Independent cinema operators are cautiously optimistic about the road ahead as they push forward with their SCREEN Fund applications.
'Godzilla vs. Kong' remains the main event at the box office but 'Peter Rabbit 2' is hopping up right behind, boosted by school holiday audiences.
There were a flurry of new releases over the Easter long weekend, but none could match the spectacle of 'Godzilla vs. Kong', which held onto the top position.
WB's 'Godzilla vs. Kong' has posted the highest opening weekend of any film post-COVID, in a hopeful sign that audiences are ready to come back to cinemas for blockbusters.
Roadshow will launch Robert Connolly's 'The Dry' on January 1 and Glendyn Ivin's 'Penguin Bloom' on January 21, raising exhibitors' hopes of a strong start to the year on the proviso that a raft of Hollywood titles are not postponed.
Ticket sales at Australian cinemas plunged to a new low last weekend as coronavirus-wary audiences ignored almost all the new releases.
The coronavirus pandemic has forced the cancellation of the Series Mania international TV festival, which was due to unspool from March 20-28 in Lille in northern France.
Due to open in Australia on March 19, Will Gluck's 'Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway' has been moved to September - the second major release to be postponed after the James Bond adventure 'No Time to Die'.