Bombarded by 24 hour entertainment available in living rooms, automobiles, and even on smartphones, motion picture consumers are besieged by frenzied, media producers vying for the all-mighty dollar in an incredibly challenging, if not schizophrenic, marketplace. Although some independent studios are able to produce critically acclaimed works on shoestring budgets, such productions rarely capture the attention of the wider consumer-base or enable such studios to maintain anything more than a meager existence (Indie Film Studios: Can They Compete with Hollywood?). So competitive is the entertainment industry, that even once mighty conglomerates like Lucasfilm, LTD proved incapable of maintaining its ability to produce, necessitating the assistance of an even larger conglomerate, Disney. While Lucasfilm has produced some of the industry’s most treasured and profitable motion pictures, spawned leading edge production technologies, and revolutionized the movie making industry, only Disney represented the creative capacity, the marketing capability, and sufficient market dominance to ensure the continued viability of Lucasfilm’s vision (Disney to Acquire Lucasfilm Ltd, 2012).
Circumstances resulting in the Lucasfilm Acquisition
When the story broke, it hit Hollywood like an earthquake; how could Lucasfilm, the company behind classic trilogies like Star Wars and Indiana Jones; the pioneer of visual effects found in movies like the Perfect Storm, Forrest Gump, and Jurassic Park; and the creator of the THX theatrical certification process, a system for guaranteeing the highest possible picture and sound quality; relinquish its independence (Tyson, 2000)? While myriad contributing factors exist, the fact that Lucasfilm was 100% owned b...
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McMillan, G. (2013, November 3). Disney cancels clone wars on cartoon network, postpones star wars: Detours. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2013/03/disney-clone-wars-cancelled/
Patten, D. (2013a, March 11). ‘star wars’ on tv headed in “new direction”, disney and lucasfilm say; ‘clone wars’ ending on cartoon network. Retrieved from http://www.deadline.com/2013/03/star-wars-lucasfilm-disney-tv-new-direction-clone-wars-ending-on-cartoon-network/
Patten, D. (2013b, April 3). Lucasarts announces layoffs in video game division as it shutters production. Retrieved from http://www.deadline.com/2013/04/lucasarts-announces-layoffs-in-video-game-division-shutting-down-production/
Tyson, J. (2000, November 14). How industrial light and magic works. Retrieved from http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/perfect-storm.htm
As can be seen in exhibit to solution 2, we have estimated the per-film value of each production company. MCA Universal, Warner Brothers and Walt Disney Co are the only production companies that provide a positive per film value, with values of 9.89, 1.92, 12.56 million respectively. This value is calculated by dividing the net present value of all the movies by the total number of movies. We also calculated the average value of each production company based upon their share of the total number of movies produced. The companies with positive values were MCA Universal, Warner Brothers and Walt Disney Co is also the only production companies that provide a positive per film value, with values of 1.40, 0.37, 1.40 million respectively. These values are based on the average value per film multiplied by the company's average share of the industry.
George Lucas is a proclaimed god in the film industry. His experience spans decades and his movies span generations. He is one of the most known celebrities in the world. With a flashy net worth of over $4.2 billion, one wonders how a mere writer could acquire such wealth. To understand this, one must delve deep into Lucas’ past and analyze his first success and his early failures.
Motion Pictures have always had a strong influence in today’s culture, but maybe none as prevalent as Star Wars. Originating with Episode 4 A New Hope, the series boomed from 1977 to 2005 with yet another addition coming in 2015. The strongest of the series was the original trilogy episodes 4, 5, and 6, all generally released in the 1980s. As one of the strongest film francaises still today, it’s impact within the 1980s was only the tip of the iceberg. Children and adults alike still anticipate the new edition of this seemingly endless journey. If any singular film series still holds prevalence in its future decades it is Star Wars: Original Trilogy.
Paramount, one of the big five Hollywood studio corporations, controlled the most amount of theatres in the United States during the 1930s and 40s. This meant they had an advantage when the economy in the US turned around after the great depression. This being said, many more factors come into play when defining to what extent the studio is a typical representation of a major Hollywood studio corporation in the 1930s and 40s. In this essay I will be going in depth into what extent Paramount is a representation of other key studios in Hollywood in the 1930s and 40s. I will be discussing how Paramount’s methods as a corporation such as exhibition, distribution, star system and genre to see how it is a typical representative of a Hollywood studio corporation. I will be using material such as Richard B. Jewel’s The Golden Age of Cinema, Hollywood 1929 – 1945 to go into detail in explaining my points.
