Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020

I. Film Exhibition at Theaters
The Number of Films Released and Film Titles
Number of Films Released
Between 1955 and 2004, the number of films released at theaters was up and down but was roughly 550 to 650 films peryear. In 2005, the number hit a record of 731 films and since then, has continued increasing. In 2013, for the first time, thenumber of films released was over 1,000, with more than 500 each of Japanese and foreign films. Since then, the number
has always been over 1,000 every year. In 2019, 689 Japanese films and 589 foreign films, a total of 1,278 films, werereleased. In 2020, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, 506 Japanese films and 511 foreign films, a total of 1017 films werereleased in Japan (according to the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan’s statistics). Compared with thenumbers in 2019, 183 less Japanese films and 78 less foreign films were released in 2020.

fig.06 Changes in Number of Films Released from 2011 to 2020

From Japanese Film Industry Statistics (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan)

fig.07 Changes in Box Office Income from 2011 to 2020

Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020

Box Office Incomes
In 2020, the total box office income in Japan was: 109,276,000,000 yen for Japanese films (76.9% of that in the year before),
34,009,000,000 yen for foreign films (28.6% of that in the year before), and in total, 143,285,000,000 yen, 54.9% of that in theyear before.
The box office income from foreign films was more affected by COVID-19. There was more than a 70% decrease from theyear before. Many Hollywood films had their release dates postponed and only 4 films made more than 1 billion yen: STARWARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER (released in December 2019), PARASITE (released in January 2020), TENET (released inSeptember 2020) and CATS (released in January 2020). Under the pandemic, theatrical releases of some films were given
up and shifted to online releases, while some films were released both in theaters and online. This unstable situation hascontinued. As of February 2021, many movie houses in Europe and the US were still closed, and the future impact of hybrid
theatrical and online releases remains a concern even today. Not only Hollywood films but French and other films have notbeen released in their own countries, and some films’ release dates have been pushed back while others have theirJapanese releases as the world premiers.
It is not yet clear how the COVID-19 situation will work itself out or what form the theatrical releases will take in 2021, after
the pandemic.

fig.08 Changes in Film Attendance Per Film from 2011 to 2020

From Japanese Film Industry Statistics (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan)

The Scales of Film Releases
Japan Community Cinema Center (JCCC) creates the list of released films based on online information. In 2020, 482
Japanese films and 540 foreign films, a total of 1,022 films were released. These figures are slightly different from those ofthe Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan that lists 506 Japanese films and 511 foreign films, a total of 1017 films.
We will see what films were released based on the JCCC data.

Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020−The Scales of Film Releases
In 2020, 34 Japanese films and 14 foreign films were released at more than 300 theaters nationwide. Among Japanese films,DEMON SLAYER THE MOVIE: MUGEN TRAIN (released in October) was released at more than 400 theaters, and theregular popular animations such as DORAEMON THE MOVIE: NOBITA’S NEW DINOSAUR (released in August),
SHINCHAN: CRASH! SCRIBBLE KINGDOM AND ALMOST FOUR HEROES (released in September), and STAND BY ME
DORAEMON 2 (released in November) were each released at more than 350 theaters. Before 2020, such popularanimations had occupied the top of the box office income list every year. However, in 2020, at the end of March, COVID-19
spread widely and in April, the first State of Emergency Declaration was proclaimed. Many animations made for children
and family audiences such as DORAEMON series are usually released during the period from spring break to the Golden
Week (from the end of April to the beginning of May) but in 2020, their release dates were postponed. After the movie
theaters reopened, operation with only 50% capacity has been allowed and it has been hard to attract family audiences. It
may take some time before a full-scale recovery will be realized. On the other hand, the films targeted at film fans and youth
have been solidly attracting audiences. These include: FROM TODAY, IT’S MY TURN: THE MOVIE (released in July), YARN
(released in August), STIGMATIZED PROPERTIES (released in August), THE VOICE OF SIN (released in October), and THE
ASADAS! (released in October).
Among foreign films, 14 titles were released at more than 300 theaters, however, only two titles made more than 1 billion
yen: TENET (released in September) and CATS (released in January). Those titles released at more than 300 theaters wereall presented at multi-screen theaters.
The titles, both Japanese and foreign, which were released at more than 150 theaters, were mostly presented only at multiscreen theaters. The following titles were presented also at mini-theaters: THE CORNERED MOUSE DREAMS OF CHEESE(directed by Isao Yukisada), MOTHER (directed by Tatsushi Omori), ORA, ORA BE GOIN’ ALONE (directed by Shuichi Okita),
UNDER THE STARS (directed by Tatsushi Omori) and WIFE OF A SPY (directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa).
122 foreign films were released at the scale of 50 to 149 theaters nationwide, a large increase from 75 films 2019. In
particular, the number of films released at the scale of 50 to 69 theaters increased from 33 to 74, more than doubled. 104
Japanese films were released at the scale of 50 to 149 theaters, a decrease by 17 from 121 of the year before, but it was nota significant change.
The films belonging to the category of releases at the scale of 50 to 149 theaters are released at multi-screen theaters insome areas, while at mini- and conventional theaters in other areas. In 2020, the major foreign films were mostly unreleasedin Japan, and multi-screen theaters began to show the kind of films which used to be shown at mini-theaters such as: THETRAITOR (2019, directed by Marco Bellocchio), THE PUBLIC (2018, directed by Emillio Estevez), MATTHIAS AND MAXIME(2019, directed by Xavier Dolan), THE WILD GOOSE LAKE (2019, directed by Diao Yinan), MR. JONES (2019, directed byAgnieszka Holland), PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE (2019, directed by Céline Sciamma), and MARUMOI (2019, directed byOm Yuna). They also hosted retrospectives of classic films and looked for effective programming by trial and error.
In 2019, 22% of foreign films were released at multi-screen theaters only, 24% of those were released at both multi-screen
theaters and mini-theaters, and 54% of those were released at mini-theaters only. In 2020, 19% of foreign films werereleased at multi-screen theaters only, 39% of those were released at both multi-screen theaters and mini-theaters, and43% of those were released at mini-theaters only. The foreign films released at both multi-screen theaters and mini-theaters
increased by 15%, while those released only at mini-theaters decreased by 11%. Because the releases of the block-busters
or big-budget American films were stopped, the diversification of programming at multi-screen theaters (were forced to be)increased. There is no clear boundary between the major big-budget films for multi-screen theaters and art house type andFilm Exhibition Yearbook｜2020

independent films for mini-theaters.
Nonetheless, many films were screened only at mini-theaters. 268 Japanese films and 266 foreign films were released atless than 49 theaters. Among these, 186 Japanese films (69%) and 162 foreign films (61%) were released only at minitheaters. They include films highly received at international film festivals and of well-known directors including YOUNG
AHMET (2019, directed by Dardenne brothers), A HIDDEN LIFE (2019, directed by Terrence Malick), ABOUT
ENDLESSNESS (2019, directed by Roy Andersson), MARTINE EDEN (2019, directed by Pietro Marcello), and THE PAINTED
BIRD (2019, directed by Václav Marhoul); and important documentaries including THE CAPOTE TAPES (2019, directed byEbs Burnough), DEAD SOULS (2018, directed by Wang Bing), TALKING ABOUT TREES (2019, directed by SuhaibGasmelbari), THEY SHALL NOT GROW OLD (2018, directed by Peter Jackson), etc.
In Japan, the titles only released at mini-theaters include documentaries such as PRISON CLUB (2019, directed by KaoriSakaue), ZERO (2019, directed by Kazuhiro Soda), REIWA UPRISING (2019, directed by Kazuo Hara), and JAZZ KISSA BASIE:
SWIFTY’S BALLAD (2020, directed by Tetsuya Hoshino); films by important directors such as THE REAL THING (2020,directed by Koji Fukada), UNRELIABLE (2020, directed by Kazuyuki Izutsu), and BOLT (2020, directed by Kaizo Hayashi); andambitious films by young directors such as AINU MOSIR (2020, directed by Takeshi Fukunaga), DROSTE (2020, directed byJunta Yamaguchi), CENOTE (2020, directed by Kaori Oda) and VIDEOPHOBIA (2020, directed by Daisuke Miyazaki).

