Introduction to the Contemporary Film Industry J412/512 OCT. 8, 2013

Moviemaking is an inherently risky business… Contrary to popular belief that moviemaking is always profitable, in actuality, only one in ten films ever retrieves its investment from domestic exhibition… --MPAA Really??? Is this the full story?

A Dearth of Data The lack of access to real numbers in this industry is astounding and its getting worse all the time. We have no way to judge Hollywoods actual return on equity, nor can we accurately assess the year-to-year health of the film business. Harold Vogel, Entertainment Industry Economics: A Guide for Financial Analysis

Average Costs for Major Studio Films Negative costs = development, pre-production, production, post-production, studio overhead, interest Average = $65+ million in 2009 P&A (Prints and advertising) = advertising, promotions, prints distributed to theaters Average = $37 million in 2009 Average film cost in 2009 = $102 million (up from $87.9 million in 2008)

BIGGEST BUDGETS John Carter (2012)$300,000,000 Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End (2007)$300,000,000 The Hobbit: There and Back Again (2012)$270,000,000 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)$270,000,000 Tangled (2010)$260,000,000 Spider-Man 3 (2007)$258,000,000 Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince (2009)$250,000,000 The Dark Knight Rises (2012)$250,000,000 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011) $250,000,000 Avatar (2009)$237,000,000 Source: the-numbers.com

Studio Market Share (Jan-Dec 2012) Source:

The Process of Making a (Hollywood) Film DEVELOPMENT & FINANCING

Question: What kinds of movies are produced and why? For Hollywood studios? For independents?

Development

Genre What is genre? Sickels: genre as pastiche What model works best / most efficiently for Hollywood studios?

Studio Executives on Remakes For original movies, you need to advertise the idea, the story -- it's about convincing people that it's worth seeing...With something that is branded, no education is required. If you're trying to get a movie made now, you can push the rock up a mountain or you can push it on flat ground...and most of us would rather push it on flat ground.

Sequels / Prequels 2011 = 27 sequels = 1/5 of all major releases

2 nd movie in series3 rd movie in series4 th movie in series Cars 2Alvin and the ChipmunksMission Impossible: Ghost Protocol Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides The Hangover 2Madeas Big Happy FamilyScream 4 Sherlock Holmes 2Paranormal Activity 3Spy Kids 4 Hoodwinked Too!Transformers: Dark of the Moon Twilight: Breaking Dawn (Part 1) Johnny English Reborn Kung Fu Panda 2 Sherlock Holmes 2 Piranha 3DD

5 th movie in series7 th movie in series8 th movie in series Fast FiveThe MuppetsHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two Final Destination 5Rise of the Apes Puss in Boots X-Men: First Class Winnie the PoohPlus: New Years Eve The Thing

Remakes When I was a kid, I wanted nothing to do with my parents music or movies. I needed to carve out my own cultural identity. Todays kids, thanks to the easy access to Netflix and YouTube, make far less of a distinction between what is old and what is new. --Patrick Goldstein, LA Times

Adaptations

Original Stories

Development ?? I now sit down and scroll though IMDb looking for movies, and I spend time researching rights to old TV shows...That's where I spend more of my development time. Studio executive

Independent Film Development WHAT KINDS OF FILMS AND WHY?

Development Reasons for making film? Business plan? Film development programs Content developed for multiple platforms

Other Models

Why use these models?