The Walt Disney Company and Pixar Animation Studios Inc. were two of the largest movie and entertainment studios. Disney owned and operated an unparalleled portfolio of theme parks classic movies and characters. Pixar was the leading creative and technological computer generated imagery (CGI) studio but lacked extensive product offerings and distribution channels. At the time of the merger agreement, Disney’s traditional hand-drawn animation films were declining in popularity with the introduction of CGI films. Meanwhile, Pixar possessed the creative and technical resources that Disney lacked, but was unable to profit from characters and films after movie ticket and DVD sales, which were typically one-time purchases. Additionally, the production and distribution contract between Pixar and Disney was rapidly approaching its expiration. Instead of renewing the contract, the two companies decided to merge with the intention of capitalizing on ...
The Studio System Key point about the studio system could be: Despite being one of the biggest industries in the United States, indeed the World, the internal workings of the 'dream factory' that is Hollywood is little understood outside the business. The Hollywood Studio System: A History is the first book to describe and analyse the complete development, classic operation, and reinvention of the global corporate entities which produce and distribute most of the films we watch. Starting in 1920, Adolph Zukor, head of Paramount Pictures, over the decade of the 1920s helped to fashion Hollywood into a vertically integrated system, a set of economic innovations which was firmly in place by 1930.
(1) Michel G. Rukstad, David Collis; The Walt Disney Company: The Entertainment King; Harvard Business School; 9-701-035; Rev. January 5, 2009
Presently, Disney known for its mass media entertainment and amusement parks technically bring warm feelings to many children and some adults. Personally, Disney elicits magical fantasies that children enjoy and further encourages imagination and creativity. For decades Disney has exist as an unavoidable entity with its famous global sensation and reach. Furthermore, Disney is a multibillion dollar empire with an unlimited grasp on individuals and territories. An empire per se, since they own many media outlets, markets, shops, etc., you name it they got it. However, the film Mickey Mouse Monopoly presents an entirely new perspective on the presumed innocence projected in Disney films. This film exposes certain traits Disney employs and exclusively portrays through its media productions, specifically cartoons for directing and nurturing influence beginning with children. Mickey Mouse Monopoly points out camouflaged messages of class, race, and gender issues in Disney films that occur behind the scenes intended to sway viewers towards adopting Disney values.
In Hollywood today, most films can be categorized according to the genre system. There are action films, horror flicks, Westerns, comedies and the likes. On a broader scope, films are often separated into two categories: Hollywood films, and independent or foreign ‘art house’ films. Yet, this outlook, albeit superficial, was how many viewed films. Celebrity-packed blockbusters filled with action and drama, with the use of seamless top-of-the-line digital editing and special effects were considered ‘Hollywood films’. Films where unconventional themes like existentialism or paranoia, often with excessive violence or sex or a combination of both, with obvious attempts to displace its audiences from the film were often attributed with the generic label of ‘foreign’ or ‘art house’ cinema.
In this paper I will offer a structural analysis of the films of Simpson and Bruckheimer. In addition to their spectacle and typically well-crafted action sequences, Simpson/Bruckheimer pictures seem to possess an unconscious understanding of the zeitgeist and other cultural trends. It is this almost innate ability to select scripts that tap into some traditional American values (patriotism, individualism, and the obsession with the “new”) that helps to make their movies blockbusters.
It is being predicted that Disneyland will see a dip due Harry Potter. However, Disneyland too is in the process of adding more attractions. There is a 14 acre expansion plan which would resemble Star Wars. The spokesperson of Disneyland, Suzi Brown has said that, Disney would continue to raise the bars of theme parks and strive to provide an unique experience to tourists. This arms race, however, would do a lot of good for the industry and people as
It would be an understatement to say that James Cameron’s 2009 epic science fiction film, Avatar, was a blockbuster. Not only did it end up making the most money at the box office than any movie ever made in the history of film, but it also pushed new boundaries for film technology, especially with being a 3d film, which in turn caused it tone of the most discussed films of the year. It really reflected the true essence of what a blockbuster is, based on its approach towards the special effects of the movie, the themes it presented, the narrative structure it conveyed, and the legacy it was able to leave behind. As a film that contained innovations for cinema, it ultimately left an impact that was able to transcend just mere entertainment, and showed that movies could be art forms once again.
This movie is seen as a turning point for modern Disney cinema and is now known as the Revival Era of Disney's history. Althoug it should be noted that many people disagree with that statement. "Tangled" was released in 2010 and continued Disney's new direction for the studio with even more positive critical reception. "Tangled" is a fairytale loosely based on the classic tale "Rapunzel". It received several nominations. In 2011, they followed up with "Winnie, the Poo", which only received modest return in the box office, even though it claimed a lot of critical
Culkin, Nigel & Randle, Keith 2003, Facing the Digital Future: The Implications of Digital Technology for the Film Industry, University of Hertfordshire, Hertfordshire.
Disney Living - the official channel for the coolest and newest Disney products for all ages. (n.d.). Retrieved September 4, 2015.