1000 Flower St.
Glendale, CA, 91201, United States
(818) 695-5000
dreamworksanimation.com
Origins:
DreamWorks’ Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen on the cover of Time Magazine, March 27, 1995. Coutesy of malibucomplete.com
Co-founded in 1994 by entertainment veterans Stephen Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen, DreamWorks Animation SKG has released a total of twenty-six animated feature films that have grossed over $10 billion worldwide (as of 2012). In 1995, DreamWorks embarked on a co-production venture with Pacific Data Images. This new unit was created to produce computer-animated motion pictures, beginning with 1998’s Antz. In 2005, Viacom purchased the live-action division of DreamWorks, only to end this partnership in 2008. Reliance Entertainment now acts as its parents company. 20th Century Fox took over international marketing and distribution for SKG in 2012, and the SKG studio now handles its own domestic distribution. In addition to feature films, DreamWorks produces television programming and other family entertainment. [1][2]
Key Executives:
Spielberg, Courtesy of static-I3.org
Jeffery Katzenberg, Courtesy of hollywoodreporter.com
Animation Portfolio:
DreamWorks has enjoyed considerable success, both commercial and critical, with its large library of animated films. SKG’s films boast a $430 million gross average, an astounding number second to only Pixar. Four of DreamWorks films rank amongst the fifty highest-grossing films of all time, and the studio can lay claim to sixteen of the fifty highest-grossing animated features of all time. Though the studio has a history of traditionally-animated films (The Road to El Dorado, Sinbad), SKG has confirmed that all future films will be computer-animated. [6]
Co-financed and distributed by DreamWorks for Aardman Animation, the stop-motion animated Chicken Run marked one of the company’s first forays into animated motion pictures. It was a decisive success, grossing nearly $228 million worldwide with a $42 million budget.
DreamWorks found solid gold with the release of Shrek, a box-office smash-hit that
Courtesy of traileraddict.com
catapulted the studio to the forefront of film animation alongside studios like Pixar and Disney. The green ogre grossed $485 million worldwide and earned the Academy’s first award for Best Animated Feature. The computer animation used in Shrek was different from the traditional animation methods used in previous DreamWorks features, and the film’s release marked a subtle change in direction for the studio; now it would focus its efforts almost entirely on computer animation. Its sequel, Shrek 2, would go on to shatter box-office records in 2004 ($920 million worldwide gross).
Following the computer-animated tradition of Shrek,Madagascar continued the string of massive success for SKG, taking in $530 million worldwide in ’05.
Jack Black stars in this computer animated comedy that marked DreamWorks biggest opening for a non-sequel, and the highest grossing animated feature of the year ($632 million worldwide).
Expected to launch a new franchise, Guardians (featuring a re-envisioning of classic characters Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, etc.) was considered a flop despite being well-received critically and grossing over $300 million worldwide. It also received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Animated Feature Film. [7]
Courtesy of yodale.org
Recent Activity:
February 26, 2013 – DreamWorks Animation reported a quarterly loss of nearly $83 million, mainly due to the disappointing performance of Rise of the Guardians (which still brought in over $300 million to an estimated $145 million budget, excluding marketing costs). CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg attributes Guardians lackluster performance to poor marketing. Another film in production, Me & My Shadow, was sent back into development, accruing more losses for the studio. As a result of the studios reset setbacks, SKG announced a series of layoffs that will see around 350 employees lose their jobs by the end of the year. This resulted in a small drop in SKG stock.[8]
March 13, 2013 – Despite watching its stock price drop in the wake of its 4th quarter earnings report, DreamWorks Animation SKG stock experienced an 8% rise after an analyst predicted the studio’s new release, The Croods, will exceed box office expectations. As of April 7th, The Croods has earned over $330 million worldwide in two and a half weeks. [9] [10]
March 20, 2013 – DreamWorks Animation releases the theatrical trailer for its upcoming summer 2013 animated feature, Turbo. Starring voice talent such as Ryan Reynolds, Snoop Dogg, Paul Giamatti and Luis Guzman, the film chronicles a snail’s dream of becoming a racing legend, and will be distributed by 20th Century Fox. [11]
Upcoming Projects- Even with the recent theatrical release of The Croods and the summer release of Turbo, DreamWorks Animation SKG has a full slate of movies set for production. Two sequels to SKG’s acclaimed How to Train Your Dragon (2010) are set for release in 2014 and 2016. In fall 2013, SKG plans to release Mr. Peabody & Sherman, a Rocky & Bullwinkle spin-off. With five planned releases including new films from the Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda franchises, 2015 figures to be a huge year for Animation SKG. [12]
ORIGINS [1][2] Co-founded by veteran producers and executives Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum in 1998, Spyglass Entertainment Group, LLC, is a small, private American production company that was forged from the joint investments from The Walt Disney Company—a later distributor for them—and several European investors, including Scandinavia’s Svensk Films, Portugal’s Lusomundo, Germany’s Kirch Group, and Italy’s Mediaset. Its current lone European distributor is StudioCanal UK. The Cerberus Capital Group, a private equity firm, acts as its parent holding company.
