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Utopia’s Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) grossed an estimated $10k from one engagement at NYC’s Film Forum, where it was the top-ranking pic. Celebrated filmmaker and photographer Anton Corbijn’s first feature documentary is the story of Hipgnosis, the iconic album art design studio that was a force in the music industry behind some of the most recognizable covers of all time. It features new interviews with Paul McCartney, Roger Waters, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Noel Gallagher and others.
Turnout was backed by a multi-generational crowd of music, design and cinema enthusiasts, Utopia said, with multiple sold-out shows and in-person appearances by Corbijn along with Hipgnosis co-founder Aubrey “Po” Powell. Head of marketing and distribution Kyle Greenberg said the doc drew drom the distributor’s traditional Gen Z fans, along with older demos “that grew up with that music and those albums.”
“Kids are discovering new music all the time. The growth of vinyl over the last few years only furthers the value of album design. Even if you are talking about Gen Z, [Pink Floyd’s] The Dark Side Of The Moon transcends age. People know that album and that design.”
The Sundance and Telluride-lauded feature has received strong support from artists featured in the film such as Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel and Gallagher in addition to support by new champions Chrome Hearts, Posteritati, Criterion Collection and Roxy Cinema (which hosted retrospective screenings of Corbijn’s Control). It expands to LA (Laemmle Royal) next weekend ahead of a larger national expansion with event screenings Tuesday at about 100 locations including AMC, Regal, Angelika and Alamo theaters. It will stay on as many screens as it can through the summer, with an August digital release.
The state of New York’s air quality was a question this weekend after heavy smoke from Canadian wildfires had NYC Mayor Eric Adams urging people to stay inside. “We were wondering” what the impact would be, said Greenberg. “But we went in with strong presales. We didn’t see a big impact on the previews [Wed./Thurs.]. You could question if it could have been better on Friday, but all in all we sold out Friday night for the prime show.”
With that directive to stay indoors, it may be that “cinemas were a safe space this weekend,” he said.
Wednesday was the smokiest day in NYC with conditions improving from there. The smoke blanketed a huge swath of the Eastern Seaboard.
Heroic holdover: A24’s Past Lives notched tenth place at the domestic box office in week two, grossing over $520k on 26 screens (up from four). The love story starring Greta Lee played strong across markets, the distributor said, with exits continuing to show strong word of mouth. It will continue to roll out ahead of a nationwide expansion June 23.
Other new openings: Kino Lorber’s Scarlet debuted to a solid $8.2k in two theaters for a $4k PTA. Pietro Marcello’s (Martin Eden) French-language fable is based on a 1923 novella by Russian writer Alexander Grin. It will follow a platformed expansion over the next several weeks, adding LA. and other major markets on June 23.
Rhythm Boyz Entertainment opened Maurh in 88 locations to a debut weekend of $333.2k for a PTA of $3,787. Two friends fight the oppressive rule of both British colonizers and native kings against the backdrop of the untamed sandy badlands of Southern Punjab in the late 19th century. The distributor’s Jodi hit big Stateside last month, opening at $802k on 125 screens (after setting a record in April as the most viewed Punjabi trailer in 24 hours with over 12 million YouTube views). It’s the third-highest 2023 opening weekend for a Punjabi film in North America after Jodi in May and Kali Jotta in February.
Blue Fox Entertainment’s Mending the Line with Brian Cox opened in 403 theaters to a debut weekend of $225.7k (PTA of $560).
IFC’s AllBlk/RLJE Films’ The Angry Black Girl And Her Monster debuted to $50k in 56 theaters (PTA of $893).
Noting: Blackberry, the low-budget film from Canadian director Matt Johnson that opened May 13, now has an impressive cume of $2.58 million in North America — that’s $1.427 million in the U.S. IFC Films has U.S. rights, Elevation Pictures is handling the title in Canada.