Exploiting Hollywood 1980.

Chapter 105 Asking and Answering

The film industry is in full swing, why is it said that it is not good enough?Ronald returned home full of doubts.

The entertainment industry is still a very attractive industry, there is no doubt about it.Just look at how many boys and girls are vying to enter.

But if the viewing figures mentioned by the professor are good, it is true that the film industry is no longer what it used to be.

Why is there such a big difference between my intuitive feeling and the situation revealed by the numbers?
Which is the real situation in the film industry?

Ronald started to take out his little notebook again, calling all his acquaintances.

"Eddie, I'm Ronald. I was in class at Tisch College of New York University today, and I met a weird guy who said something weird. I want to ask you something."

Ronald first called his director agent:

"Do you think the entertainment industry and now the movie industry is a rapidly declining industry?"

"Of course not. Why do you think so?" Eddie was a little anxious. The potential new director in his hands actually felt that the film industry was declining rapidly?Get his mind back quickly.

"No, that's not my idea. It was a professor who taught us, and he said that the number of moviegoers in America is not as good as it was in 1929"

"When is this an old story? Of course, compared to the golden age before the 60s, the number of movie viewers has declined, but most people in this industry are still alive and well. In the 70s, Coppola shot The Godfather, Spielberg did Jaws, George Lucas did Star Wars.

All of these movies have high box office and total attendance.The prospect of the film industry is also very good. Many multinational conglomerates are rushing to invest in film companies, such as Gulf Western, which bought Paramount, and Pan Am, which bought United Artists. "

"I don't think this is a declining industry. The popularity of these multinational corporations shows that the industry is on the rise. And don't you think that movies are becoming more and more popular now? Open the newspaper, what movies are being shot, what movies The news will be released soon. The TV station will also interview movie stars and broadcast the premiere live. In the past, there was no such momentum.”

Ronald got another answer from his agent.

Continue to flip through the small book...

"Hey, Mr. Coleman, I have something to ask you. The professor at New York University who taught me the first class said that film is an industry that is dying. But the entertainment industry I saw is still very prosperous. He How should we understand that the number of movie viewers has dropped significantly compared to the 30s?"

"Ah, I know him." Roger Coleman said he had heard the name of the professor.

"This is actually a very normal thing. There was no TV in 1929, but the ticket price was very low at that time. People went to the movies with the mentality of going out for entertainment.

You can watch it anytime, and you can go anytime.They buy a ticket and enter the movie theater at any time, start watching halfway, and then stop watching when they see the plot of the next show when they enter the theater, get up and go out. "

"Besides, entertainment was scarce during the Great Depression. Movies were relatively cheap entertainment, so the box office exploded. I still have an impression of the movie theaters in the Roosevelt era. Many children took the money given by their parents and spent time in the movie theater. One afternoon. That's when I fell in love with movies."

"So the decline in moviegoing numbers is due to the popularity of television?"

"The number of movie viewers has been stable in the United States for many years, so there is no need to worry about him. Your professor's real worry is that his favorite feature film is not doing well at the box office."

"People are more willing to watch action, erotic, and violent exploitation films. Besides, big factories are gradually spending big budgets to make these exploitation films. Big productions attract more people to watch. Your professor can't see When he was young, Billy Wilder, Lubitsch, and Chaplin were full of artistically thought-provoking feature films."

"Hollywood's box office records are all created after the 70s, so there is no such thing as the imminent death of this market"

Thanks to Roger Coleman's answer, Ronald understands better: the movies before and after the popularization of television are actually two things.Movie theaters used to be like the TV in the living room, and people went to the movie theater every night.

Now, people don't go out to the theater until they feel they really want to see a movie.Otherwise, I would rather sit on the sofa in the living room and watch TV.

"Hi Julia. I'm Ronald. My professor kicked us out today. Why did he do that? Is the film industry really in decline right now?"

"Oh, it's that old stubborn again. He's always like that. But he's not totally talking nonsense. In the 70s, it was true that many studios were on the verge of bankruptcy. Universal, and Paramount's Hollywood studios were lacking in film production and lack of maintenance. Collapsed."

"However, this situation was reversed by your former boss Roger Coleman alone. He discovered Peter Fonda, Jack Nicholson and others, and made a film by Dennis Hope' Easy Rider', which completely abandoned traditional Hollywood filming techniques, was an unexpected box-office success.

This once again made capital have a strong interest in the film industry, followed by a series of box office blockbusters. "

"Such as Coppola's 'The Godfather,' Peter Bogdanovich's 'Paper Moon,' and Martin Scorsese's 'Mean Streets,' all unearthed by Roger Corman. The movie wizard. Let Hollywood become a dream base again."

"Speaking of which, you also came from Roger Coleman, oh ha ha ha."

This makes Ronald very embarrassed. They are all talents discovered by Roger Coleman. He has not officially directed a movie yet, and everyone else is already famous all over the world.

"Okay, so, in fact, Hollywood may have been in crisis before, but it has recovered?"

"Of course, otherwise, how could we open a casting studio? With so many actors, it must mean that there is no major crisis in the industry."

Ronald then called...

"Hi Jim, how are you doing?"

"Hey, Ronnie, why do you have time to find me?" Cameron was very happy. He had just completed the special effects work on Roger Corman's $200 million "masterpiece" - "Battle of the Stars".

"That's it..." Ronald repeated the professor's persuasion.

"He knows shit." Cameron swears. "I was at UCLA, and USC, and I saw a lot of this self-righteous garbage."

"They say every day that movies are dying, art is gone, and people now only make exploitation films. Ask them, which movie have you made? I guarantee they won't be able to tell."

"Have you heard a saying? Those who are capable, make movies; those who are not capable, go to university to teach film." Cameron is still the same, and he doesn't like the clichés taught in schools.

Looking through the small book, who else can ask for advice?I don't know Walter Murch in San Francisco very well, so I'd better write to him.

"Dear Mr Murch,

I'm Ronald Lee.You may remember me seeing your test screening of 'Apocalypse Now' at New World Pictures in Los Angeles and asking some questions.

Thanks to your kindness, the honey you make yourself tastes great.

I'm currently at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, studying film and television production, and I've come across a problem that I'd like to hear from you..."

(End of this chapter)