Birnbaum and Barber
KEY PEOPLE [3] Gary Barber – Co-founder, Co-chairman, Co-CEO Roger Birnbaum – Co-founder, Co-chairman, Co-CEO Jonathan Glickman – President Jose Gutierrez – CFO, Executive VP Peter Oillataguerre – Executive VP of Production Rebekah Rudd – Executive VP of Post-Production
ROLE As a younger, smaller production house, Spyglass is owned and maintained by other companies and has either co-financed, co-distributed, and most importantly, co-produced, its films alongside other production groups; never has it produced a film on its own. However, Spyglass is known to finance and produce television and films for international distribution purposes, partnering with Canal Plus for television distribution in France, Sweden and Poland, Sogecable S.A. for Spanish television, Pony Canyon Inc. for distribution in Japan, and Forum Film Ltd. for Israeli cinema [2].
CINEMA SUCCESS [4] Since its inception in 1998, the company has released films with every one of the “Big Six” film studios, garnering over $5 billion in global sales. Spyglass has co-produced a variety of different types of films for over a decade, including, most notably, the $661-million-dollar worldwide launch of The Sixth Sense (1999), followed by Bruce Almighty (2003), Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) Star Trek (2009), and Get Him to the Greek (2010). Prior to Spyglass and MGM’s merger in 2010, The Sixth Sense, Bruce Almighty, and Seabiscuit (2003), dominated domestic box offices, helping to bring US totals to nearly $2 billion in revenue before the end of the decade. Spyglass films have collected over 34 Oscar nominations and 3 wins.
Theatrical poster
The Sixth Sense (1999)
Produced for Disney’s Hollywood Pictures affiliate, the M. Night Shyamalan-directed thriller pic starring Bruce Willis earned six Oscar nominations and grossed over $500 million worldwide, ranking it as the ninth highest grossing film in history at the time. Its commercial success confirmed investors’ faith in Barber and Birnbaum and was the company’s first breakthrough [2].
Theatrical poster
Bruce Almighty (2003) Its most important film of the 2003-2004 releases, the Jim Carrey comedy pulled in nearly $500 million worldwide and its particular international draw heavily bolstered Spyglass’ financial standing through the international rights it acquired with co-financing partners overseas [2].
Theatrical poster
Seabiscuit (2003)
Coming after a split with Disney and a proud new partnership with co-financier DreamWorks, the film adaptation of Laura Hillenbrand’s novel about the famous racehorse, starring Tobey Maguire, proved to be a commercial and critical success that earned seven Oscar nominations. Spyglass put up half the budget with Universal Pictures, agreeing to rights for all international markets while Universal handled domestic markets [2].
Theatrical poster
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) Based on the best-selling novel by Arthur Golden, the Rob Marshall-directed, Steven Spielberg-produced and Spyglass-produced drama starring Ken Watanabe and Michelle Yeoh garnered three Oscars out of its six nominations, including Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design in 2006 [5].
By the end of the decade, with analogous companies like Bel-Air, Mutual Film, Alcon, Mandalay, and New Regency facing financial ruin and scaling back activity, Spyglass’ success in the movie business was considered a fluke in the system. Because Spyglass Entertainment Television division’s debut endeavor, Miracles, failed in 2004, followed by the television failures of The Ranch and Out of the Shadows, Spyglass devoted itself to a strictly film content producer, and throughout the 2007-2008 year was especially prolific, producing fifteen films, from The Lookout (2007) to Four Christmases (2008). Today, Spyglass’ competition consists of Beacon Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, and IFC. [2][6]
MERGER [7][8] Around Christmas 2010, the ailing Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. (MGM) was ready to declare bankruptcy when Spyglass, one of the studio’s creditors, wrote off nearly $5 billion in debts, accumulated interest and fees in a trade for ownership of MGM, although both Spyglass and MGM would be considered separate entities. Barber and Birnbaum became co-charman and co-CEOs of the studio, despite Spyglass’ stake being reduced from 5% to 1% in a move by business magnate Carl Icahn, who, as a 14% owner, agreed after the plan was re-packaged to exclude titles from the Spyglass archives.
Get Him to the Greek (2010) Trailer [9] One of Spyglass’ first co-produced films following the merger, and a highly successful comedy.
ACTIVITY [10] Since the merger, Spyglass has scaled back its operation, and only produces several films a year [2], if that, which includes Dinner for Schmucks (2010), The Tourist (2010), No Strings Attached (2011), and, most recently, The Vow (2012).
Spyglass is currently attached to the action-adventure film adaptation of Radical Comics’ Hercules: The Thracian Wars (2014), which starts pre-production in May, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Ian McShane.
