Movie Studio Tariffs

[Dranth]

I worked with a guy in an international business program (at a certain entertainment complex) from Spain in the 2001/2002 timeframe who very non-Chalantly said one day “America gets a cold…we always get the flu”

Very wise statement

Yep. We work closely with companies in France, Italy, Japan, Germany and others and I've basically heard a version of that from nearly all of them.

One example I like to give people is 2008. Grossly oversimplified, but the US housing market crashes and the whole world goes into recession.

 

[BrianLo]

I don't actually know what Illumination is, outside of the context of Epcot's water shows. I assume it's a cartoon studio?

No problem, I actually appreciate the honesty. It’s Universal’s now main animation label.

The conversation has been had every time animated budgeting has come up. I keep name dropping the label, but that’s not technically the pertinent point.

In your defense, I trace your Pixar disdain back to its penetration at Disneyland resort. Not the fanboy Universal v Disney battle that 75% of other posters tackle it from.

 

[brideck]

Just wanted to point out - you’ve long decried Pixar with its bougie Californian overpaid employees and praised the offshore animation (and budgeting) of Illumination. It would seem you’ve done a 180 on your free market opinion. This won’t improve film budgets, which has been something you’ve otherwise long been an advocate of.

See also the response to Godzilla Minus One on this forum. "Why can't we have competent special effects for pennies on the dollar?" Well, you see...

 

[TP2000]

In your defense, I trace your Pixar disdain back to its penetration at Disneyland resort. Not the fanboy Universal v Disney battle that 75% of other posters tackle it from.

If I were to think about it, it probably started with Pixar Pier in 2018. But my criticism of that cheap and tacky Bob Chapek Special certainly isn't unique. Were there any of us over on the Disneyland side that actually liked Pixar Pier?

Until then, I was thrilled with the 21st century additions of Pixar attractions in both Anaheim parks; from Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage in '07, to Midway Mania in '08, and with most famously the opening of the fabulous Cars Land in 2012. If I were to think for a moment, Cars Land is in my Top 3 of all lands in any park. I'd probably rank that list as...

1. New Orleans Square, Disneyland USA
2. Cars Land, DCA
3. Mysterious Island, Tokyo DisneySea

But honestly, my Bright Idea!TM to consolidate Pixar's Emeryville campus into the WDAS campus in Burbank came about a few years ago, when nearly every Disney studio was torching huge amounts of money with bomb after bomb. Meanwhile, in the parks, they were racing to the bottom with lowered CM standards, lowered customer offerings, and newfound cheap ideas from cheap men allegedly "leading" the division.

Just look at today's Earnings Call; the Parks division created about $1.8 Billion in income, while the movie/TV side of the company only chipped in $1.3 Billion. (Did I remember that right?) Yet somehow, the Emeryville and Burbank cubicle armies get all the perks and all the money, while the Parks division cuts another offering and cancels another parade. Dumb!

 

[BrianLo]

Just look at today's Earnings Call; the Parks division created about $1.8 Billion in income, while the movie/TV side of the company only chipped in $1.3 Billion. (Did I remember that right?) Yet somehow, the Emeryville and Burbank cubicle armies get all the perks and all the money, while the Parks division cuts another offering and cancels another parade. Dumb!

I am very hopeful, perhaps foolishly so, that we are finally entering a new investment cycle. The DCA plans if carried out by end of decade are quite significant. But I’d like to see Disneyland thrown a bone.

Nothing today has convinced me their investment cycle is coming off the rails, they seem to be leaning into it even more.

YMMV on Pandora, but I think it’s fantastic in Florida and you’d probably like the new boat ride they are concocting.

 

[Disney Irish]

Just look at today's Earnings Call; the Parks division created about $1.8 Billion in income, while the movie/TV side of the company only chipped in $1.3 Billion. (Did I remember that right?) Yet somehow, the Emeryville and Burbank cubicle armies get all the perks and all the money, while the Parks division cuts another offering and cancels another parade. Dumb!

Well Walt famously said they don't make movies to make money, they make money to make movies. But $1.3B is nothing to sneeze at in terms of income for the quarter.

And as @BrianLo said we have what appears to be a new era of major investment upon us in the domestic parks, so there is many things to be positive about.

 

[TP2000]

With Los Angeles facing a $1 Billion (with a B) budget deficit this year, and after realizing they've killed the golden goose (Hollywood's Global Media Industry) that created untold wealth and happiness for that city in the 20th Century, the LA Mayor and her court is now promising they'll create a series of tax breaks and business-friendly policies to erase all the taxes and red tape and anti-business policies all these same people have spent the past 30 years implementing.

