About movie industry

Movie industry is one of the biggest money making industry in the world. Especially in USA, Hollywood is known as heaven of movie industry. This time, let’s talk about Hollywood movie industry.

First Studio Period (1920 – 1960), particularly 1930s to 1945s was the golden age of Hollywood. At that time, there was monopoly and oligopoly of 8 major studios. To get the best profit, studios made vertical integration of movie making, distribution, and screening. Also, to please audiences’ taste and ensure the box-office, they devise studio, star, and genre system.

Movie making started to be specialization by studio system. At that time, people introduced assembly line method, and through standardization, they attempted mass production. That is opportunity of increase economic efficient. Like this, there was a trend of disposition individual art in studio that purposes to profit maximization. Moreover, by the integration of making, distribution, and screening, major studios could take monopoly in movie industry.

In screening, major studios possessed more theaters to earn much money. Also they put out special price policy. They drew a distinction of a ticket by the same time screening system such as run, zone, and clearance. Thus, enthusiastic audiences needed to pay expensive entrance fee.

Another method to ensure the box-office was star system. Stars ensured the box-office and gave joy to the audiences. Audiences love starts by relates an image with the stars. Therefore major studios showed their own individuality through their belonging stars, so they made themselves differently as other studios. Stars’ fixed image was so strong, so that audiences even could guess what kind of movie it is when studio showed a main actor. If a star showed a new image instead of his/her fixed image in a movie, the movie’s risk was big. In other words, it was easy to fail the box-office. Like this, star was a special product of Hollywood, a representative of produce and a representative of consumption. It was the result of studio’s complete effort.
Genre is a public story, normal consideration of movie topic. Genre system was also a method for saving money and profit maximization. It worked like box-office element of stars. Studios repeated a genre that was popular; soon a movie’s standardization became a model.

Scenario that is center of narrative was created by the director, producer, and scenario writer. Scenario was written by many scenario writers rather than one writer, and there was a writer who only took charge of a certain story. Thus, scenario writer was a small part of a big plan rather than a person in charge of creative working.

Studio system that was devised for mass production and mass marketing of movie started collapsing after World War II and appearance of TV. This appearance of TV changed people’s watching movie habit to watching TV habit. In the early 1950s, after Hollywood got damage by TV, they sought distinction with TV through new technologies that were large size screen, 3-D movie, color movie, and stereo sound effect.

Even though in many efforts, movie industry was stagnant. At that time, it was the last struggling to survive rather than make profit. However, Hollywood sought new survival method through rationalization in blockbuster, estimate, production value, and marketing. This period is called “New Hollywood Period”. Specifically it is after 1975s, and period that economic, aesthetic, technical interaction became a center. The thing that opened period of new Hollywood was [Jaws]. [Jaws] led period of high cost and high technique blockbuster. In story aspect, it was mix of action, thriller, and various genres. Narrative was simple and effective, its structure moved and separated to the climax,and exploded at the end. Anyway [Jaws] made a big profit, and showed other potentialities of movie industry. [StarWars] was also representative movie of new Hollywood period. These two movies were trigger that made Lucas and Spielberg to become center men of Hollywood.

After that, Hollywood’s marketing strategy became a defensive strategy. A sequel, series, edited version, remake movies were increased, because risk was grew by increase of production cost. Also, increase of print cost for the same time screening affected quite big.
The biggest feature at that time was relationship between movie and TV. In other words, the effect of TV advertisement grew big in movie market, and with this, through appearance of cable TV and video, movie channel was made and new market (video) was created. Not only this, but also various cultural products were sprang. Various media as production, network and record, publication, game, toys, theme parks were emerged to make more profit. According to this, Hollywood movie industry gradually firmed. Generally, long term stability of movie making in new Hollywood period was increased, but short term was decreased.
Today, Hollywood has remaining as a symbol of harmony in technology and narrative tradition rather than center of movie manufacture, but even the industry structure has changed, Hollywood’s basis still affects American movies.

Proportion of quality and money

Profit of movie normally increases by enjoyment and quality of movie, and people’s hearsay. Here, two movies [Titanic] and [Cave] are compared a lot in that way. Both of these two movies spent huge money on movie making, however they exactly show how quality of movie affects profit of movie.

[Titanic] is the most profit movie in the movie history. Story is about the Titanic sinking accident, which is real story, and love story between Jack and Rose in Titanic. [Titanic] is considered as a masterpiece in the movies because of its quality. It expressed love of two protagonists minutely during 3 hours of long running time, and the firm story made all audiences to feel pity and understand the movie well. [Titanic] also was praised a lot as well as it swept most of prizes such as actors’ performance, sound phase, and visual phase. Moreover it showed well about possible happenings in the real Titanic, it succeeded to drag out audiences’ sympathy.
Although [Titanic] was opened more than 10 years ago; graphic effect is not stiff at all even if we watch it now. According to these elements, quality of [Titanic] was evaluated highly; therefore it could make the most profit.