Barber, Birnbaum, and Glickman (as Spyglass Entertainment) are signed on as producers for Ironbow: The Legend of William Tell, a version of the Swiss folk hero’s legendary creation of the Swiss Confederation, written by Jay Wolpert and directed by Justin Chadwick.
The trio are also producers, along with Robert De Niro, on The Undomestic Goddess, a film in development based on Sophie Kinsella’s novel of the same name.
Spyglass’ producers have teamed up with writer/director Brian Koppelman and several other producers in the development of The Game, a film adapation of Neil Strauss’ memoir as a pickup artist, starring Josh Gad.
In another adaptation, Spyglass has signed on as co-producer of the 1979 remake of the sci-fi/horror film, The Brood, written by Cory Goodman and directed by Breck Eisner.
Spyglass is behind Spanky Johnson: Monster Hunter (2014), a comedy about a boy who is forced to assume his father’s monster hunting business, starring Dan Fogler, who also appeared in Spyglass’ 2007 comedy success, Balls of Fury.
Columbia and TriStar Pictures function as divisions under the Columbia TriStar Motion Pictures Group of Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) [2]. Columbia Pictures produces Sony Pictures’ commercial motion pictures. TriStar Pictures allocates and markets Sony Pictures’ Entertainment films, distributing entertainment to over 150 countries around the globe [5] [11].
Columbia Pictures began to rise in fame when renowned director, Frank Capra, began directing in 1927 [9]. He took the company by surprise with its first Best Picture Academy Award for the film, It Happened One Night (1934). He was also the reason for the studio’s first “talkie” film.
By 1983, TriStar Pictures was created when Columbia came together with HBO and CBS. Seeing that it was one of the newest production studios, it quickly surfaced as a chief competitor in the film arena by releasing popular blockbusters such as The Natural and Peggy Sue Got Married.
By 1989, Sony Corporation purchased Columbia Pictures from Coca-Cola [9]. The new owner positioned Columbia beneath its new division, Sony Pictures Entertainment. They company also transferred from Burbank to Culver City, CA. Here is where the studio produced such classics like Gone With the Wind and Citizen Kane. They produced these on the MGM lot.
In 2000, Sony created Sony Pictures Digital, which was comprised of Sony Picture Imageworks and Sony Pictures Animation [9]. Imageworks developed CGI and VFX for Columbia TriStar Motion Pictures Group and the animation division. Animated feature films were produced by the animation division in Sony.
Featuring: Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, & Bereniche Marlohe
“The name is Bond…James Bond”.
Daniel Craig is back as James Bond in the 23rd installment of the Bond franchise, which is the longest-running film franchise ever. Skyfall delves into M’s secret past where Bond’s loyalty to her is tested. He is challenged to trace the threat and dispose of it at whatever cost [29].
This film was not only the highest-grossing film in the UK but it also marked Judi Dench’s final performance as M!
Featuring: Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Joel Edgarton, Mark Strong, Kyle Chandler, Edgar Ramirez, & Jennifer Enle
The masterminds behind The Hurt Locker (2008), Kathryn and Mark Boal, came together once more to produce this motion picture. They collaborated with Sony Pictures who made this the last feature to be released for the 2012 calendar year [18].
After a decade of searching for the “most wanted man,” Zero Dark Thirty details the story of the chase for Osama Bin Laden that began after the horrific events of 9/11.
Produced by Caleeb Pinkett, Will Smith, James Lassiter, & M. Night Shymalan
Featuring: Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Isabelle Fuhrman, Kristofer Hivju, Gabriel Caste
The last of the human race is forced to leave Earth and instead travel through space. After 100 years of travel, they arrive to a place called Nova Prime and they must build a modern civilization of their own [19].
Produced by Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen, & James Weaver
Featuring: James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogan, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride
Friendships are tested when six friends are stuck in a Los Angeles home after catastrophic events take place [25].
Recent News:
As was said before, Skyfall became the highest grossing Bond film ever before. It beat its previous record of $3.5 billion (2009) and earned over $4 billion [28]. This has led to Sony Picture Entertainment becoming the highest grossing movie studio for the year. In accordance with Skyfall, Sony’s other releases – The Amazing Spider-Man, Men in Black 3, and Zero Dark Thirty helped reach that highest grossing title. For 2012, Sony Pictures released a total of 9 blockbuster films. The release of films is at a low point currently but they will pick up for the end of spring into summer with Will Smith’s After Earth.
Rumors spread that Sony was having financial issues and needed to sell the film division. Thankfully, these rumors have been squashed and the CEO of Sony Corporation, Kazuo Hirai, stated that Sony would not be selling. Instead, Hirai states that Sony is nearing its comeback [20].
For only the 6th time in Oscar history, Zero Dark Thirty’s hunt for Osama Bin Laden and Skyfall, the latest movie in the Bond franchise, were tied in the Sound Editing category [10].
