Box Office Calculator

Craftsman Films — Theatrical Admissions Model

The Producer's Path · Theatrical Model

The Road to a Million

Model the theatrical path to one million admissions — a wide release or a platform expansion. Footprint and occupancy are the only two variables that move the goal. Every assumption is yours to drive.

0 admissions

Domestic box office$0

Avg admits / screen-week0

Total screen-weeks0

0% of the 1,000,000 goal

Opening screens 1500

Where you open. Platform plays start at 20–60; wide faith/family opens 1,500–2,800.

Max (peak) screens 1500

The ceiling your expansion reaches. Set above Opening for a platform play; equal to Opening = pure wide release.

Weeks to peak 0

How fast you widen from Opening to Peak (platform only).

Run length (weeks) 6

Opening-week occupancy 9%

Blended across ALL showings (incl. weekday matinees). Even wide hits run single digits to low teens.

Weekly occupancy drop 30%

Lower = stronger word of mouth / hold.

Weekly screen retention 60%

Theaters keep screens you fill, drop screens you don't (applies after peak).

Seats / auditorium 150

Showtimes / screen / day 4

Avg ticket price $11.50

Weekly admissions & screen count

Read it like this: the per-screen numbers required are modest — what governs the goal is footprint and occupancy. To clear a million you essentially need the wide path; platform is higher-variance and rarely reaches it without a real breakout. Occupancy is the lever you manufacture: it's the demand your tour and partners build. Fund that, and the model closes.