By Simon de Bruyn
Jonathan Oglivie’s second feature The Tender Hook had a modest opening over the weekend, taking a mere $23,000 across 14 screens, placing it sixth on the limited release charts.
The film’s distributor Icon appeared to be taking on board the recent lessons of Australian films at the box office by planning a small targeted release on 14 screens, but despite boasting a stellar cast including Rose Byrne, Hugo Weaving and Pia Miranda, the $7 million film took a per screen average of $1,600.
Son of a Lion, the film by Sydney director Benjamin Gilmour currently in its fifth week of release, took an average of $1,300 per screen for a total of $85,000, after distributor Gil Scrine upped the screen count from three to five.
Unfinished Sky continued its marathon run, after 14 weeks sitting at $961,000, while Not Quite Hollywood seems to have come to rest at $180,000.
Controversial documentary Beyond Our Ken – which Cinema Nova in Melbourne added late to its schedule – took an impressive $2,000 on one screen in a handful of sold-out sessions. The Nova told INSIDEFILM it has decided to run the doco for another week.