Andrew Chang (General Counsel/Corporate Secretary)
Rich Sullivan (Deputy Chief Financial Officer)
About
DreamWorks Animation SKG is an animation studio located in Glendale, California that produces animated films, television series and live entertainment for audiences worldwide. With a staff totaling more than 2,100 employees facilitating production, DreamWorks creates and distributes on average roughly three feature-length films for theatrical release in addition to many other smaller-scale projects. Boasting the rank of being the fourteenth best place to work according to Fortune Magazine, the animation studio is the one of the most versatile in the world and is the birthplace of stories that wrestle with the imagination.
Historical Background
DreamWorks SKG was jointly founded on October 12, 1994 by the triumvirate made up of: director & producer Steven Spielberg, music executive David Geffen and former Disney executive Jeffrey Katzenberg. With its formation, artists from Spielberg’s previous unsuccessful animation studio, Amblimation, were attracted for employment. In 1995, the young animation studio signed a co-production deal with Pacific Data Images, forming the subsidiary PDI, LLC which split the ownership 60/40 favoring PDI. The new business partition would go on produce its first-ever feature film: Antz. In 1997, DreamWorks partnered with British stop-animation studio Aardman Animation to co-produce Chicken Run. At the turn of the century, DreamWorks SKG created the business division DreamWorks Animation and halted the use of hand-drawn animation following the production of Shrek (which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film). In 2004, the studio became the first to produce two computer-generated animated feature films in a single year with the theatrical release of Shrek 2 and Shark Tale. The same year, DreamWorks Animation was further divided into DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. managed by Katzenberg under the terms that 12 new films be distributed by the end of 2010’s fiscal fourth quarter.
Financials
For 2012, the animation studio raked in an impressive $749.8 million – topping its previous year’s revenue by $42 million dollars which can be credited to the release of Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. Additionally, DreamWorks ended 2012 with $82.7 million in revenue with their total assets reaching $1.945 billion and a total equity of $1.346 million. Their fiscal fourth quarter results are as follows:
From June to September, DreamWorks increased their annual revenue from $162.8 million to $186.3 million. Following the month of October, profitability increased much more rapidly – with the most likely cause being related to the marketing of their newest movie at the time: Rise of the Guardians. By December 31st, the studio’s revenue stream for the quarter was capped off at $264.66 million, slightly over a third of their annual earnings. Overall, DreamWorks incurred a $36.4 million loss over the course of the entire year in comparison to their overall revenue of the previous year.
In The News
Dreamworks’ fourth quarter holiday release, Rise of the Guardians, proved successful at the box office: being largely responsible for just over one-third of the animation studio’s overall revenue for that year. Centering around an evil spirit named Pitch, the character archetypes of imagination (The Sandman, The Tooth Fairy, Santa Clause, etc.) are given no choice but to join forces in order to defeat a looming enemy that threatens childrens’ beliefs. Starring heavyweights Alec Baldwin, Hugh Jackman and Jude Law, the film was described by one critic as being “one for the kids, [but] fun enough to put a smile on parents’ faces.” Domestically, Rise of the Guardians grossed $103 million, which was surprisingly only 34% of its $303.5 million worldwide gross. In the weeks that followed its release, the film was rewarded with a 74% fresh tomato overall.
Released just last week on March 22, DreamWorks Animations’ The Croods grossed a total $72.8 million its opening weekend. When a prehistoric family’s home is destroyed, they are forced to embark on a journey across an unfamiliar land in search of a new home. Written-and-directed by Chris Sanders (Lilo and Stitch, The Lion King) and Kirk de Micco, the feature film boasts a talented cast starring Nicholas Cage, Emma Stone and actor Clark Duke, who is best-known from roles in the ABC series GREEK and the acclaimed superhero movie Kick-Ass. The film is currently the highest-grossing film at the box office – concluding the weekend at $43.6 million. The Croods also holds a 67% fresh rating on rottentomatoes.com and a 7.5/10 on imdb.com. After just two weeks at the box office, Dreamworks first animated feature film of 2013 has grossed $227 million in total and is currently the number one ranked movie worldwide. So far, The Croods is in position to exceed studio’s 2012 revenue profitability – with two other feature-length theatrical releases later this year.
Upcoming Animations
July 19, 2013: Turbo
Following the story of a snail who gains superior speed after a freak-accident, Turbo aspires to escape his slow-paced world to compete in the Indy500. Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamotti and Ken Jeong are all attached to the project set to be the studio’s primary summer release.
November 1, 2013: Mr. Peabody & Sherman
Mr. Peabody & Sherman is DreamWorks’ adaptation of the well-known Rocky and Bullwinkle side-cartoon about an exceptionally smart dog who owns a human as a pet. When they travel back in time, they are tested when they realize they could potentially unravel the fabric of their universe. The feature film is set to be directed by Rob Minkoff (The Lion King) and will star Ty Burrel (Modern Family) and Max Charles (The Amazing Spiderman) voicing Mr. Peabody and Sherman, respectively.
March 14, 2014: Me and My Shadow
Lesser-known than DreamWorks’ two previously-mentioned feature films, Me and My Shadow follows the story of a seemingly boring man’s shadow that craves for a more exciting lifestyle.
