THE UK’s FILM INDUSTRY has suffered a double hit following this week’s riots and looting in London, due to both criminal damage and a drop in cinema attendance.
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Leading British distributors such as Dogwoof, Artificial Eye, Metrodome and the BFI have confirmed that all their DVD stock was lost following a fire at Sony’s Enfield warehouse where up to 30 million DVDs are believed to have been lost.
Dogwoof CEO Anna Godas told ScreenDaily “All our DVDs were in the warehouse, so any stock we had is gone. Sony have said they will look after [the stock] and insurance. The problem is orders that are happening and will happen in the next month. DVDS are still our biggest revenue. At this point we don’t know, but I anticipate sales will be lost”.
It appears Sony have mitigated the situation thanks to having kept mastercopies of the movies in another location. “Although this may cause supply problems in the short term, we’ve been impressed by the speed at which Sony have put their contingency plans into action, so disruption should be kept to a minimum” explained Artificial Eye’s Steve Lewis.
Aside from the direct damage caused to DVD stock, many London cinemas have shortened opening hours either due to management discretion or under police advice including Picturehouse’s Brixton, Clapham, Stratford and Greenwich sites.
The troubles are also expected to lead to a decline in casual cinema attendance for the next few days as Londoners choose to avoid the West End and town centres for fear of coming into contact with disorder.
More:
London riots: UK film companies lose DVD stock in Sony warehouse fire Screen Daily
London Riots Spark Fears for Entertainment Businesses The Hollywood Reporter
London riots: Ealing Studios impacted, some cinemas closed under police advisory Screen Daily
A-Z of London Cinemas LondonNet
Picture: Brick Dust by Ashleigh Haddad (Used under License from Ashleigh Haddad. All rights reserved.)
