trends that capture audience interest.

She said that this data holds immense value, as it provides insights into audience preferences and can serve as a guideline for producers to tailor their work to the market.

-- BERNAMA