A politically charged documentary called 2016: Obama's America turned heads last weekend when it grossed a whopping $1.24 million out of just 169 theaters. KiloBravo and I saw this movie last Monday, audience gave it a standing "O".
The $2.5 million independent film, which is being distributed by Utah-based Rocky Mountain Pictures, premiered in Houston six weeks ago and has recently enjoyed some extremely uncharacteristic box office behavior.
Rocky Mountain Pictures, the same people who distributed "Atlas Shrugged".
You see, normally, when a film's theater count increases, the amount of money it's earning in each theater decreases. This is the standard performance pattern for a limited release and follows common supply/demand logic.
Here's how things have gone for 2016: Obama's America, though: Three weekends ago, 2016 earned $34,133 out of 10 theaters, which gave it a per theater average of $3,413 -- not all that remarkable for a limited release. When it expanded into 61 theaters the next weekend, its per theater average did a funny thing: it jumped up to $5,202. Last weekend, the film experienced an even bigger expansion, into 169 theaters, and again, its per theater average substantially leapt up to $7,365.
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