Category: media

“Without subsidies or quotas, what’s the incentive for theatres to show an unknown Canadian film instead of a Hollywood movie with more obvious box office potential? They’ll say ‘We can play a blockbuster with no advertising, no work, do nothing and everyone will come, or we can take your stupid Canadian movie and no one’s going to come.’ “

The union membership will vote on it. “The strike, Hollywood’s longest since 1988 and one that has thrown tens of thousands of people out of work, has shut down production on dozens of television shows (including viewer favorites like “Grey’s Anatomy” and “CSI”), forcing the networks to patch together prime-time schedules with reruns and increased doses of reality shows.”

“The movie theatre business isn’t so much about movies any more. Sure, what’s up on the screen is still key to getting your bum in the seat. But how much you spent on that snack in your hand is now crucially important, as are the advertisements you watch before the show, and the loyalty card that you used to pay for tickets. And it may not even be a movie you’re watching.”

The British Academy of Film & Television Arts (Bafta) “has been drawn into a bitter row with the organisers of a disability film festival after refusing to screen a documentary about a group of disabled artists touring America… The row comes only two days before the academy’s biggest event of the year, the Bafta film awards.”

“Argentine cinema has carved out a niche at arthouses, taken fest kudos and plied styles like minimalism and comic bathos with taste… But now returns are narrowing as costs rise for studio time, wages and promotion.” Debate is raging within the industry over how best to keep Argentina competitive in a Hollywood-dominated world.

A lot of people and organizations have a financial reason to hope that the writers’ strike is settled in time for the Oscars. “No one has put a value on the Oscar brand, but the Oscars aren’t just about the entertainment industry… The fallout would massively affect the fashion, hospitality, broadcast and tourism industries in both direct and indirect costs.”

There was a time when high- and middle-brow culture coexisted on television, in the form of wildly popular variety shows that showcased everything from dancing poodles to orchestras to The Beatles. “Those shows mirrored and even led a mass pop culture that was more populist than what we have today.”

“A fresh source of film subsidy has injected new vigour into Germany’s rich cinematic tradition, which before the Nazis took power in 1933 had been a great rival to Hollywood… About 34 international co-productions got money last year under the scheme.”

“Insiders calculate that the number of post industry members who have lost their jobs or been put on hiatus is in the thousands. That figure includes great numbers of freelance workers such as editors, assistants and post coordinators as well as staffers at postproduction facilities.”

“George Clooney, one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars who earns up to £15 million a movie, has taken a swipe at the film industry, saying he believes the golden age of cinema is dead… Clooney places the glory years of cinema firmly between 1964 and 1976 when he says studios produced almost a masterpiece a month.”