Few companies are making more waves in the independent film world than MUBI. The indie distributor is coming off its biggest box office success to date with “The Substance,” which grossed over $75 million worldwide after being acquired at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. Following a new investment round that valued the company at over $1 billion, MUBI enters this Cannes ready to compete with power players like Neon for the Palme d’Or.
Helping to lead the charge is Ariana Bocco, MUBI’s new SVP of Global Distribution. Bocco joined MUBI in January after a 16-year career at IFC Films, and is now tasked with overseeing the global release strategy for MUBI’s films. At IndieWire’s inaugural Future of Filmmaking Summit at the American Pavilion at Cannes, Bocco sat down with IndieWire’s Anne Thompson for a wide ranging conversation about MUBI’s strategy at the festival and the state of the industry as a whole.
Like many conversations about film distribution these days, the conversation quickly turned to the fate of theatrical distribution. Unlike many pessimistic voices, Bocco refused to concede that theatrical is becoming a niche business that exists to feed streaming. While she acknowledged that the industry is facing a unique period of uncertainty, Bocco explained why she is still bullish on theatrical’s prospects.
“I think the bottom line is really that theatrical is not going away,” Bocco said. “I think there are a lot of people who may feel like, ‘Oh, it’s becoming a niche business. It’s not what people want anymore.’ And I would really disagree, I really do. I think we’re seeing that, we’re seeing that globally. Theatrical is still as important as it ever was. I think sometimes in the industry, people tend to think, ‘Oh, we took some hits. We really as a business, as an industry, took some hits with the pandemic and the strikes,’ which had a ripple effect internationally in what was getting made and what was getting distributed. But that doesn’t mean it’s over. I think that there’s opportunity and there’s a desire, and there are younger and younger audiences who are really embracing seeing films in theaters.”
Bocco added that theatrical distribution isn’t just a viable business model, it’s a vital part of the marketing strategy to ensure that films find success on streaming.
“The films that are released theatrically have a higher profile in terms of the marketing that they get,” she said. “And I think it’s been pretty well established that films that are released theatrically anywhere will do better on streaming platforms, and for the life of the film. You can’t just look at a film as, it’s theatrical and then it goes on a platform, and that’s it. Films have a life and they’re meant to have a life. The goal for any distributor, including MUBI, is to make sure that that film continues to be seen long after its theatrical run.”
In her role at MUBI, Bocco is tasked with finding growth opportunities in markets outside the United States. She explained that she believes the global audience for arthouse cinema is growing, and that smart distribution strategies for individual films could unlock revenue opportunities that might have gone overlooked in the past.
“I think that the audiences are growing,” she said. “We’ve seen growth globally, and we see the films that are working. It’s about being smart about how you’re releasing films, having the flexibility to treat each film individually for what it is and how you’re releasing it, and not put it through some kind of machine. When you’re curating in that way and you’re really speaking to your audience, there is an amazing opportunity for growth. But the most important thing is, on an industry level, the global aspect of it. ‘The Substance’ did incredible business in Mexico and Latin America for us. That’s an audience that is hungry to see films, and see great films. So I don’t look at it as, we’re focused on the U.S. only, we’re really focused globally on making sure that we’re feeding into the growth that already exists. But audiences are growing.”
Watch IndieWire’s complete conversation with Bocco at the Future of Filmmaking Summit below. And check out the rest of American Pavilion’s Cannes programming here.
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