Other Projects Currently In Production
June 20, 2014: How To Train Your Dragon 2
November 26, 2014: Happy Smekday!
March 27, 2015: The Penguins of Madagascar
June 5, 2015: Trolls (working title)
November 6, 2015: B.O.O.: Bureau of Otherworldly Operations
[Seth Rogan supposedly attached]
December 19, 2015: Mumbai Musical(working title)
[Kevin Lima (Tarzan, Enchanted) will be directing with music composed by A.R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire)]
Warner Bros Pictures has produced and distributed thousands of titles since 1923 when it was founded by Albert, Sam, Harry and Jack Warner. WB is responsible for many iconic moments and accomplishments in the entertainment industry. To start, they are responsible for the first film with sound, The Jazz Singer. Following this Warner Bros had decades of success, even producing up to 40 movies a year during the 1940s. Jumping forward to the 1990s, Time Inc. and Warner Bros intertwined and became Time Warner, one of the powerhouses of todays entertainment industry. Warner Bros Pictures, as a subsidiary of Time Warner, produces between 18 and 22 movies a year and currently grosses over $4 billion a year. That brings us to our current place in time, post“The Dark Knight” and “Harry Potter” era, when Warner Bros Pictures was in charge of two of the most successful movie series of all time. [1] [2]
Conglomerate: Time Warner Inc.
Courtesy of financial-report.info
Parent Company: Warner Bros. Entertainment
CEO: Kevin Tsujihara
Chairman of the Board: Barry Meyer
Warner Bros Pictures Officers
President: Jeff Robinov
Courtesy of http://www.aceshowbiz.com/
Mr. Robinov is in charge of it all. He oversees actual filming and production, distribution and the post-production. All of the other presidents report to him and he has the final say before it is passed to the Warner Bros Entertainment CEO Kevin Tsujihara and Chairman of the Board Barry Meyer. [3]
President, Domestic Distribution- Dan Fellman
Courtesy of http://ia.media-imdb.com/
Mr. Fellman has been in his position at Warner Bros Pictures since 1999 and worked there for 21 years before that. Fellman is widely known for his success with movies such as The Dark Knight,Superman Returns, TheHangover and The Blind Side. Among these, he has produced 57 movies that have grossed over $100 million. [4]
President, Worldwide Marketing- Sue Kroll
Courtesy of Variety.com
Ms. Kroll has been in her position since 2008. She oversees all marketing worldwide, both creative and business aspects of the job. She is in-charge of advertising, research, finding target audiences and bringing attention to the film. She most famously ran the marketing division for The Dark Knight which grossed over $1 billion worldwide. [5]
Most Recent Time Warner Inc. Quarterly Report
In Time Warner’s final quarterly report of 2012, it explains Warner Bros Pictures grossed $4.3 billion worldwide; this was predominantly led by The Dark Knight Rises and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Warner Bros Pictures also received two Golden Globes this year, which included Best Motion Picture- Drama for Argo. Along with the Golden Globe achievements, Warner Bros. Picture’s movies were nominated for 10 Academy Awards this year. [6]
Courtesy of imdb.com
“Right Here, Right Now” Semester News From the Studio
New Commander-in-Chief
Courtesy of www.trbimg.com/
The biggest thing to happen during this Spring to affect Warner Bros. Pictures actually was not a change made in the company. Warner Bros Entertainment, WB Pictures parent company, appointed a new CEO. Kevin Tsujihara announced he would be taking control of the mega-entertainment company as of March on January 28th, 2013. [7]
The Hobbit is not really that short!
Courtesy of www.dezineguide.com
It is announced that the first Hobbit movie hit its $1 billion mark and the rest of the trilogy has already been planned out. The final Hobbit Movie will be released in December of 2014, after the second installment of the series is released in December of 2013. Tacking on to the end of the Lord of the Rings series this spin-off proved to be just what the world wanted to see grossing $301.4 domestically and over $700 million internationally to date. [8]
The man with the Billion Dollar Brain is Preparing for his Next Epic
Courtesy of http://www.comicbookmovie.com/
On March 8th, Warner Bros Pictures and Paramount announced that together they would co-produce and distribute, Academy Award nominee and billion-dollar movie maker Christopher Nolan’s next film. The Film, titled “Interstellar”, is sci-fi and will entail Nolan’s customary heroic story line. The fact that these two powerhouse studios are teaming up to produce and distribute this film together is extremely rare because the two do not normally work together on major releases. [9]
“RUN ITS GODZILLA”
Courtesy of www.badassoftheweek.com
While not much has been released yet, it is now public knowledge that a new Godzilla is in the works and will be released and distributed in 3D by Warner Bros. on May 16th, 2014. The film has Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen and Juliette Binoche starring in the film. [10]
Recent Marketing
Courtesy of themovieblog.com/
Warner Bros Pictures is currently ramping up for a very busy spring and early summer with summer blockbusters that many people are looking forward to and could possibly define a top box office summer. Starting in early April we see the true life story of Jackie Robinson in 42 and following this we see our first summer blockbuster the re-make of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s timeless classic The Great Gatsby. Then directly following this, just two weeks later we see the next installment of our favorite party-crazed drunks in The Hangover 3. Finally, most likely the most anticipated superhero movie of the summer, Man of Steel, the next Superman movie is released in June.
