Category: media

Political documentaries abounded before November’s elections. So what’s happening to the documentary makers since then? “Political documentaries are not going to come to an abrupt halt because of the re-election of George Bush. If people were motivated to make films because of their concern with the policies of the first administration, it’s hard to argue that those concerns were allayed on Nov. 2.”

TV’s opening credits are changing. “The old style, called “turn and look,” centered on the show’s stars looking into the camera as their names scrolled underneath. The new openings are sophisticated mini-movies, complete with their own scores, celebrating ideas, metaphors, symbols, even poetry as the credits roll. It’s a trend, television executives say, that’s being driven by the increasing use of digital technology and a desire to spotlight a show’s concept and brand rather than individual actors.”

The Italian government is considering selling off RAI. “In a country like Italy, where only a tiny percentage of the population derives its political news from printed media, a change in the ownership structure of a television empire such as RAI, which has 45% of the TV audience, would be an issue of intense political concern. But in this case, there is the additional fact that the prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, owns RAI’s main rival, Mediaset, whose channels control 44% of the market.”

ITV will be allowed to reduce its commitment to regional programming in the UK, under proposed new broadcast rules. “The regulator argues that it must be allowed to relax some of its public service broadcasting commitments in order to survive. In return for relaxation of the rules on the number of regional shows, which tend to be little watched and comparatively expensive compared to networked programmes, ITV will be required to make more peak time drama in the regions.”

Some critics say this has been a terrible year for women’s roles in the movies. “While it is true that Hollywood does not make enough movies that focus on women, it is equally true that Oscar voters annually overlook the best performances by actresses because they’re too lazy to move beyond the “What did Meryl Streep and Susan Sarandon do this year?” thinking that results in so many nominations for those women.”

The movie business in Toronto, long popular with Hollywood producers because it was cheaper than working in the US, has dried up. “With foreign film production down almost 40 percent from the peak years of 1999 and 2000, the debate in Canada has become how to compete with lower-cost areas like Eastern Europe or American states like Louisiana and New York that have recently introduced attractive filmmaking subsidies.”

Locked in a price war with WalMart, Blockbuster Video has announced that it will slash the cost of a monthly subscription to its mail-order movie rental service by $2.50, and will increase its film inventory for the service. The new Blockbuster price undercuts WalMart by 55 cents. Meanwhile, the original online/mail order movie service, NetFlix, which had previously cut its monthly price by $4 to compete with Blockbuster, says the latest cut will drive customers away from Blockbuster’s own brick-and-mortar stores.

Michael Powell has taken the FCC into a tougher and tougher stance in regulating “indecency” (a moving target). “As Mr. Powell nears the end of his time in office, critics say he has evolved into the most heavy-handed enforcer of speech restrictions in decades. But with Mr. Powell now widely expected to step down, they are hardly gloating about the prospect of his departure; the short list of candidates to succeed him includes another Republican member of the five-person commission, Kevin J. Martin, who – echoing those who say television is too tawdry – has repeatedly argued that the commission and Mr. Powell are not tough enough. But the broadcasters are also beginning to fight back.”

Minneapolis has already lost one of its classical music radio stations this year, and now, the city’s full-time jazz station may be in trouble after losing a $400,000 annual contract with the Minnesota Department of Transportation. KBEM, which is owned by the Minneapolis school district, drew half its annual operating budget from the MNDOT contract, under which the station aired extensive traffic reports every ten minutes during rush hours. With the state deciding to pull the plug on the reports, the station, known as Jazz 88, will likely be forced to make staff cuts and may have to significantly scale back its commitment to inner-city education.

Canada’s film industry will be getting a much-needed boost in 2005, with the announcement of a new tax incentive package worth CAN$48 million. Workers in the industry had been flooding the Ontario legislature with demands for relief following a year in which the bottom dropped out of the province’s film business, largely as a result of the rising Canadian dollar, the faltering U.S. currency, and new incentive packages being offered to filmmakers by other locales.