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Film Market
Streamers in Berlin: European Market Begins With Optimism
This week marks the start of the European Film Market that runs alongside the Berlin International Film Festival, also known as Berlinale. As the industry continues its comeback from the years-long pandemic, leading film buyers and sellers are returning to normal market routines, preparing to pack EFM week with meetings. With many of the usual company participants already standing behind a range of projects, there also seems to be several ongoing prospects for dealmaking. With markets still in various stages of recovery, this week in Europe feels like a real opportunity. The market is once again a live, in-person event, which many see as vital to creating and sustaining important relationships. But all eyes are on streamers as many wait to see exactly how they will participate. Streamers have begun to slow their buying process. At Sundance, they were noticeably picky regarding the content they got behind. Production budgets have remained high, which may be why buyers have decided to slow down. Others believe this shift opens opportunities for new players in the market, because transactions have slowed without stopping. Local or non-global media companies may have better entry in this new environment. But success always comes down to the content, and smaller independent films have had great success over the past year (thanks to their incredible production and narratives).
International
Filming in Australia: Production Boosts Local Economy
U.K. consultancy Olsberg SPI just released a new study that found that Australian film and TV incentives contributed $11.4 billion to the economy over four years, helping to solidify the country as a major production hub. Total production expenditure increased 91% over the four years studied. Big local productions included Thor: Love and Thunder, Ticket to Paradise, Woody Woodpecker, Metropolis, and Godzilla vs. Kong 2. Streamers like Netflix were also in the mix with original programming like Heartbreak High, God’s Favorite Idiot, and Pieces of Her. The location offset incentive, which is geared towards offshore productions, resulted in a $4 return for every $1 invested. Other incentives used by inbound productions, like the 30% Post, Digital & Visual Effects (PDV) Offset and the 30-40% Production Offset, help shine a spotlight on Australian content. The report, called ‘Study on the Impact of Film and Television Production Incentives in Australia,’ was launched by both the Australia New Zealand Screen Association (ANZSA) and the Motion Picture Association (MPA). Several producers who have worked on Australian productions spoke about the importance of the incentives and how the growth of this program can attract more productions to the country. Ausfilm CEO Kate Marks advocates for a permanent 30% location offset that “would ensure a consistent pipeline of both physical production and PDV activity and cement Australia’s position as a leader in the global screen industry.” For now, Australia is already planning to add three new studios to accommodate the film and TV industry growth.
Awards
New Emmy Rules: TV Academy Adjusts Categories and Campaign Guidelines
Submission rules have changed for the 2023 Emmys ceremony. A new category has also been added for “Best Emerging Media Program.” This award will go to the producer, company, or individuals behind a program either related to linear series or completely original in nature. This new category aims to recognize content excellence, especially as they might exist outside traditional linear television. According to the TV Academy, emerging media can include “virtual, alternate, mixed or extended reality interactive storytelling; viewer-driven narratives, storylines and sequences of content consumption; and multi-platform and/or metaverse storytelling.” In the documentary categories, a previously announced policy that disqualified all content on the AMPAS viewing platform from being considered for an Emmy has been reversed. The previous stipulation read: “any film placed on the AMPAS viewing platform will be deemed a theatrical motion picture and thus ineligible for the Emmy competition.” Now, a documentary on the AMPAS viewing platform is eligible for an Emmy if it has not been nominated for an Oscar. More precisely, movies like All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, Fire of Love, and Navalny, are not eligible, as they are in Oscar contention. However, documentaries like The Territory, Moonage Daydream, Descendant, and Retrograde are all shortlisted for this new category.
Film
Movie Attendance: The Ticket Sellers Are Not Always at the Awards
Looking at the box office pull of a modern Oscar-contender, one may conclude that adults are not going to the theaters anymore—but that is not true. Adults are attending movies at the same rate as they were pre-COVID, but what they’re seeing has changed. Oscar contenders, which are often made up of adult-driven and specialized cinema, appear to be underperforming while films like 80 for Brady and A Man Called Otto prove that this audience is still engaged. A Man Called Otto will outgross 11 of the movies nominated in either the Best Picture or lead acting categories, ending its domestic run in the $65 to $70 million range. Of course, some Best Picture nominees are obviously outliers; Top Gun: Maverick, Elvis, and Avatar: The Way of Water have all broken box office records in their own way. Tom Hanks’ A Man Called Otto was originally thought to be a clear Oscar contender, but Sony changed its tactic to better appeal to audiences. At its peak, the film was on 3,802 screens across the U.S. Other popular 2022 films for adults were The Lost City (with 65% of the audience over 35) and Dog (with 40% of buyers above the age of 40). As new and original streaming series tend to cater to younger audiences, movie theaters have become a prime spot for adults. Still, it is the content that puts people in the seats, and the numbers prove that we like to see non-controversial entertainment filled with familiar stars.
DEI
Record-High Diversity: Women of Color Are in the Spotlight
This year’s awards season has generated a lot of controversy and discussion around the number of films helmed by creatives of color. The USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative confirms an increased representation of women of color in their latest report, which looked at leading roles in the 100 top-grossing movies every year from 2007 to 2022. In 2022, women of color had leading roles in 16% of all 100 top-grossing movies, an increase from 11% in 2021. This is the highest number of underrepresented women and non-binary individuals in the history of this 16-year study. Girls and women of color make up 20% of the population, so this number is inching towards parity. According to Dr. Stacy Smith, who conducted the study, “It’s past time for the film industry to recognize that stories about women of color have a place in theaters.” The overall number of people of color in leading positions equaled 29%, which is a decrease from 32% in 2021. While there has been a downslide, only 13% of films starred people of color when the report began in 2007. For female leads, there was a slight increase but no strong change this past year. In 2022, 44% of films had a female lead, which is a small jump from 41% in 2021. The report also looked at films starring individuals above the age of 45. While 35% of films featured a man 45 or older, only 10 films had women 45 or older. Although low, this shows a 3% jump up from 7% in 2021 and 1% in 2007. And of those 10 2022 films, five featured a woman of color that was 45 or older.
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