Most Recently Warner Bros Pictures shined as a main attraction at WonderCon
With the upcoming release of Pacific Rim, Warner Bros decided to use this time with a huge collection of its target audience (at WonderCon) to debut a clip from the scene and hear from director, Guillermo del Toro. The scene creates enough suspense and confusion to make every nerd and non-nerd alike in the room anxious to run to the theaters on its opening weekend (July 12, 2013) to see the film. [11]
This has been a very busy late-winter and spring for Warner Bros Pictures with a number of huge films debuting at the beginning of this summer and a lot of films released during this time period. With all this in mind, it makes sense that there are so many presidents under Jeff Robinov to break up all of the executive work that keeps this studio at the top of its game.
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, also known as 20th Century Fox, was established on May 31, 1935 when the founders of Fox Film Corporation and Twentieth Century Pictures decided to merge into one. It is now one of the major American film studios that produces, acquires, and distributes motion pictures. Based in Los Angeles, California, it operates as a subsidiary of Fox Entertainment Group Inc. and is responsible for some of the top grossing movies, including Avatar and Titanic. [1] [2]
Quick Financials
During the first quarter, which encompasses the months of January, February, and March, 20th Century Fox brought in a gross income of $256.9 million, a 13.7% decrease in comparison to the first quarter of 2012; however, this is also an 123.7% increase in comparison to 2011. [19]
Key Executives
Keith Rupert Murdoch
Photo courtesy of biography.com
Murdoch is the founder of News Corporation, in which 20th Century Fox is a subsidiary of, and has been its Chairman since 1991. Since 1992, Murdoch has been the Chairman of Fox Entertainment Group Inc. and its Chief Executive Officer since 1995. He operates as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. [2]
Since July 1, 2007, Peikoff has been Senior Vice President of Licensing and Merchandising of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. His duties include managing internal and external communication for the licensing division and managing retail marketing and licensed promotion initiatives in the U.S. [2]
Robert Marick
Photo courtesy of licensing.biz
As Executive Vice President since July of 2010, Marick manages the global licensing of Fox’s television and film assets across different platforms including television promotions, interactive gaming, literary publishing, themed entertainment, and consumer products. [2]
20th Century Fox Films released its first film of the year, Broken City, starring Mark Wahlberg, Russell Crowe, and Catherine Zeta Jones, on January 18th. The film told the story of a New York City cop, who one night gets involved in a scandalous shooting. He’s stripped of his badge but kept out of jail by the works of New York’s Mayor, who offers him a lump sum of money to investigate his wife. While doing so he finds himself in the middle of a much larger scandal as he realizes that the Mayor isn’t who he seems to be.
During its opening weekend, the film made about $9 million and $4 million the weekend after. With an estimated budget of $55 million, it has made an overall gross of $19,667,601 up to date. It has received mixed reviews ranging from being called a complete mess to being considered an entertaining thriller. Nonetheless, there seems to be a majority consensus—the cast and the numerous twists are great but can only keep the “weak” storyline going but so far, causing it to receive a B- from Entertainment Weekly. [5] [6]
20th Century Fox employed an interesting marketing strategy for the movie. Instead of featuring promotional quotes from legitimate movie critics, they chose to use tweets from the hashtag, #BrokenCity, in which basically anyone could be a critic.
Photo courtesy of cultureblues.com
The studio believed it was a way to be more personable and interactive and to get fans more excited for the upcoming film. However, the tactic raised many questions about the weight of movie critics’ opinions and whether or not they carry the same weight as the opinions of the fans. [7]
20th Century Fox released the fifth movie of the Die Hard franchise, A Good Day to Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis and Jai Courtney, on February 14th. This is the first of the franchise to not be released during the blockbuster summer months and instead in the cold month of February. [9] The film tells the story of a cop, John McClane, who travels to Moscow to help his unruly son Jack, unaware that Jack is really a CIA agent attempting to stop a nuclear weapons robbery. Despite their differences, they are forced to work together to keep each other and the world safe. [5]
The film was produced for about $92 million. During its opening weekend, it made $24,834,845 domestically and $45,301,894 oversees, giving it the number one spot of films newly released that weekend. [10] However, this is over $70 million less than what the last movie of the Die Hard franchise made in the summer of 2007. With this comparison, it could be considered disappointing. [11]
Very unlike the previous films of the series, the film has been largely slated by various critics. Based on 40 “generally unfavorable” reviews, Metacritic has given the movie a 28 out of 100 and based on 184 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes has given it a score of 4 out of 10. On both sites, several reasons for such low scores have been cited but the majority seems to agree on a muddling plotline with too many holes and twists as the movie’s downfall. [12] [13]
The film follows the story of a caveman, Crug, who must lead his family across an unstable and dangerous landscape after an earthquake destroys their home. While doing so they come across a nomad who charms everyone but Crug with his revolutionary modern ways. [14] As of April 1st, with a budget of about $135 million, the film has made $93,893,394 domestically and $148,802,379 from foreign theaters, amounting to $242,695,773 worldwide. [18]
To build up anticipation of the release of the movie, DreamWorks made a deal with Rovio to create a mobile game based on The Croods, an impressive marketing strategy. In the game, the Croods, a family of cave men, find their way out of the Stone Age through the use of a new tool, the idea. They hunt and gather their way through new landscapes as they tame creatures they’ve never seen before.
