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Barbie, grant money help keep Salmar Theatres on upward trajectory in 2023

Salmar Community Association looking forward to celebrating 75th anniversary
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Salmar Community Association (SCA) board members listen while association president Chris Papworth delivers his report on 2023 during SCA’s annual general meeting at the Salmar Classic on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023. (Lachlan Labere-Salmon Arm Observer)

The blast of nostalgia that is the Barbie movie proved an indomitable summer release, bolstering box-office numbers in Salmon Arm and across North America.

The highest grossing film of 2023, the Greta Gerwig hit starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling was also the number-one film in 2023 for Salmar Theatres.

“Barbie was huge, I don’t know what it is going to look like without Barbie,” said treasurer Chelsea Kraft while presenting an overview of 2023’s financials during the Salmar Community Association’s (SCA) annual general meeting held Thursday, Nov. 30 at the Salmar Classic.

The meeting began with a report by SCA president Chris Papworth, who referred to 2023 as a year of surprises, with John Wick: Chapter 4 out-grossing Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and audiences being more than happy to return to theatres to see the latest instalment of Guardians of the Galaxy, while other titles of the same genre did not do so well.

“We saw some small studio successes, especially the Sound of Freedom, which had a very strong reception here in Salmon Arm,” said Papworth. “Overall, it’s just a statement of the industry. North American box office results were up from 2022 by about $1.7 billion after adjusting for inflation.”

“Though the projected total box office gross of $9.2 billion is a marked improvement over the $2.2 billion of 2020 (due to the pandemic), we were a far cry from the inflation-adjusted high of $16.5 billion in 2002.”

Papworth pointed out some of the blockbuster releases that helped fill theatre seats in 2002, including Sam Raimi’s first Spider-Man film, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. Another heavy hitter: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Papworth said that although 2023 was a better year for the Salmar than 2022, “we are still fighting our way back from the business interruptions of the past three years. Papworth said the recent strikes in Hollywood delayed some large releases and reduced marketing budgets for those films still released on schedule.

To offset ticket sales and inflation, Papworth said theatres had to increase prices.

“The management and board of the Salmar take a cautious approach to raising our prices,” said Papworth. “After careful consideration and a competitive analysis, we did make some adjustments to our concession pricing this past year. Data tracking of both patron attendance and concession per patron shows that our pricing remains in line with consumer expectations. In other words, the price increases did not result in reduced concession purchases or lower attendance.”

Starting in January 2023, the Salmar board undertook an extensive review of the use of the Classic, said Paworth.

“A committee solicited ideas from the community related to how ot better use the Classic, significant efforts were made by staff and directors over the summer months to promote the Classic and we did have some initially encouraging results. However, more work is required on this particular item. The Classic likely requires significant new capital to remain operational and in good order.”

The Salmar Community Association and theatres also benefited from grant money, including $100,000 from Telefilm Canada and the Canada Arts and Culture Recover Program (CACRP).

“Management, supported by the board, wrote to granting organizations and sent in grant applications for programs under which the Salmar qualifies,” said Papworth. “Without grants, the Salmar’s financial results would show a break-even year.”

Read more: Shuswap’s Salmar Community Association celebrates news of $100,000 grant

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Kraft too commented on the Salmar being in a better position financially in 2023 compared to 2022.

“At the end of September we were up about $130,000 over last year,” she said, noting a little less than $10,000 was spent to upgrade lighting at the Salmar Grand.

“We did have an excess for the year of just over $115,000; that said, just over $116,000 came from grants so we were extremely fortunate to receive $100,000 from Telefilm.”

While the Grand was profitable in 2023, the Classic struggled to break even. There were challenges at the Grand, though, with break-ins, vandalism and needed roof repairs, which required about $80,000 in repairs and maintenance.

Despite things still being in a post-pandemic recovery, SCA’s Joan Sholinder explained the association was still able to give back to the community in a number of ways, including student scholarships, tickets and support for fellow non-profit groups.

Near the end of his report, Papworth referred to the recent news of the city having to close the SASCU Indoor Memorial Sports Complex due to structural concerns related to snow load. He noted the SCA (initially the Salmon Arm Community Co-operative Sports Center Association) was founded to build the arena for veterans of the Second World War (the arena opened in 1958).

“It’s an important part of our history and we would certainly like to see the Memorial Arena still around because it was our association that built it, many years ago,” said Papworth, who ended the meeting with mention of another milestone. He said the SCA is in the early stages of planning for the 75th anniversary celebration of the Salmar in 2024.

“I would invite all of you… to watch for announcements as we start planning these events to celebrate an institution here in Salmon Arm that’s been going now for three-quarters of a century.”

Papworth ended his report noting how the Salmar continues to see improvement from the lows of 2020, though recovery has been, at times, frustratingly slow.

“We are often asked, what concerned citizens can do to help the Salmar?” said Papworth. “Our answer remains, please come and enjoy a movie! Our staff are friendly, management is professional, the picture and sound are top tier, the popcorn is warm, the butter is real, the pop is cold and your $20 still gets you a great evening out.”

SALMAR THEATRES’ TOP MOVIES OF 2023

10 - John Wick: Chapter 4;

9 - Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania;

8 - A Man Called Otto;

7 - Spider-Man: across the Spider-Verse;

6 - Indian Jones and the Dial of Destiny;

5 - Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour;

4- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3;

3- Oppenheimer;

2 - The Super Mario Bros. Movie;

1- Barbie



Lachlan Labere

About the Author: Lachlan Labere

Editor, Salmon Arm Observer
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