fig.09 The Scales of Films Released at Theaters in 2020

Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020−Kinds of Films Released
482 Japanese films were released in 2020, about 74% of those in the year before, including 367 new theatricalfilms and animations, 60 documentaries, 13 ODS (Other Digital Stuff) on theatrical performances and live
music concerts, and 8 special projects introducing shorts, films by young directors, and others with a total of42 films.
The number of documentary films was not as large as the 71 released in 2019, however, many documentaries
were released in theaters. Films like MISHIMA: THE LAST DEBATE, WHY YOU CAN’T BE PRIME MINISTER,
HARIBOTE and EL PEPE: A SUPREME LIFE attracted attention, and were also presented at multi-screen
theaters drawing large audiences. After the State of Emergency Declaration was proclaimed. distribution
company Tofoo and director Kazuhiro Soda created an online site named “Temporary Built Movie Houses” andSoda’s ZERO was released online first, followed by its release at movie theaters after they reopened.
About 60 animated films were released from popular series whose prior films in the series had been released
at more than 300 theaters, but now saw modest release at 15-19 theaters, mostly multi-screen theaters. In June
after the State of Emergency Declaration was lifted, many movie houses had a hard time in the middle of thesituation when the releases of new titles were postponed. Four titles produced by Studio Ghibli, NAUSICAA OF
THE VALLEY OF THE WIND, PRINCESS MONONOKE, SPIRITED AWAY and TALES FROM EARTHSEA, werereleased at 372 theaters under an impressive catchphrase, “Once in a lifetime, see Ghibli films at theaters.”
We tracked down 8 projects of Japanese special film series (excluding classic films shown at repertory
theaters), and most were showing films by young directors. They were all shown at mini-theaters like Ikebukuro
Cinema Rosa and Theatre Shinjuku.
13 ODS were released, a large decrease from 3 of 2019.

Foreign Films
415 foreign films were released in 2020, about 81% of the 514 foreign films in 2019. The former includes 288
new theatrical films and animations, 38 documentaries, 31 ODS, 14 revival screenings of classic film’s digital
restoration versions, and 12 special series with 49 films. In addition, 125 films were shown only at 1 to 3
theaters in Tokyo as special screenings. The total number including the latter is 540 films.
While the releases of a number of new films were postponed, 12 special series with 49 classic films werereleased as revival screenings. These series included Jean-Paul Belmondo Masterpieces, Federico Fellini FilmFestival Upon the 100th Anniversary of His Birth Year, and Michel Legrand and Directors of French New Wave,
all attracting good responses. Mini retrospectives of directors Robert Bresson and Frederick Muller, and Trilogyof Sergei Loznitsa, AUSTERLITZ, STATE FUNERAL and THE TRIAL, also attracted attention. At multi-screen
theaters, Nolan Summer Festival presented 4 films directed by Christopher Nolan including DUNKIRK, THE

Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020

DARK KNIGHT RISES, INCEPTION, and INTERSTELLAR, and drew a number of film fans. A series of 4 films
featuring Bruce Lee was also presented upon the revival release of ENTER THE DRAGON: DIRECTOR’S CUT(1973).
Among the revival release of the classic film’s digital restoration versions, big budget films like BACK TO THE
FUTURE (1985), BACK TO THE FUTURE PART II (1989), BACK TO THE FUTURE PART III (1990), TOTAL RECALL(1990), and APOCALYPSE NOW: FINAL CUT, were popular among many film fans, along with classic films suchas CHILDREN OF PARADISE (1945), experimental films like L’ANGE (1982), classic film JAZZ ON A SUMMER’S
DAY (1959), THE LEGEND OF THE PIANIST ON THE OCEAN (1998) and THE ELEPHANT MAN (1980).
Foreign ODS were shown mostly at multi-screen theaters including series of MET LIVE VIEWING, BRITISHROYAL OPERA HOUSE, NATIONAL THEATER LIVE, etc.

fig.10 Types of Films Released in 2020

Films That Made More Than 1 Billion Yen Box Office Income/Films That Made Less
Than 1 Billion Box Office Income
In 2020, 25 films made more than 1 billion yen box office income (65 films in 2019), occupying 2.5% of the totalof 1,017 films released in Japan. The total box office income from these 25 films was: Japanese films with 85.63
billion yen, foreign films with16.14 billion yen, and in total, 91.23 billion yen, 63.7% of the total box office incomeof Japan. This is a large decrease from 76.9% in 2019 and we can see the effects of the postponements andcancellation of major films due to COVID-19.

Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020

fig.11 Films That Made More Than 1 Billion Yen Box Office Income [2020]

fig.12 Films That Made More Than 1 Billion Yen Box Office Income [2011-2020]
From Japanese Film Industry Statistics (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan)

From Japanese Film Industry Statistics (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan)

Film Exhibition Yearbook｜2020

fig.13 Films That Made More Than 1 Billion Yen Box Office Income in 2020［Japanese Films］

fig.14 Films That Made More Than 1 Billion Yen Box Office Income in 2020［Foreign Films］

fig.15 20 Top Box Office Income Films in 2020

From Japanese Film Industry Statistics (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan)