SF Cinema City
Encyclopedia
SF Group is a movie-theater
and entertainment-leisure venue operator in Thailand
. Behind the combined operations of Major Cineplex
and the EGV chain, SF Group is the second-largest theater chain in Thailand, with more than 200 screens in 30 locations.
The Thongrompo family is from Eastern Thailand
, where its Samarn Film Co operated movie theaters since the 1970s in Chonburi
, Rayong
and Chanthaburi
.
The company become known as SF Cinema City in 1999 when it opened its first multiplex in Bangkok
on the seventh floor of MBK Center
. The still centered mainly in Bangkok and the Eastern Seaboard provinces, in 2005, the company expanded to southern Thailand
, opening SFX Central Festival cinema in Phuket Town. An SF Cinema City branch in the Jungceylon complex on Patong Beach
followed in October 2007.
Also in 2007, the company undertook a major branding change, with the corporate name SF Group adopted in March 2007.
. The chain's theater brands include:
backed by a magnet. The magnets are collectors' items and are sold second-hand by movie-memorabilia dealers.
SF Group also offers digital cinema screening using Barco's DLP Digital Cinema Technology bundled with Dolby Digital 3D Screening Capability at the following locations:
SF Group currently owns a total of 14 digital projectors which is by far the largest number to date in Thailand.
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
and entertainment-leisure venue operator in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. Behind the combined operations of Major Cineplex
Major Cineplex
Major Cineplex Group Public Co. Ltd. is the largest operator of movie theaters in Thailand. Combined with its subsidiary, EGV Entertainment, the company has 258 screens in 32 locations. Among its properties is Thailand's largest multiplex, the Paragon Cineplex at Siam Paragon, with 16 screens and...
and the EGV chain, SF Group is the second-largest theater chain in Thailand, with more than 200 screens in 30 locations.
History
SF Group is a privately held company owned by the Thongrompo family, headed by Suwat Thongrompo as president and his younger brother Suvit Thongrompo as managing director.The Thongrompo family is from Eastern Thailand
Central Thailand
Central Thailand is a region of Thailand, covering the broad alluvial plain of the Chao Phraya River. It is separated from North-East Thailand by the Phetchabun mountain range, and another mountain range separates it from Myanmar to the west. In the north it gently changes into the more hilly...
, where its Samarn Film Co operated movie theaters since the 1970s in Chonburi
Chonburi Province
Chonburi is a province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Chachoengsao, Chanthaburi and Rayong. To the west is the Gulf of Thailand. The eastern seaboard is heavily industrialized and underpinned by shipping, transportation, tourism, and manufacturing industries, and second to only Bangkok...
, Rayong
Rayong Province
Rayong province is a province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Chon Buri and Chanthaburi. To the south is the Gulf of Thailand.-History:...
and Chanthaburi
Chanthaburi Province
Chanthaburi is a province of Thailand. It is located in the east of Thailand, at the border to Battambang and Pailin of Cambodia and the shore to the Gulf of Thailand...
.
The company become known as SF Cinema City in 1999 when it opened its first multiplex in Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
on the seventh floor of MBK Center
MBK Center
MBK Center, also known as Mahboonkrong , is a large shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand. At eight stories high, the center hosts around 2,000 stores and services, including the 4-story Tokyu department store, restaurants and entertainment....
. The still centered mainly in Bangkok and the Eastern Seaboard provinces, in 2005, the company expanded to southern Thailand
Southern Thailand
Southern Thailand is a distinct region of Thailand, connected with the Central region by the narrow Kra Isthmus.-Geography:Southern Thailand is located on the Malay Peninsula, with an area around 70,713 km², bounded to the north by Kra Isthmus as the narrowest part of the peninsula. The...
, opening SFX Central Festival cinema in Phuket Town. An SF Cinema City branch in the Jungceylon complex on Patong Beach
Patong Beach
Patong Beach refers to a beach on Phuket's west coast, and to the town adjoining it. It is the main tourist resort in Phuket. It also contains an important center of Phuket's nightlife and is the center of inexpensive shopping on the island. The beach became popular with Western tourists,...
followed in October 2007.
Also in 2007, the company undertook a major branding change, with the corporate name SF Group adopted in March 2007.
Theaters and locations
As of 2010, SF Group has 25 branches throughout Thailand, mainly concentrated in Bangkok and in eastern ThailandCentral Thailand
Central Thailand is a region of Thailand, covering the broad alluvial plain of the Chao Phraya River. It is separated from North-East Thailand by the Phetchabun mountain range, and another mountain range separates it from Myanmar to the west. In the north it gently changes into the more hilly...
. The chain's theater brands include:
- SF Cinema City (SFC) – Large multiplex theaters that are packaged with restaurants, bowling lanes and karaoke booths, usually taking up an entire floor in a shopping center.
- SFX Cinema – "Boutique Chic" is the concept behind these multiplexes, which emphasize luxury.
- SF World Cinema - The group's Flagship cinema location located at CentralWorldCentralWorldCentralWorld is a shopping plaza and complex in Bangkok, Thailand. It is the third largest shopping complex in the world. The complex, which includes a hotel and office tower, is owned by Central Pattana...
