"The Movie Business Is Over"

Riffing on a substack post by Ted Gioia. I don't think that's true: Bollywood is thriving, and so are many national cinemas. Hollywood is probably dead, though. It's all about using the advantages of the digital age, combined with the glamour of the soundstage era. China has invested heavily into soundstages instead of digital VFX, so using people power is also an option. Financially, I think that theatrical releases could come back in a big way: it's essentially a Covid-induced slump, combined with the mediocre films that Hollywood is producing currently. - I was looking at Box Office Mojo: the NZ box office is roughly $1 million per week, so if that was to pivot towards supporting local productions rather than consuming Hollywood movies, then there's a huge vein still to be tapped ($52 million). Plus the conventional multi-nation synergy that is very common in indie films and art films. Overseas presales are still a good way of generating some capital, though that's like another league up from where I am. - Of course the social media and video game audience is broader: that's the point! A lot of film fandom is about watching obscure and esoteric films, and given the plethora of cheap tools that are now available, I'd hope that there'll be more films like my Dakumentary which maximise those off-the-shelf phones and computers alongside footage that uses more traditional methods. Like when Go-Pro's were a thing... far, that was a long time ago. 🤣