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Limited theatrical release is a
film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically
art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the United States and Canada has been defined by
Nielsen EDI
Nielsen may refer to:
Business
* Nielsen Gallery, an American commercial art gallery
* Nielsen Holdings, global information, data, and measurement company
** Nielsen Corporation, a marketing research firm
** Nielsen Audio, formerly Arbitron, whic ...
as a film released in fewer than 600 theaters.
The purpose is often used to gauge the appeal of specialty films, like
documentaries,
independent film
An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...
s and
art films. A common practice by
film studio
A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company or motion picture company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to make films, which is handled by the production ...
s is to give highly anticipated and critically acclaimed films a limited release on or before December 31 in
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...
, to qualify for
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...
nominations (as by its rules). Highly anticipated documentaries also receive limited releases at the same time in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
, as the rules for the
Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature mandate releases in both locations. The films are almost always released to a wider audience in January or February of the following year.
One notable exception is ''
The Rocky Horror Picture Show'', which premiered in 1975 and is still shown only in limited fashion; it is the longest-running theatrical release in film history.
Platform release
A platform release is a type of limited release in which a film opens in fewer theaters (typically 599 or fewer) than a
wide release. If the film receives positive word of mouth, it is gradually expanded to more theaters, as the marketing campaign gains momentum.
A successful film released in this manner has even the possibility of expanding into a wide release.
The advantage of the strategy is that
marketing
Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to empha ...
costs are conserved until a film's performance has been established, when the
distributor may opt to increase advertising and push for a wider release. On the other hand, if it initially flops, the distributor can withdraw from the campaign, thus minimizing advertising and promotional expenditures.
In the early stages of a platform release, the key metric is the ''per-theater average gross'', not the ''total box office gross''. Arthouse and independent films that garner high per-theater averages are seen as likely candidates for a successful wider release. A distributor using this release strategy must take care not to expand too quickly in the early stages to prevent the (limited) audience from being spread too thin, which would reduce the per-theater average and so cause the film to appear weaker.
See also
*
Film release
*
Roadshow theatrical release
References
{{filmmaking paper trail
Films by type