Rovio released the game for Apple and Android devices on March 14, just about a week before the official release of the film. [15]
What’s Next for 20th Century Fox?
20th Century Fox plans to release another 3-D animated family film, Epic, which is based on the children’s book, The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs. From the creators of Ice Age and Rio, Epic follows the story of a teenage girl, who finds herself magically transported into a secret universe. While there, she must team up with a group of capricious characters in order to save their world and her own from Queen Tara, the evil spider. [16]
Paramount Pictures Corporation is subsidiary of Viacom. It is a production and distribution company for film and television. Paramount is famed for continuously producing top-grossing motion pictures.
Paramount Executives
BRAD GREY Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Paramount Pictures Corporation
Paramount was the byproduct of Adolph Zukor’s Famous Players Film Company merging with Jesse L Lasky’s Lasky Feature Play Company in 1916. Paramount Pictures recognizes Zukor’s company’s establishment date as their own (1912).
Throughout the the 20th century, Paramount went through its ups and downs, inventing and re-inventing itself while changing hands of ownership many times over. It entered new prosperity under Gulf + Western thanks to Robert Evans‘ leadership. This lasted through the 70’s into the 90’s. In 1994, Paramount Communications (the parent company for Paramount Pictures, at the time) merged with Viacom, putting it under its ownership. In 2005, Brad Grey was appointed Chairman and CEO. Grey has continued the quarter century long tradition of unwavering success. In 2011, Paramount produced six-consecutive films that broke the 100 million dollar box office gross mark; an unrivaled achievement. They are now, in 2012, celebrating Paramount’s centennial. [29]
Paramount Activity
In the fiscal third quarter, parent company, Viacom was down from 2011. Paramount’s theatrical revenue being down by 52% – as a result of fewer summer releases – did not help matters. Several of these releases during the summer reflect partnerships that no longer will exist with Paramount moving forward. These include the Marvel (now Disney IP) and DreamWorks Animation (20th Century Fox IP) films. This demonstrates Paramount’s dire need to find new, fresh content and put out more theatrical releases. The only other Paramount summer releases included one original film Sacha Baron Cohen‘s The Dictator. The rest were re-releases of films likeTitanic. [28]
Now in the fourth fiscal quarter, Viacom reports a stronger quarter, but is still not doing as well as they should be. Paramount has reportedly done better but is expected to report losses in the upcoming year’s fiscal first quarter. It is anticipated it will gradually improve thereafter. [27]
With the success of the Paranormal Activity franchise, Paramount Pictures created a new company called Insurge Pictures in 2010. The goal of the company is to duplicate that franchise’s success by producing a series of micro-budget films and giving them wide-releases. It’s a low risk, but potential for high-reward venture. To this sub-divisions credit are the succeeding Paranormal Activity pictures, The Devil Inside, and both the Katy Perry and Justin Beiber movies (Part of Me and Never Say Never respectively). [26]
A new international trailer is released of Paramount’s upcoming film Jack Reacher starring Tom Cruise. This trailer reveals more characters than previous ones. [25]
November 20, 2012
Paramount sets Paranormal Activity 5 release date for October 15, 2013. There is also discussion of developing a spin-off franchise. [24]
Joel Silver has been given a deal by Paramount to produce his next horror flick, Sanctuary. The story centers around a fictitious, secret Vatican-run program that aims to train the demonically possessed to use their powers against evil. [22]
November 8, 2012
Michael Bay cast Mark Wahlberg in Transformers 4 slated for release June 27, 2014. Wahlberg also stars in Bay’s upcoming film Pain and Gain, another Paramount release, on April 23, 2013. [21]
November 7, 2012
Paramount is producing Brett Ratner‘s Hercules alongside MGM. It will begin production in 2013 and is based on Radical Studio’s graphic novel. [20]
November 5, 2012
Anheuser-Busch, a brewing company, has asked Paramount to hide or remove the Budweiser logos from the newly released Denzel Washington film, Flight – a movie about an alcoholic pilot. Legally, Paramount is not obligated to. [19]
John Singleton settles in his lawsuit against Paramount Pictures and MTV Films. [18]
October 29, 2012
Paramount gets Nia Vardalos‘ Leftovers, an “anti-romantic comedy.” It is still in-development. [17]
October 25, 2012
Paramount pledges to put Adam Sandler‘s new western comedy, The Ridiculous 6 into production in April 2013. [16]
Insurge Pictures and Yahoo! announce the 2-season renewal of Burning Love, a comedy series which plays on Yahoo! Screen and is produced in part by Ben Stiller’s company, Red Hour Digital. [15]