For those keeping score, this is about the 5th or 6th time in the past decade that a state leader in Sacramento or a local leader in LA has made such policy claims about winning back Hollywood filming and it's massive business. Again.

'We've taken the industry for granted': Mayor Bass pledges to make it easier to film in L.A.

The mayor signed an executive directive to support local film and TV jobs — an order that she said will lower costs and streamline city processes for on-location filming.

www.latimes.com

 

[Eric Graham]

Who are you referring to? You keep saying he.
The article is about a female mayor.

If you’re trying again to pull political opinions into a thread, please stop.

wait...wait..is slander ok on your website someone said I was blackmailing someone..????

 

[MissingDisney]

wait...wait..is slander ok on your website someone said I was blackmailing someone..????

I don’t have a website. It seems you’re confused.

I recommend you message the mods if you have a question.

 

[Eric Graham]

With Los Angeles facing a $1 Billion (with a B) budget deficit this year, and after realizing they've killed the golden goose (Hollywood's Global Media Industry) that created untold wealth and happiness for that city in the 20th Century, the LA Mayor and her court is now promising they'll create a series of tax breaks and business-friendly policies to erase all the taxes and red tape and anti-business policies all these same people have spent the past 30 years implementing.

For those keeping score, this is about the 5th or 6th time in the past decade that a state leader in Sacramento or a local leader in LA has made such policy claims about winning back Hollywood filming and it's massive business. Again.

'We've taken the industry for granted': Mayor Bass pledges to make it easier to film in L.A.

The mayor signed an executive directive to support local film and TV jobs — an order that she said will lower costs and streamline city processes for on-location filming.

www.latimes.com

In my opinion, Georgia's a great filming spot also in my opinion because you can have the ocean, mountains and everything all wrapped up in one and the climate is also really nice. And, it's clean and nice. No offense. To me, it's really fun when they're filming movies and how the innovative movie companies do things like spell the name backwards to hide their filming on the set. I've been to a Cracker Barrel in Georgia, and the wonderful people there tell me that they have stars frequent at the restaurant because of filming there. And, it's so nice for them because the patrons just leave them alone. They really have some delicious country ham biscuits, btw. So scrumptious! I've been out there to Seattle and San Francisco but that was many a year ago. Would love to travel to Disneyland for their 70th...We were going to take a tour years ago to the Muppet studios, but I really wished we had. I love the Muppets! Have a great day/night!

 

[Eric Graham]

According to Google, some foreign countries do place tariffs on American-made ("Hollywood") movies. For instance, since 2012, Communist China has had a 25% tariff on all American movies, in addition to having an annual quota of how many Hollywood movies are let in to the country once they pass the Communist censors.

I'm going to do some more digging, and I imagine there will be some media reporting on this in the next day or two (which would be helpful!), but it does appear that some countries have tarrifs on American movies, which leads to that lower 40% box office take compared to the 60% a Hollywood studio earns on American box office receipts.

View attachment 857234

I actually enjoy the movies at the theaters a whole lot better than Netflix to be perfectly honest...

 

[TP2000]

With LA still in the (mostly peaceful) news every night, and its downtown restaurants and bars suffering due to the mandatory 8pm curfew, the LA Times today had another dollop of bad news for the City of Angels and its brunch tables beyond the curfew core this morning: 2025 is apparently not the year the local movie industry recovers.

From the LA Times article linked below...

"Hollywood’s workforce just needed to “survive ’til ’25.” That was last year’s hopeful mantra for entertainment industry pros battered by layoffs and limited film and TV production.

But now as the year approaches its halfway point, a bleaker saying seems apt: “Exist ’til ’26.”

Rosy projections of a robust recovery this year have not materialized. If anything, the downturn, at least in terms of employment at the studios, has continued.

In recent weeks, three media and entertainment giants — Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global — have said they will lay off staffers. Disney cut several hundred employees in the U.S. and abroad, while Paramount shed hundreds of its domestic workforce and Warner Bros. eliminated several dozen positions.

“It’s a horrible time in the business from the content creation, content production standpoint,” Hamilton said. “People don’t want to take risks. They’re fearful of losing their jobs.”

Disney’s layoffs hit its film and television marketing teams, television publicity, casting and development as well as corporate financial operations. Warner Bros. cut employees from its cable TV channels. While Paramount did not disclose the departments affected by the layoffs, its co-chief executives acknowledged in a note to staff that the decision came as the company navigates “continued industry-wide linear declines.”

Why Hollywood studios are still downsizing

Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount all enacted layoffs in recent weeks, reflecting the continuing struggles of traditional media.

www.latimes.com

'Beyond a breaking point': Downtown LA curfew spells disaster for restaurants

The unfolding situation in the neighborhood has caused massive financial losses.

www.sfgate.com