Shopping Complex. - SF Multiplex (SFM) – These are smaller multiplexes located in eastern ThailandCentral ThailandCentral Thailand is a region of Thailand, covering the broad alluvial plain of the Chao Phraya River. It is separated from North-East Thailand by the Phetchabun mountain range, and another mountain range separates it from Myanmar to the west. In the north it gently changes into the more hilly...
.
Future projects
Expansion plans by SF Group includes:- SF Cinema City Sukhumvit – To be located at the new shopping center, Terminal 21, on SukhumvitSukhumvitSukhumvit can refer to:* Sukhumvit Road, one of the four major highways of Thailand, which follows a coastal route from Bangkok to Trat* Sukhumvit Line of the Bangkok Skytrain in Bangkok...
Road at Asoke junction, Bangkok Province. - SF Cinema City Ubon Ratchathani – To be located at the City Mall Shopping Centre, in Amphoe Muang, Ubon Ratchathani ProvinceUbon Ratchathani Province-History:The area was part of the Khmer Empire. Before the late eighteenth century, this area evidently was outside Siamese or Thai Ayutthaya Kingdom....
. - SFX Cinema CentralPlaza Rama IX – To be located at the Central GroupCentral GroupThe Central Group of Companies is a family-owned conglomerate holding company in Thailand that is involved in retailing, real estate, hotels and restaurants...
's new shopping center, CentralPlaza Rama IX, on Ratchadapisek Road in Bangkok Province.
Bowling, karaoke and gaming business
- SF City - An entertainment complex bundled with bowlingBowlingBowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
alleys, karaokeKaraokeis a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
rooms and video arcadeVideo arcadeAn amusement arcade or video arcade is a venue where people play arcade games such as video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers , or coin-operated billiards or air hockey tables...
s- SF City - Jungceylon, Phuket Thailand
- SF Strike Bowl - Bowling alley chain with more than 210 lanes.
- SF Strike - MBK CenterMBK CenterMBK Center, also known as Mahboonkrong , is a large shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand. At eight stories high, the center hosts around 2,000 stores and services, including the 4-story Tokyu department store, restaurants and entertainment....
, Bangkok, (28 lanes) - SF Strike - Jungceylon, Phuket (16 lanes).
- SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Bangkapi, Bangkok (38 lanes).
- SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Ngamwongwan, Bangkok (42 lanes)
- SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Bangkae, Bangkok (28 lanes)
- SF Strike Bowl - The Mall Ramkhamhaeng, Bangkok (26 lanes)
- SF Strike Bowl - Central Plaza Rattanathibeth, Nonthaburi (8 lanes)
- SF Strike Bowl - Central Festival Pattaya Beach,Chonburi (16 lanes)
- SF Strike - MBK Center
- SF Music City - KaraokeKaraokeis a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
rooms, with up to 100 in some locations, mostly tied to SF Cinema City and SF Strike Bowl locations.- SF Music City - MBK Center (100 rooms). The facility also has a vocal training and a dance training school located within the same premises.
- SF Music City - The Mall Bangkapi, Bangkok (40 rooms)
- SF Music City - The Mall Ngamwongwan, Bangkok (18 rooms)
- SF Music City - The Mall Bangkae, Bangkok (16 rooms)
- SF Music City - Central Plaza Rattanathibeth, Nonthaburi (28 rooms)
Restaurants
- Eat @ W Restaurant chain with the first location on the 9th floor of SF World Cinema, CentralWorldCentralWorldCentralWorld is a shopping plaza and complex in Bangkok, Thailand. It is the third largest shopping complex in the world. The complex, which includes a hotel and office tower, is owned by Central Pattana...
Bangkok.
Collectibles
For each ticket purchased at some SF Cinema City and SFX branches, the purchaser receives a business-card-sized replica of a movie posterMovie poster
A movie poster is a poster used to advertise a film. Studios often print several posters that vary in size and content for various domestic and international markets. They normally contain an image with text. Today's posters often feature photographs of the main actors. Prior to the 1990s,...
backed by a magnet. The magnets are collectors' items and are sold second-hand by movie-memorabilia dealers.
Digital Cinemas
SF Group offers digital cinema screening using Christie's CP 2K Digital Cinema Technology at the following locations:- SF Cinema City MBK (Cinema No. 7)
- SF Cinema City Bangkapi (Cinema No. 13)
- SF Cinema City Ngamwongwan (Cinema No. 11)
- SF Cinema City The Mall Thapra (Cinema No.3)
- SFX Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No. 6,8)
- SFX Cinema The Emporium (Cinema No. 3,5)
SF Group also offers digital cinema screening using Barco's DLP Digital Cinema Technology bundled with Dolby Digital 3D Screening Capability at the following locations:
- SF World Cinema (Cinema No.8, No.12, No.14)
- SFX Cinema Central Lat Phrao (Cinema No.7)
- SF Cinema City Bangkapi (Cinema No.14)
- SF Cinema City MBK (Cinema No.8)
- SFX Cinema Pattaya Beach (Cinema No.5,No.7)
SF Group currently owns a total of 14 digital projectors which is by far the largest number to date in Thailand.