AMC Teams With #GoldOpen To Help Support Asian And “New Majority” Films

With the success of Asian-led films such as Crazy Rich Asians, Searching and Aquaman, #GoldOpen has partnered with AMC Theatres to help continue their initiative of championing Asian films. The first-of-its-kind partnership with AMC is designed to streamline group movie-going, theatre buyouts and bulk regular-price ticket purchasing through a ticket buying system that includes a dedicated ticketing web page, purchasing support, and special events throughout the year.

“#GoldOpen is at the eye of a perfect storm — a community with pent up demand and an abundance of untapped talent and resources to spare,” #GoldOpen co-founder Janet Yang tells Deadline. “One need only look at last year’s box office, recent hires of tentpole movies, and Sundance. And now with #GoldOpen, there is no stopping us.”

#GoldOpen was founded by Gold House, a collective of pioneering Asian founders, creative voices, and leaders, dedicated to uniting communities through cross-cultural collaboration. In 2017, the collective developed a system to better support independent films, beginning with multiple theatre buyouts and a social media strategy for the Sundance-winning Gook. #GoldOpen gained even more traction when they partnered with Michelle Sugihara and Jess Ju of the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE) and Alex Wu of the A3 Foundation for the release of Crazy Rich Asians. If you were on Twitter, you might have seen the #GoldOpen in your feed when the landmark Warner Bros. film was released. The Jon M. Chu-directed film based on the Kevin Kwan, which was the first contemporary Asian American film from a major studio since 1993’s Joy Luck Club, eventually went on to become the highest-grossing romantic comedy in 10 years.

“Director Jon M. Chu proclaimed that Crazy Rich Asians was more than just a movie—it was a movement — but a movement only lasts with a machine behind it,” said Yang and #GoldOpen co-creator Bing Chen in a joint statement. “We’re ecstatic for the next phase of #GoldOpen to support more New Majority creative voices and their projects so the world we watch finally reflects the world we live in.”

“If we want greater representation, we must vote with our dollars and show up to support our creatives,” CAPE Executive director Michelle Sugihara tells Deadline. “CAPE hosted 17 screenings in 2018 to celebrate our community’s collective visibility, both in front of and behind the camera. Being founding members of #GoldOpen is a natural extension to bolster the feedback loop CAPE’s writers and executive fellowships are creating from the writers’ room, to the boardroom, to the screening room.”

In addition, #GoldOpen has successfully supported the number 1 opening weekends of indie films including Aneesh Chaganty’s Searching starring John Cho and Chang-dong Lee’s Burning starring Steven Yeun as well as the James Wan-directed blockbuster DC pic Aquaman starring Jason Momoa. #GoldOpen maintains a definitive Lineup of top Asian films, TV shows, and publishing projects which will be available on the newly-launched goldopen.com.

The #GoldOpen lineup will not only be limited to Asian-led entertainment projects. They will expand their reach to include several projects from women, the African diaspora, Latinx communities, and LGBTQ+ creatives. On goldopen.com, you will be able to view details about projects, purchase tickets, access streaming links and download the #GoldOpen Rosters that include the full list of buyers. You will also be able to submit new projects for consideration.

“AMC Theatres is a long-time exhibitor of Asian-led films, and this partnership with #GoldOpen helps AMC and the entire film industry continue to support diverse storytelling and make these movies more accessible to a growing audience segment,” said Elizabeth Frank, Executive Vice President, Worldwide Programming and Chief Content Officer, AMC Theatres. “Group movie-going is already affordable and growing in popularity, and this partnership will make it more accessible to communities throughout the country.”

AMC’s decision to partner with #GoldOpen is a smart move. According to MPAA’s 2017 report Asians had the second highest rate of moviegoing in the country, second to the Latinx community, who had the highest rate. Asian filmmakers also made an impact at Sundance earlier this month with four of the first films sold at the fest being helmed by Asian women: Nisha Ganatra’s Late Night, Lulu Wang’s The Farewell, Minhal Baig’s Hala and Gurinder Chadha’s Blinded by the Light — all films will definitely be under the #GoldOpen umbrella.