TRANSFORMERS: RECORD-BREAKING EARLY RELEASE CONTINUES
Alien robots transform several Philippine box office records
The movie TRANSFORMERS proved to be a box office juggernaut in its second week of release, staying at number one as families nationwide enjoyed the story of the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons battling each other on Planet Earth.
The Philippines, which was one of only a few countries releasing on June 28 ahead of the U.S., garnered P128.5 million in its opening week.
The film’s box office gross – now surpassing P200 million – represent the top results in history for UIP Philippines, its local distribution partner Solar Entertainment, and the films of Paramount, DreamWorks, Michael Bay, and Steven Spielberg.
TRANSFORMERS also garnered the top non-franchise-film Friday, Saturday, and Sunday grosses in Philippine history.
In the U.S., TRANSFORMERS grossed $27.45m for the biggest 4th of July Independence Day haul of all time, beating out former record-holder Spider-Man 2 ($21.9m in 2004).
The domestic success of TRANSFORMERS came on the heels of stunning international launches last weekend which set a wealth of records for international distributor UIP, studios Paramount and DreamWorks, director Michael Bay, and executive producer Steven Spielberg.
Local execs were delighted with results. “A big factor of our success was the incredible support of Filipino fans, especially the Cybertron Philippines group (http://www.cybph.com),” said UIP general manager Selina Gecolea (formerly de Venecia). “Young moviegoers in particular watched the film several times, and women and mothers like myself enjoyed the film immensely. TRANSFORMERS was definitely not just a toy movie for boys.”
Wilson Tieng, president of Solar Entertainment, UIP’s sole distribution licensee in the Philippines, added, “We want to thank exhibitors everywhere for the stellar results, and for helping our security agency ICT catch and prevent many incidents of camcording.”
Nine perpetrators were caught making unauthorized recordings, capturing portions of the film on various recording devices, starting from the film’s premiere on June 27, through the opening weekend. All incidents were recorded in police blotters, although charges were held in abeyance to give perpetrators a chance to apologize for their unauthorized recordings of the film.
Movie Industry Anti-Film Piracy Organization president Engr. Roesholm Camaligan lauded Solar-UIP’s creative way of dealing with perpetrators: letters of apology which had to be signed by the perpetrators’ immediate family, spiritual advisor, school dean or employer, and the theater manager where the perpetrator was caught. Said Mr. Camaligan, “This proved to be a far more effective way of ensuring that the person would not do it again. The public needs a reminder that bringing recording devices into theaters is strictly prohibited.”
Atty. Geronimo Sy, State Prosecutor of the Department of Justice, added, “In the face of modern technology, we should continue to be aware that the rule of law applies with equal force in the business of entertainment and take responsibility for our actions.”