[Cave] is also based on true story that missing of cave explorers. Story is about protagonists who are shut up in a cave, attacked by strange monsters. Actually this kind of entertainment monster movie also has quality, and like other genres, if the quality is high, then profit is also relatively high. The most representative example is [Alien]. Although [Alien] is also an entertainment movie that monsters appear, it made huge profit and considered as a masterpiece of monster movie because of high technology visuals that make audiences to be absorbed and creative story that wasn’t appear in other movies before. However, even though exorbitant production cost of [Cave], story developing process that can be forecasted and background of cave that is too dark to watch make movie itself to be boring and chocking. Furthermore, it doesn’t have fear and thrill that are essential in thriller movie. Eventually, [Cave] was crushed in both the box-office and valuation.

Representative relationship between movies and economics : Box Office

All- Time World Wide Box Office

How movies relates to economics?

What relationship is there between movie and economics? Compare with economics that have passed through long times of educational development process, history of movie isn’t very old. The first short film was created in 1895s, so it just passed 113 years’ history.

Although movie and economics passed through different development process, they have commonness that both of them target all real world of human. Famous economists’ master named Alfred Marshall said that economists should be both compassionate and rational; that they should have a "warm heart and a cool brain." And film artists try to convey emotionally and understand rationally the problems and phenomena that are appeared in human world.

Like this, the way of expression in movie and economics looks different, but essence character relates deeply.

Sometimes movie conveys a certain period’s economics condition or various economic concepts are appeared in movie.
In the movie “The Godfather”, we can see regulation process between a gang group who try to take monopoly and another gang group who knows damage of monopoly.
Our usual life itself is target of movie and economics, but economics deliver it in logical way and movie delivers it in emotional way.

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Because movie is an art that needs the most money than any other arts, movie making processes are all related with money. Therefore it needs producer who shapes frame and gets capital rather than joins movie making directly. In a director and actors’ case, they are hired by a movie company and get certain contract wage, and then direct or play in the movie.

Usually an enterprise investment company invests huge fund, because it is hard to be provided by an individual investor, and these days, ordinary people also invest money on movie like doing stocks.

After the produce company gets capital by doing so, movie producing starts. Not only a director, but also many staffs who control various things are producers. Producers control internal contexts of movie and also external contexts of movie.

When movie is all made, a distributing agency takes film of the movie and decides which theaters they would sell the film, and finally distribute it. At this time, the distributing agency and the movie company decide opening date, and also advertise the movie.
When movie is opened and theaters start getting money, 40~50 percents of money goes to the theaters, 35~45 percents of money goes to the produce company and 15 percents of money goes to the distributing company.

How movie becomes a real art?

Movie becomes a real art when most of people approve that movie, and that movie is usually made by a director who makes movie as an art, so spends long time to take one scene and takes a serious view in aesthetic value rather than monetary value. For example, the movie considered as one of the best product in 20th century, 2001: A Space Odyssey (by Stanley Kubrick) flows like water, from the opening to the ending with grandeur orchestra and silent space. It seemed there is no story. But if you watch it again and again, you would know there is very complicated philosophy about birth of human-being, philosophy of Buddhism, life and death, and time and space that are all implied by director and scenario writer. This made 2001: A Space Odyssey (the rest is 2001) as a real aesthetic film.

Secondly, a real art movie is decided by film critics who evaluate level and merit of the movie. Actually people’s reaction wasn’t very good when 2001 opened at first. Most of people felt boring due to no speaking, but infinite space scenes, and 158 minutes of long running time. However film critics maintained this movie is masterpiece that may or may not emerge in a hundred years, and after that many people analyzed the movie, so 2001 has been remained as a high art in everyone’s heart.

Movie as an art

When we see the definition of art it is easy to solve that why movie can be an art . Art is all behaviors of human who makes esthetic work. For example, if a person thought the sky is so beautiful so took a picture, that is an art, and if someone took a video of a smiling baby, it is also an art. Like this, because art is seen as a producing work that moves or impresses people’s mind, the range is remarkably wide. However we can’t say all movies are high quality arts. If it can’t impresses our mind but just shows, it is a low art and a commercial movie rather than a high art.

It is hard thing that express one’s sense of values and philosophy. Thus, movie became a new genre of art that can express something by new way like music, literature, art, and dance did. Movie as a commodity is just a commercial movie. It might be same thing in other genre that capital is needed to create a product, so we can’t ignore commercial value. This relationship between art and money is like relationship of crocodile and crocodile bird.

