Palace Films

Overview

Palace Films is an independent, family-owned Australian film distribution company that has represented arthouse, prestige, and foreign-language films across Australia and New Zealand since 1965. The company is headquartered in Chippendale, Sydney, and is the sister division of Palace Cinemas, Australia's largest independent cinema chain. This integrated distribution-and-exhibition model, similar to Curzon in the UK, gives Palace Films guaranteed theatrical screen access for its releases and a direct relationship with arthouse cinema audiences.

The company was founded by Antonio Zeccola, an Italian immigrant who began screening imported Italian films in Melbourne town halls in the early 1960s before opening his first permanent cinema, the Pix Theatre in Noble Park. Palace Films is now managed by the Zeccola family, with Benjamin Zeccola serving as CEO. The company operates alongside Transmission Films and Madman Entertainment as one of the three primary independent theatrical distributors in Australia for quality cinema.

Distribution Model

Palace Films acquires Australian and New Zealand rights to international arthouse, prestige drama, and foreign-language films. The company acquires at Cannes, Toronto, Sundance, Berlin, Venice, and other major festivals, and through relationships with international sales agents. Its preference for arthouse, prestige drama, and foreign-language cinema positions it as the natural Australian distribution partner for films targeting the same audience that supports Curzon in the UK or Mongrel Media in Canada.

The company distributes theatrically through its own Palace Cinemas chain and through partnerships with independent arthouse cinemas across Australia and New Zealand. Palace handles its own theatrical marketing and publicity for Australian releases. Home entertainment and digital releases follow the theatrical window through partnerships with Australian VOD platforms and physical media distributors.

Palace Films also operates several film festivals in Australia, including the Spanish Film Festival, the Nordic Film Festival, and partnerships with the Melbourne International Film Festival and the New Zealand International Film Festival. These festival operations serve as both revenue streams and audience-building mechanisms for the company's distribution catalog.

Palace Cinemas

Palace Cinemas operates over 20 cinema centres nationally with approximately 85 screening halls and 500 staff. Locations include:

• Melbourne: Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, The Astor Theatre (programming partner), Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Pentridge Cinema (opened 2020, first Palace cinema with Dolby Atmos), The Kino (partnership)
• Sydney: Palace Verona, Palace Norton Street, Palace Central, Palace Moore Park
• Brisbane: Palace Barracks, Palace James Street (formerly Centro)
• Adelaide: Palace Nova Eastend (12 screens, host of the Adelaide Film Festival), Palace Nova Prospect (14 screens)
• Canberra: Palace Electric
• Byron Bay: Palace Byron Bay, Ballina Fair
• Perth: Luna Palace Cinemas (partnership with Luna Cinemas), including seasonal outdoor cinemas in Leederville and Mosman Park

For filmmakers whose films are distributed by Palace, the cinema chain provides guaranteed exhibition in Australia's largest cities through venues with established arthouse audience relationships. This guaranteed screen access is a meaningful distribution asset for films that depend on arthouse cinema audiences for their success.

Notable Releases

Palace Films has distributed in Australia films including major Cannes, Venice, and Berlin prize-winners, prestige English-language dramas, and significant European and Latin American arthouse titles. Recent and forthcoming 2026 releases include Minotaur (Andrei Zvyagintsev, Grand Prix winner at Cannes 2026 and Sydney Film Prize winner), Prosecution (Faraz Shariat, Audience Award winner at Berlin 2026 Panorama), and a range of Spanish, Latin American, and Nordic titles programmed through the company's festival operations.

The company has also produced and distributed Australian films including Kokoda and Chopper, and distributes many foreign-language films in Australia that would not otherwise receive theatrical release in the territory.

What Filmmakers Should Know

Palace Films is an active acquisition target for international filmmakers seeking Australian and New Zealand distribution. The company's preference for arthouse, prestige drama, and foreign-language cinema makes it the natural Australian partner for films in those categories. Filmmakers should approach Palace through their international sales agent, as the company acquires primarily through sales agent relationships and festival attendance.

For Australian filmmakers, Palace Films is one of the primary domestic distribution options alongside Transmission Films. Films with Screen Australia or state screen agency financing are regularly distributed through Palace, and the company has strong relationships with the Australian film funding ecosystem.

Australian pre-sales to Palace Films are a recognized financing mechanism for qualifying productions. The company's exhibition relationships mean a Palace pre-sale comes with genuine screen commitment rather than just a distribution promise. This makes Palace pre-sales more valuable than pre-sales to distributors without exhibition infrastructure, as the guaranteed theatrical playdates support both box office revenue and awards qualification.

Filmmakers should note that Palace's distribution model is weighted toward theatrical release. Films that are primarily digital or VOD-oriented may not be the best fit for Palace's distribution infrastructure. The company's strength is in building arthouse audience awareness through cinema exhibition, press coverage, and festival positioning.

Watch: Trailers

See Also

For how Australian theatrical distribution and cinema exhibition interact in the distribution deal structure, see Distribution Deals Explained. To model the revenue from Australian theatrical distribution as part of a global release strategy, use the Revenue Forecast Calculator. For how pre-sales function as a financing mechanism in international distribution, see Streaming vs Theatrical Revenue.