Premiere trims fat to check financial slide

Premiere Entertainment Productions Inc., the first movie production outfit listed at the Philippine Stock Exchange, will be downsizing its operations as part of a corporate restructuring program intended to check the skid in its film-related revenues.

PEPI officer-in-charge Ana Maria Katigbak told the PSE that due to the present economic difficulties, the company will implement a reorganization program that will include a voluntary retirement plan for its employees.

"The company will continue operating with a downsized manpower complement and limit its activities to its roving cinema and film distribution business," Katigbak said.

Once a major force in local cinema production, Premiere has taken the backseat to other more aggressive movie production outfits since the early 90s. With limited exposure on commercial full-feature film making, the company has branched out into other areas such as roving cinema, distribution and bingo parlor operations.

Earlier this year, Premiere said it was scouting for business opportunities in the emerging information technology (IT) and telecommunication sectors to possibly rechannel operations and migrate into these new areas as its core movie ventures remained dormant.

Katigbak added that the company has suspended its bingo and film production activities and will instead concentrate on the roving cinema and film distribution business.

In 1993, Premiere began a service called roving Cinema, which involved the use of a mobile van equipped with a projector and other equipment for the screening of films. It was offered to multinational corporations as a vehicle for these companies to promote their mass-based consumer products in areas not effectively reached by traditional media.

In partnership with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Premiere also diversified into gaming with the creation of a wholly-owned subsidiary Premium Events Palace Inc. to manage and operate six bingo halls in the country.

With the impact of the economic crisis that hampered the growth of local industries, the company turned in a poor financial performance last year, posting a higher net loss of P69.1 million from a net loss of P33.7 million in 1999.

The PEPI board has noted film producer Espiridion Laxa as chairman emeritus and another prominent filmmaker, Cirio Santiago, as chairman of the board. — Conrado Diaz Jr.