Star Cinema

ABS-CBN Film Productions Inc. (Doing business as Star Cinema), is a Filipino film and television production company and film distributor based in Quezon City. It is the country's largest motion picture company which regularly garners around 70% of the local film market. Star Cinema has produced most of the highest grossing Filipino films of all time, of which over 70 films has grossed at least a hundred million pesos.

Theatrical feature films

Star Cinema's 20th anniversary logo (2013-2014)

Star Cinema was founded in 1993 to transform ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation into a true entertainment company. Although still a new player in the film industry, Star Cinema has poised itself to be a major competitor of big film companies like VIVA Films and Regal Films. Its strategies to reflect the viewer's current taste and trends has proven to be successful starting from the 90's with a string of films targeted to mainstream viewers with film genres ranging from action, comedy, horror, and fantasy. The films of Star Cinema in the 90's has been well received with some earning critical acclaims with films such as May Minamahal (1993), Maalaala Mo Kaya (1994), Madrasta (1996), Magic Temple (1996), and Bata, Bata… Pa'no Ka Ginawa? (1998). The 90's also saw the pioneering works of the company by hiring third-party companies to integrate state-of-the-art computer generated images and special effects and makeup/prosthetic into some of its films like Patayin sa Sindak si Barbara (1995), Magic Temple (1996), Kokey (1997), Magandang Hatinggabi (1998), Hiling (1998), and Puso ng Pasko (1998) among others. Other notable works are the adaptations of popular anime's such as Sarah... Ang Munting Prinsesa (1995) and Cedie (1996) which incorporates stylish production designs and costumes and was shot abroad. Star Cinema also made a film adaptation of ABS-CBN's phenomenon TV series with films like Mara Clara: The Movie, released in 1996 and Mula Sa Puso: The Movie and Esperanza: The Movie both released in 1999. In 1997, Star Cinema co-financed and released a Filipino-American co-production film Goodbye America.

The year 2000 and beyond has been the most successful time for Star Cinema in terms of box office gross. In this period, Star Cinema's films are topping the box office chart in the Philippines which regularly garners an average of 70% of the local film market (excluding foreign films) based from the filings of ABS-CBN Corporation in the Philippine Stock Exchange. Most of the all-time highest grossing films in the history of the Philippines are either produced or co-produced by Star Cinema as reported by Box Office Mojo. In 2002, Star Cinema together with Unitel Pictures released the Filipino-American film American Adobo to mixed reviews in the United States. In 2010, Star Cinema co-financed and released RPG Metanoia, the first 3D computer animated Filipino film in history. In 2013, Star Cinema co-financed and released Erik Matti's On the Job to mixed to positive reviews abroad. Star Cinema films that was well received by critics in this period were Anak (2000), Tanging Yaman (2000), Bagong Buwan (2001), Dekada '70 (2002), Nasaan Ka Man (2005), Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo (2006), In My Life (2009), and On the Job (2013).

Television series

The television unit of Star Cinema is Star Creatives (formerly Star Television). It was established in 2000 to produce television series for the ABS-CBN television network. It started its television venture in 2000 with Pangako sa ’Yo (known internationally as The Promise), a series that had gained huge following in the country and abroad. The series had a very successful run in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Namibia, Singapore, and China. It was followed by another successful series Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay (2002). In 2008, its most expensive television production Lobo (known internationally as She Wolf), received the Banff World Media Festival for best telenovela program and earned Angel Locsin an International Emmy Awards nomination for best performance of an actress. Sana Maulit Muli (2008), also gained a following in Taiwan when it was dubbed in Taiwanese Minnan. Kahit Isang Saglit (2008) became a finalist in the 37th International Emmy Awards.^[3] Its 2010 production, Magkaribal, became a finalist to the 2011 New York International Independent Film and Video Festival for best telenovela. Budoy (2011-2012) is also a finalist to the 2013 New York Festivals International Television & Film Awards.^[4] Soap operas produced by Star Television had been subtitled and dubbed to several languages including English, Turkish, Khmer, Mandarin and French and most notably those that are targeted to Asia Pacific and South Africa. One of the programs dubbed in French is Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay which will cater to French-speaking audience in Africa and Europe.^[5][6][7]

The company has also produced television specials for the network. In 2011, Star Television spent 12 million pesos for the new Philippine National Anthem video clip for all of the TV channels of ABS-CBN Corporation.^[8][9]

Film distribution

Star Cinema distributes its own films as well as films from different production companies. In recent years, due to the popularity of independent films, Star Cinema created new divisions that would specialize on indie film and other markets. These are Sine Screen and Skylight Films. Star Cinema also redistributes classic films restored by ABS-CBN Film Archive and Central Digital Lab, Inc.

References

External links

• Official website
• Star Cinema on Facebook
• Star Cinema on Twitter
• Star Cinema's channel on YouTube
• Star Cinema at the Internet Movie Database
• Star Cinema on ir.abs-cbn.com

Star Cinema ABS-CBN Corporation Executives Maria Lourdes Santos (Managing Director) Divisions Star Creatives Star Home Videos Sine Screen Skylight Films Star Music RoadRunner Distribution Theatrical feature film Star Cinema films Produced by other film outfits International films Classic films redistributed Related articles Star Magic List of highest-grossing films in the Philippines Category Website starcinema.abs-cbn.com