Cinema export agency Unifrance’s annual international box office report for 2023 revealed on Tuesday that Russia was the top market in terms of admissions for French cinema last year.
Given that Russia’s relations with Europe are at their lowest ebb since the end of the Cold War in 1991 as its ongoing war on Ukraine rumbles on, the finding was a surprise.
Per the data, Russia accounted for 7.09M of the overall 37.4M international admissions for French cinema, but generated a smaller gross than Germany.
The Russian figures were driven by feature animation Miraculous: Ladybug and Cat Noir, The Movie, which was released on a record 1,877 screens for a French film and sold 3.53M tickets.
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