Changing the Hollywood System

[oneinfiniteloop]

yeah, oneinfiniteloop, change it to what exactly? Can you be a little more specific about the definition of "true cinematic art?" Would that include the Marx Bros, or would they be eradicated along with Adam Sandler?

What exactly would you like Hollywood to change into?

I don't necessarily want Hollywood to change into anything. Hollywood is Hollywood. It will always be that way, and I'll always enjoy certain movies born out of Hollywood. My definition of "true cinematic art" is mine, and does not mean anything. I wanted to leave the topic open so people can discuss what they're opinion on the "system" is.

I'm not saying that the big studios don't pander to the lowest common denominator. But there are good films out there. Spread the word about that stuff. That's a better use of your energy than complaining about Deuce Bigalo

I agree, and I try my best to promote stuff that I consider good. I, by no means trying to complain, I just wanted to see what everybody thought. I know it's an Utopian ideal, but I would cherish the day artists of all kinds get rewarded highly for their efforts, not just the ones that "pander to the lowest common denominator".

 

[Jim Brennan]

I don't think anyone here disagrees with you. But the end result is always in our collective lap. Actors are no different than athletes. We might complain that they get paid too much, but they get paid that way because they add value to the product. I don't begrudge them a penny. Did they "earn" it? I guess that is subjective. But are they "worth it"? To the studios the answer is yes. Because we (collectively) are sheep and will dole out the bucks to see what they tell us we like. I realize these are broad strokes, but I have a big brush :grin:

 

[JY_Blue]

bet you there isn't a person in this forum (or Hollywood for that matter) who can tell what "the hollywood system" is going to look like in 5 years. it can be fun to guess and throw different business models back and forth, but the truth is we're right in the middle of a lot of change and if the answers were clear, we'd already have them.

I think that it some of the questions that you're getting at are interesting and might be easier to discuss this topic if it was more narrowly defined.

 

[oneinfiniteloop]

bet you there isn't a person in this forum (or Hollywood for that matter) who can tell what "the hollywood system" is going to look like in 5 years. it can be fun to guess and throw different business models back and forth, but the truth is we're right in the middle of a lot of change and if the answers were clear, we'd already have them.

Speaking of which, what do people think of Movielink's expanision of its video on demand services, and the exclusion of Mac users while doing so.

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/04/03/dvd.downloads.ap/index.html

 

[MojoTrancer]

Yeah, I don't know. Movies have kind of always been crap. If you look back to even the glory-days of say the studio system of the 30s and 40s when you had true giants, like Hitch and Wilder, Ford and Hawks making pictures, each studio would still turn out at least one picture a week. A WEEK!!!!! So for every Casablanca, there were like 100 pieces of junk we've forgotten. Same thing today, I think. There are still good movies made. But for every good movie, there are 100 pieces of junk.

So true. The system has essentially been the same since the beginning. If you don't believe it, check out Internet Movie Archive to see some of the chaff they cranked out back in the Golden Era.

I still stand by my opinion that what's going on with Apple and iTunes is a big deal for indie filmmakers. They just started offering their first feature film. And even at $9.99 it's still in the top five video downloads weeks later.

But distribution isn't the only sector that's changing. The ability to simply get the word out about a film is every bit as important. It doesn't matter how good your film is if no one knows it exists. And until recently, they studios had promotion and advertising solidly locked down. But no longer. here's where the most progress is being made. It's probably easier than its ever been to make people aware of your film.

 

[oneinfiniteloop]

But distribution isn't the only sector that's changing. The ability to simply get the word out about a film is every bit as important. It doesn't matter how good your film is if no one knows it exists. And until recently, they studios had promotion and advertising solidly locked down. But no longer. here's where the most progress is being made. It's probably easier than its ever been to make people aware of your film.

What are some of the more effective marketing tools available and what would people like to see introduce to help us better market of work?

 

[CineMischief]

Aren't we the ones that are gonna change Hollywood? I dunno. We're all on here all the time, making films, talking films, watching films...geezie, we all get retarded smiles finding out about ground glass this, master ped that. I think what we're trying to do is the best training ground...forces us to be more creative and all that junk. Someone's bound to take notice. Excuse my pollyanna pigtails, but I think it's us. But so help me, when one of you suckers makes it and then sells out...

 

[GenJerDan]

Though you are right about many execs.
. . .
So I don't know that anything is really different than it's ever been, ultimately...

Well....I do. Sure, they made bad movies by the hundreds in the good ol' days.

But they knew they were, churning them out like they did.

The difference I see now (or perceive, anyway), is that they don't really know they're crap. How can they be crap? They just spent $100M on them...

I see the same thing in IT. Some clueless high muckymuck somewhere reads a magazine article and suddenly we're all forced to use some bit of tech that makes no sense (on its own or maybe just in our situation).

"Here's a pile of money. Put some CGI in there."
"But the film doesn't need CGI."
"I don't care. Everyone else has CGI, so we have to, too."
"But it's a basic Boy-Meet-Girl story."
"I don't care. Give her bigger boobs or something with it."

 

[XCheck]

I don't hate Hollywood. They are really good at what they do, which is selling a product. I wish they would sell mine.

...

It's like drugs. If we stop buying it, they will stop making it. Good Luck with that.

Jim, as usual, right on the money.

I see the same thing in IT. Some clueless high muckymuck somewhere reads a magazine article and suddenly we're all forced to use some bit of tech that makes no sense (on its own or maybe just in our situation).

THAT is my daily bread and butter. I HATE IT!

"Here's a pile of money. Put some CGI in there."
"But the film doesn't need CGI."
"I don't care. Everyone else has CGI, so we have to, too."
"But it's a basic Boy-Meet-Girl story."
"I don't care. Give her bigger boobs or something with it."

He he... it's like the place where I work:
"Here is a pile of money. Let's rewrite the app in Java."
"But the app doesn't need to be re-written."
"I don't care. Everyone else writes their apps in Java, so we have to, too."
"But it's a basic desktop customer service app."
"I don't care. Make it run on the intranet (i.e., slower, less responsive, which will cost more money in staffing and telephone cost)"

Six months and 20 mil. later:
"Err... looks like we are not gonna meet the deadline"
"okay... can you deliver partial functionality, and transfer to the desktop app for transactions that can't be done in the new app?"


And THAT is my job, folks...

 

[Jim Brennan]

Excuse my pollyanna pigtails, but I think it's us.

I admire that. Like Margaret Mead said (paraphrased) "Never doubt that a small group of dedicated individuals will change the world. In fact, they are the only ones who do"

But then again "Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose"

Hey Jerry. :beer: whassup?

 

[oneinfiniteloop]

Well....I do. Sure, they made bad movies by the hundreds in the good ol' days.

But they knew they were, churning them out like they did.

The difference I see now (or perceive, anyway), is that they don't really know they're crap. How can they be crap? They just spent $100M on them...

Very good point...it sounds like this train of thought has invaded many businesses, yet the majority of them fail or lose tons of money in the process like Xcheck said.