Criteria of film

Feature-length: Narrative format, at least 40 minutes in length.
American film: English language, with significant creative and/or financial production elements from the United States.
Critical Recognition: Formal commendation in print.
Major Award Winner: Recognition from competitive events including awards from organizations in the film community and major film festivals.
Popularity Over Time: Including figures for box office adjusted for inflation, television broadcasts and syndication, and home video sales and rentals.
Historical Significance: A film's mark on the history of the moving image through technical innovation, visionary narrative devices or other groundbreaking achievements.
Cultural Impact: A film's mark on American society in matters of style and substance.
Substance: A work of pure escapism can be a masterpiece, but can't enter the stratified realm of the very best. Nor can a work with a simplistic theme of Hooray for our side. Such a film must say something intelligent and complex about the society in which it was made, or about the human condition.
Humanity: Even a complex message is cheapened if told through cardboard characters. The very best films, therefore, must explore their complex themes through believable, human characters.
Entertainment: There are plenty of great films of substance and humanity, but let's be honest: They're not all that much fun to watch. To stand out above that crowd, a deep and complex movie must also provide a good time.
Original Craftsmanship: It's not enough for a film on the very top to be well written, designed, shot, acted, edited, and directed. It must avoid clichés and push the envelope. Uh, let me reword that. It must be well-made in an unusual, preferably ground-breaking way.
Well-Aged: A work of art can't truly be a classic until it has stood the test of time. It’s not that new works are inferior; it’s just that we have no way of knowing if they'll look great or absurd to the next generation–or to older versions of ourselves. I put the minimum age for a classic at 20 years. That's long enough for it to be discovered by a generation too young to remember the world it was created in.
Use of Medium: Movies combine sight and sound and movement. The best movies are those that take advantage of the medium and tell their stories in ways that you couldn't tell it orally, in a book, etc.
Also... Clever dialogue, humor, rich characterization, good acting, emotional depth, intelligent social commentary, documentary like looks at other cultures, educational looks at science or the arts, educational looks at history and unusual subcultures, spiritual values all have their adherents, innovations in film technique, abstract imagery, critics ratings (metacritic and movie guide ratings), best picture honors, and Box office (first weekend and gross)


Oscar

Criteria: • With the exceptions of animated and foreign films any film can qualify for Oscars in all narrative feature categories with a seven-day run in any commercial Los Angeles County theater during the year of eligibility. Films must have a running length of more than 40 minutes and have been exhibited theatrically on 35 mm, 70 mm film or in a qualifying digital format.
• Films that receive their first public exhibition or distribution in any manner other than as a theatrical motion picture release are not eligible for an Oscar in any category.
• - Animated Feature Films -
• The award is being triggered by the release of eight or more eligible films in a calendar year. If eight to fifteen animated features are released, a maximum of three films may be nominated. If sixteen or more are released, a maximum of five may be nominated.
• To be eligible, an animated feature must be at least 70 minutes in length, "primarily animated," and meet the other general requirements for feature film eligibility as published annually in the Academy Award Rules.
• Films could use cel animation, computer animation, stop motion or other recognized animation techniques.
• The Oscar for the category will be presented to "the key creative talent most clearly responsible for the overall achievement", normally a single individual, on behalf of the entire production. In no case will more than two statuettes be presented.
• Films submitted in the Best Animated Feature category may qualify for Academy Awards in other areas, including Best Picture, provided they meet the rules criteria governing those categories. (as of 2000)
• - Foreign Language Films -
• Each country is invited to submit its best film of the year to the Academy. Selection of those entries is made by juries made up of filmmakers from that country. Only one film, which need not have been released in Los Angeles, is accepted from each country. A film must have had its first public showing for at least seven consecutive days in a commercial theater in its home country in the period of eligibility (November 1 to October 31, as of 2001) and must have been produced with a predominantly non-English dialogue track in a language of the submitting country.
• Films submitted for Best Foreign Language Film Award consideration may also qualify for Academy Awards in most other categories provided they meet the requirements governing those categories.


Special Achievement Award

Criteria: • The award is given for an achievement which makes an exceptional contribution to the motion picture for which it was created, but for which there is no annual award category. Unlike an Honorary Award, a Special Achievement Award is conferred only for achievements in films which meet the Academy's eligibility year and deadline requirements.
• In the Makeup and Sound Effects Editing categories, the Award can be given if those committees fail to come up with three nominations. In that case the committee may recommend to the Board of Governors that a special Achievement Award be voted instead.

Honorary Award

Criteria: • Given for exceptional distinction in the making of motion pictures or for outstanding service to the Academy.

Medal of Commendation

Criteria: • The award is given for outstanding service and dedication in upholding the high standards of the Academy.

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award

Criteria: • Given to a creative producer who has been responsible for a consistently high quality of motion picture production.

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

Criteria: • Given to an individual in the motion picture industry whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry.

Academy Award of Merit

Criteria: • Scientific and technical awards are given for devices, methods, formulas, discoveries or inventions of special and outstanding value to the arts and sciences of motion pictures and that also have a proven history of use in the motion picture industry.
• The Scientific and Technical Academy Award of Merit is given for basic achievements that have a definite influence upon the advancement of the industry.

Scientific and Engineering Award

Criteria: • The award is given for those achievements that exhibit a high level of engineering and are important to the progress of the industry.

Technical Achievement Award

Criteria: • The award is given for those accomplishments that contribute to the progress of the industry.

Gordon E. Sawyer Award

Criteria: • Given to an individual in the motion picture industry whose technological contributions have brought credit to the industry.
• Recommendations for this award have customarily been made through the Scientific and Technical Awards Committee.

What is the main goal of this blog?

 

Know the relationships between movie and economics as an art part and an economics part