Schuyler Moore appears to think so. The title of his recent Forbes post “Netflix Will Rip The Heart Out of Presale Financing” says it all. Or at least his view of it. There is certainly a lot more to the picture than just the reach of Netflix.
Tag: Netflix
We were promised jet packs. Evolution is too damn slow. We keep telling ourselves a change is going to come, but maybe it is already here. What have you already come across that the rest of us maybe need to climb aboard in a big way? Could any of these be tomorrow’s future today?
Last year I wrote up a bit of future casting on film culture and business, but my predictions were more from the gut and general observation than from what others were doing in the field. Here are over ten additions based on things going on right now, or that those involved in the creations of the next next feel are inevitable.
By Charles Peirce
Casting is one of the obvious essentials of any film, and like all aspects of the process worth examining: the assumptions that define it and the possibilities of how it might be used to best advantage. Casting’s key place comes in financing, where attaching the right star allows raising money based on their monetary value to specific regions or demographics. Enough attached stars offer the promise of pre-sales in distribution, and enough pre-sales can then determine a base budget. This would seem to follow the simple logic of a star’s popularity guaranteeing viewers, a shortcut in the task of finding an audience.
By Lindsay Blair Goeldner
Previously: Sundance 2014 — a Microcosm of a Greater Divides
At Indie Street we are holding on to all hope that the interpersonal human elements of storytelling will never fade away into obsoleteness. The following piece comes from one of Indie Street’s own curators. While she is not programming a film festival or being one of the coolest computer programming chicks in the game, Lindsay finds time to work at one of the last Indie Video Rental Stores in Canada. Who better to get a street level breakdown about the effects of technology on film consumer’s behavior…Enjoy!
The death of the indie video store is imminent. At least that’s what everyone tells me. Working as a video store clerk in one of a handful of stores (Queen Video) in Toronto is both a blessing and a burden. While the job remains interesting, I’m continually receiving remarks about how great it is that we’re still open. In the wake of the Blockbuster collapse, the independent video store flourished. Business seemed better than usual around late 2011 when the last Blockbusters were closing down in Canada. At that point in time, Netflix had already arrived, and streaming was still popular, but for some reason many people did not want to let go of the video store experience.
By Charles Peirce
In Adventures in the Screentrade, William Goldman famously opined that “nobody knows anything” in Hollywood, a curious concession for a man with such a marked record of success. The truth, though, is that Hollywood has always known something — its very business centered not just on creating hits but also on predicting future ones.
Originally the Studio System developed a series of principals which, if not always guaranteeing success, at least mitigated against disaster. That legacy persists today, albiet more loosely: in coverage, screenwriting structure, and the identifying of a film with its stars. The rise of the blockbuster didn’t undo the Studio System legacy, but it did change the metrics of success — once the end product becomes less bodies in seats and more associated merchandise, the thinking on what makes a good movie changes significantly. New aims call for new methods, and Hollywood has evolved its strategies with the times.
“A Field In England” – The whole team behind Ben Wheatley’s movie deserves a big shout out. They did something truly different and structured their business to do so from the start. Day and Date? check. Transparency? check. Enhanced value beyond the feature film product? check. Sharing of knowledge for community benefit? check. Social media engagement? check. Revenue sharing? check. Read all about this truly innovative strategy here, courtesy of BFI (see below). I look forward to seeing how you apply it to your own practice.
The British Film Institute (BFI) – This institution makes the list of individuals not because I think corporations are at all like people (Repeal Citizens United!), but because they are taking the lead in heeding the call for greater transparency in film revenue reporting. We will not be able to build a sustainable global indie film culture or enterprise without such facts. The BFI’s GREAT listing of films & case studies of how distribs are using new ways of reaching audiences, such as using new marketing techniques, new distribution platforms or innovative exhibition models is a must read for anyone interested in finding a way to support themselves or others by making films and taking responsibility for them. bit.ly/18p4i8M
Shane Carruth – Shane probably should make this list just for making another one of his movies.
- Steven Soderbergh’s “State Of Cinema” Address at SFIFF56: http://vimeo.com/65060864. This served as the framing for AO Scott’s 2013 Cinema overview.
