Year book of motion pictures (1925)

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JAVA Landraadweg 3, Bandoeng, R. W. Arendsen de Wolff, Mgr.; 21 Teido St., Seoul, Chosen, J. H. Morris, Mgr; also Soerabaya. MEXICO Avenida Uruguay 49, Mexico City, J. W. MacFarland, Mgr.; Apartado 118, Mazatlan, Sin., Sabas Iturbide, Mgr.; Apartado 159, Merida, Yuc, H. A. Moss. PANAMA P. O. Box 135, Cristobal, Panama, E. N. Ferro, Mgr.; Conde a Carmelitas No. 2, Caracas, Venezuela, A. J Froehlichm, Mgr. PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 230 Barbosa, Manila, P. I., Chas. L. Brookheim. Mgr.; Cebu, H. W. Hope, Mgr.; P. O. Box 90, lloilo, W. Hortsman, Mgr. PORTO RICO Salvador Brau 99, San Juan, Mr. Edwin Worns. SPAIN Hispano-American Films, S. A., Calle Valencia 233, Barcelona, B. Lichtig, Mgr. ; Hispano-American Films, S. A., Mayor 4, Madrid; HispauoAmerican Films, S. A., Colon 32, Valencia, Adolfo Lopez Rodriguez ; Hispano-American Films, S. A., Villarias 5, Bilbao; Rubi 21. Palma De, Mallorca, Jose Planas, Mgr.; Garibay 22, Sau Sebastian, Gregorio Landazabal, Mgr. ; Plaza Sta. Gertrudis, 5, Murcia; Conde de Revolleda, 1, Leon. SINGAPORE, S. S. Universal Pictures Corp., 62 Orchard Road, K. W. Tann, Mgr. SWEDEN Universal FiJm Aktiebolag, Kunsgaten 7, Stockholm, Gus Hager; Kirkegaten 16, Kristiania, Norway, H. Haugen, Mgr. Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce Reports AUSTRIA By Trade Commissioner William Ford Upson, Vienna May 28, 1924 There is a large market in Austria for recent films of the better class to take the place of the outworn films now being shown. The chief handicap to any such change is the fact that distribution rights in Austria can only be obtained through a number of middlemen who add materially to the distribution cost without contributing to the transaction. Therefore, the Excelsior Film Co., which is a leading distrbutor of American motion pictures, feels that if it could establish direct contact with American lessors of film rights it could exhibit first-class motion pictures at a cost within reach of the public. Some such arrangement would be particularlyvaluable at this time. American films are very popular in Austria, and it would be most unfortunate to impair this popularity by sending to Europe old motion pictures which have outlived their usefulness in the United States. German motion pictures, on account of difficulties at home, are losing ground in the Austrian market. — April 14, 1924. AUSTRALIA By Consul Norman L. Anderson, Melbourne. There are in Australia approximately 800 moving picture theaters. This fignre varies from time to time ; new enterprises start and others go out of the business; but from carefully gathered statistics, this estimate is most nearly accurate. The 808 enterprises are distributed as follows: City, 60; suburban. 257; country, 491. The average seatin gcapacity of the 60 city theaters is 1,500. In the 491 country houses seats are very unevenly distributed, but the majority of public halls hold from 200 to 1,00 people. A weekly schedule of films exhibited in various houses is as follows : Continuous performance 38 Showing daily 152 Fixe nights per week 4 Four nights per week ' 29 Three nights per week 60 Two nights per week 179 One night per week 346 Total per week 808 At least 90 per cent of the films used in Australia are imported from the United States, and of the total imports 97 per cent are entered through the State of New South Wales, the city of Sidney being the center for the film trade in Australia. A board of censorship is established in Australia, under which system every film imported must be submitted to a legalized censor board which has arbitrary power to exclude, cut, or change any film, either in whole or in part. The films censored in Australia during the year 1922 and the countries from which they were imported are as follows : Films United States 2,164 England 130 Canada 40 Germany 13 France 86 Italy 9 New Zealand 3 Holland 1 Papua 1 @rigin Unknown 56 Total 2,503 The average length of a reel may be placed at about 1.000 feet. As 5,930 reels were censored the total footage, on this basis, would be approximately 5,930,000 feet. The types of pictures held in greatest favor in Australia appear to be (a) comedies, or dramas with a marked vein of comedy ; (b) modern dramas; and (e) films of a sensational character. The educational picture does not, as a rule, enjoy popularity, nor do scenic pictures, unless they are out of the ordinary. News reels depicting world incidents arouse considerable interest. Propaganda pictures and films patriotically American are not successful. Generally speaking, individual "stars" have about the same relative success in Australia that they have in the United States. Artistic achievement is international and is recognized about equally in all civilized countries. — Jan. 28, 1924. BALTIC PROVINCES By Emil Kokich, Secretary to Trade Commissioner, Riga The maiket for foreign produced motion pictures in the Baltic Republics of Latvia, Estbonia and Lithuania, having a combined population of over 5.000,000 inhabitants, has steadily improved since 1922, when a total of only 50 motion picture theaters was registered for all three countries At present there are about 85 such theaters in these States, Esthonia having about 30, Latvia. 30 and Lithuania, 25. The majority of these theaters are situated in the cities, principally in Reval. Riga and Kovno. Their aggregate seating capacity is about 10.000 people daily. Admission prices range from $0.10 to $0.40 per seat. Performances are usually in the evening only, and changes of program are scheduled once weekly. Distribution and Percentage of Films Used Practically all films shown in the border Sue cession States are distributed through a few film distributors established in Riga, Reval and Kovno. who obtain films from distributing centers in Berlin and London, and also from New York di rect. About 500.000 meters of films are imported yearly from all three territories, the average pro gram consisting of 1,000 to 2.000 meters of films, with an average of 250 to 500 meters per reel. During 1923, German produced films displayed in these countries averaged about 65 per cent, Amcri can 30 per cent, and French 5 per cent. Indications are that films of American manufacture will supply nearly 50 per cent of the market require 649