Istvan Szabo’s Being Julia has been picking up steam at the box office since Toronto distributor ThinkFilm started the film’s platform release with an exclusive Toronto engagement on Oct. 15.

On Oct. 22, ThinkFilm added additional theaters in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal for a total of 13 screens. On Oct. 29, the release expanded again to include Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa and Halifax for a total of 22 screens. As of Nov. 1, Being Julia had grossed $234,000 in Canada for an impressive per-screen average of $10,636.

The film has enjoyed a similar platform release in the U.S., where, carried by Sony Pictures Classics, it premiered at an exclusive New York engagement Oct. 15 and has since expanded to 40 screens throughout the country. The film’s North American take as of Oct. 31 stood at US$795,947.

Box-office revenues ‘will come slower than your wide-release film. This is definitely not a fast burn, but we absolutely expect the film to garner considerable attention come awards season,’ says Andrew Austin, ThinkFilm’s SVP of Canadian distribution.

With its gradual platform release, Being Julia should be playing at theaters well into the new year. The film will hit its widest release mid-November at approximately 65 screens.

Meanwhile, The Take, a feature documentary from director Avi Lewis, released by Odeon, has grossed $20,018 from five screens as of Oct. 31 for an average of $4,003.

Also from Odeon, the Charlize Theron feature Head in the Clouds, released Oct. 22, had grossed $44,445 at the Canadian box office as of Oct. 31, when it was playing on eight Canadian screens.