The films will be available on digital and on-demand platforms including iTunes, Google Play, beIN On Demand, OSN Store, and E-vision.
As part of the lineup, Front Row will release Drake Doremus’s love triangle drama Endless Beginnings on May 3 and boasts an all-star cast which includes Shailene Woodley, Jamie Dorian and Sebastian Stan.
Acclaimed Sundance hit The Assistant, a #MeToo/Weinstein inspired political drama, has already been released. The film follows a day in the life of an aspiring female producer who suspects her boss of sexual misconduct.
Filmmaker Hirokazu Koreeda’s The Truth and a drama-comedy Misbehaviour has also been released. End of May will see Sally Potter’s The Road Not Taken which follows a day in the life of a daughter who grapples with her father’s dementia. Michael Winterbottom’s fourth instalment in the successful franchise The Trip To Greece is also slated to release in May. Also releasing is Sweetness In The Belly starring Dakota Fanning on May 22.
On June 16 and 23, Front Row will also be launching a couple of anime films City Hunter: Shinjuku Private Eyes and Code Geass: Lelouch.
The move follows Front Row’s recent digital-only premiere of Academy Award nominee Jesse Eisenberg’s World War 2 drama Resistance. The film, which was initially set for an April 9 theatrical release in the MENA region, landed directly on VOD platforms on April 13, marking the first time an independent Middle East distributor premieres a theatrical release digitally.
Commenting on the releases, Gianluca Chakra, Managing Director, Front Row Filmed Entertainment, said: “Unfortunately COVID19 is forcing the world into different approaches. We have an obligation towards the industry and film fanatics in providing the Middle East with the latest releases and not succumb to piracy and delays which will surely damage the whole entertainment ecosystem.
“Part of our decision is because we need to keep supporting our exhibition partners and not burden them with a stack of unreleased titles. Let’s not forget, we are not the only distributors in MENA and many, like us, will be asking them to release films in delicate times where exhibitors are forced to open gradually with a deficit of 30-50% occupancy.”
He also adds: “Our exhibition partners are in need to bank on the latest releases in order to fill their seats and supply moviegoers with the latest up-to-date entertainment to fill their seats and accordingly build on that. We acquire over 100 titles a year and will surely be first in line in providing them with commercial and up-to-date releases across the Middle East and North Africa.”
