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Director Emerald Fennell liked the audience in revenge for the revenge thriller Hopeful young woman It was first seen at the Sundance Film Festival in early 2020.
“You’re putting pressure and then you release it and people in the room as well [understanding] things at different times, “said Fennell, whose sexual policy won her Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.” A lot of filmmaking techniques… are there for a walk. You make a film because it’s a community experience. “
But as it turned out, few people ended up watching the movie in movie theaters. The US theatrical premiere scheduled for April 17 last year was canceled instead of closing Covid-19. Hopeful young woman it finally opened in theaters on Christmas Day 2020, earning $ 13.3 million, a small amount but still earning the most revenue. all movies nominated for Best Picture at this year’s Oscars.
A few weeks later, on January 15, the film was made available for rent at home via a premium video order (PVOD), which has been available for a decade but reached new importance last year as the pandemic disrupted filmmaking. In addition to the regular monthly fee, it can be rented to subscribers on platforms such as Amazon Prime, Sky’s Now player and Apple’s iTunes Hopeful young woman About $ 20.
Facing the $ 40 billion box office a secure future, travel Hopeful young womanthe releases could be a template for independent filmmaking in a post-pandemic world, said Focus Features, the artistic headquarters of Comcast conglomerate NBCUniversal conglomerate and film distributor.
“Woman [Langley, chair of Universal Pictures] we decided on the first day of closing this pandemic that we would literally go to PVOD and a week later we were there for services, ”said Peter Kujawski, president of Focus Features, citing references to other films that premiered in the last year.
“There was a desire to know [if it] it was feasible [strategy] and Donna. . . I’m very sorry: now is not the time for cinema or business. ‘
Early home rentals were a necessary experiment during the pandemic. But As the US reopens after a year of empty cinema, entertainment industry executives are questioning whether the industry has changed forever.
Most agree that after the crisis is eased, high-budget blockbusters will be shown in cinemas, albeit with shorter theatrical windows. However, lower-budget films that don’t have to earn hundreds of millions of dollars in ticket sales can increasingly become a home experience, perhaps being released in the living rooms via PVOD in a few days after being released in theaters. .
Kujawsky said, “You’ll see a world where everyone thinks more of what’s going on in theaters.” “The key decision for the theater will be size and budget.”
Universal led the turn, among other things An invisible man and Emma as soon as the cinemas close.
Jeff Bock, an analyst at the Exhibitor Relations box office, said PVOD became a “rescue for studios” last year, especially for indie films that could be “lost in the air”. [of streaming]”.
Hopeful young woman: pandemic number indie release
Alone: Watching new releases has gone from being a communal experience to being enjoyed at home
$ 13.3 million
Gross made in movie theaters
$ 20
The approximate cost of rent when the film was first connected
However, he warns that it is difficult to measure the success of the strategy without the amount of revenue that the studio has largely maintained. “What we can really do is control what distributors do in the future, because actions speak much louder than words.”
The actions taken by Universal to break into the traditional “window” that premieres in movie theaters and make it online have been underestimated by film owners for years. they strongly support the lineup New versions of the attack on streaming platforms like Netflix.
But two of the biggest chains, AMC and Cinemark, reached agreements with Universal, allowing the studio to release its films via PVOD, in theaters and in a few weeks in exchange for a reduction in internal sales.
Meanwhile, the indie film channel Alamo Drafthouse, which in March 11 called for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, has taken it a step further by launching its PVOD platform last year.
Although other films were being put online through Focus PVOD, there was internal debate as to whether Hopeful young womanthe film, which aims to spark emotions around gender relations, could create a cultural uproar by largely premiering online.
“We really wanted traditional theater work,” Fennell said. “Obviously, when you do something designed for a purpose and it looks different…. It will take a minute to readjust.”
The directors of Focus decided to wait and see how Universal played the film, postponing its premiere until Christmas.
A year later, the company found the company a success, both economically and culturally. With a budget of $ 10 million, Hopeful young woman he made a profit with returns from the box office. The release of PVOD made the film even more profitable, reducing revenue streams, people around the company said.
Focus declined to say how many PVOD sales the film made. However, its multiple, measured as total gross revenue, compared to open weekly sales, is the highest of all PVOD versions made by Universal last year, said one person familiar with the subject.
“Every film has the metrics you want to be successful, dollars, cents, and transactions for us,” Kujawski said. “But everyone has a look at the softer metric of cultural impact. And seeing that [PVOD] it was a key thing to start the film that way, because it wouldn’t be obvious. “
Oscar-winning director Emerald Fennell: “For me, the first thing I want to do is write first and then work on where he lives.” © AMPAS / Getty
The higher rental price differentiates movies that might otherwise be lost in a streaming sea, he added. “There’s a value when you decide you’ll pay $ 20 for seeing something instead of feeding it through the algorithm.”
The main drawback of the PVOD model is its simple economy: for big films it doesn’t earn as much as theater. Imax CEO Rich Gelfond said at a conference last year that PVOD was a “failed experiment”.
“The numbers didn’t work in a pandemic, so how would they work in a non-pandemic?” He said, stressing the studios ’desire to share revenue numbers.
But there are also signs that PVOD will stay here, for blockbusters. Disney charged $ 30 for watching the movies Mulan at the same time that the theater premiered on its streaming platform, it will make two of the biggest films of the summer. Black window and Cruel, are available for rent the same day they arrived in cinemas.
For creative talent, the battle for streaming between the world’s largest entertainment companies has been beneficial news, as it involves an endless demand for content, no matter where people see it.
Fennell, who said he had a subscription to “probably all streaming services,” is working on projects in a variety of media, from a stage show in the West End to a TV show and a feature film.
“Going forward for me, I’d like to do the first thing to write and then work out where he lives,” he said. “Sometimes you want to do something epic in the theater. Sometimes you want to make something bingeable. It’s a great thing right now, it makes sense. “
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