October 24, 2012
Paramount Insurge acquires Jayson Rothwell‘s script, Patrol. A story about Marines met by an unexpected twist after chasing drug smugglers to a remote island. [14]
Paramount closes a deal to acquire Our Name is Adam; a project that already has Tom Cruise attached to it. Cruise, as an astronaut, goes back in time to work with his younger self. [13]
October 19, 2012
Paramount acquires Wayne Kramer‘s pitch for a new movie called, The Circuit. He will write and direct the picture. [12]
October 11, 2012
Fans vote worldwide on where Paramount Pictures will pre-release the fourth installment of Paranormal Activity prior to the overall theatrical release. The contest was held through a voting application integrated in Facebook. The application is called “Want It” which plays into the franchises long-standing PR “demand it” campaign. [11]
October 5, 2012
Melrose Investors 2 amends a lawsuit it has against Paramount for holding out on profit-sharing by mis-reporting film earnings. They now are going after parent company Viacom and holding them responsible. [10]
Paramount picks up Michael Bay-produced “found-footage” movie called, Almanac. The project is “top secret” and being kept under wrap for the time being. Dean Israelite makes his directorial debut with this film. [9]
John Singelton‘s suit against a contract breach with Paramount is given a court date. The case is Singelton’s grievance with Paramount Pictures and MTV Films for rescinding on a two-picture deal he alleges he was promised after allowing them to acquire 2005’s Hustle & Flow. [7]
Paramount acquires the rights to the Clark Baker‘s sci-fi horror short Vessel. Stephen Susco is on board to adapt it for the big screen. [5]
September 4, 2012
Amazon.com reached a deal with Epix to gain high-profile films for its instant-streaming service. Included in the deal are many films from the Paramount catalogue. [4]
September 3, 2012
Paramount celebrates 100 years of movies and music by hosting an event at the Hollywood Bowl. Paramount played clips from its vault of classic and contemporary films. These clips were accompanied by a live orchestra which played pieces from some of their most famous films’ soundtracks. [3]
August 20, 2012
DreamWorks Animation no longer to distribute through Paramount. They move to a 5-year deal with Twentieth Century Fox in pursuit of “more favorable economics overall for DreamWorks Animation…” [2]
August 16, 2012
Paramount pictures gears up to develop its animation department. Following the success of Rango, their first animated project since separating from a brief DreamWorks affiliation, the company will make a second Spongebob Squarepants movie and other movies based off of Nickelodeon IP. Paramount, prior to this, had not had its own animation division officially since 1967. [1]
“To start filling a pipeline, Paramount chief Brad Grey is turning to sister division Nickelodeon to supply much of the IP. Though development has not begun yet, possible Nickelodeon products that could be turned into films include Dora the Explorer, The Legend of Korra and Monkey Quest. Company boasts a strong consumer products, travel and resorts biz to boost future pics’ earnings potential.” – published in Variety
Founded in 1997, Lionsgate is now a global entertainment corporation that handles film production and distribution, as well as television programming and syndication. Lionsgate also has a strong presence in home entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution, and new channel platforms.
Once known as Lions Gate Entertainment, the corporation changed its name to “Lionsgate” in 2005. The company stated in a release: “The simplification of Lions Gate into the single word ‘Lionsgate’ represents the ongoing unification of the company’s diversified motion picture, television, home entertainment, family entertainment, documentary film, music publishing and video-on-demand businesses into a single, highly recognizable brand” [13].
Lionsgate has grown immensely in the past few years. In the past decade alone, it has increased revenues eightfold, from $180 million to almost $1.6 billion, its theatrical box office market share tenfold, the size of its library by a multiple of 15, and its television revenues are now 50 times what they once were, from $8 million in 2000 to $351 million in 2011 [1].
The Hunger Games, courtesy of imdb.com
Lionsgate enjoyed unprecedented success with its film The Hunger Games, which has earned $686.5 million around the world in the few months since its March 23rd premier, grossing $408 million at the North American box office. This puts it at the 3rd largest U.S. film of the year and the 13th highest grossing film of all time [12].
Key Executives[2]
Jon Feltheimer: Chief Executive Officer and Director
James Keegan: Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administration Officer
Dr. Mark H. Rachesky, M.D.: Chairman of the Board
Michael Burns: Vice Chairman and Director
Wayne Levin: General Counsel and Executive Vice President, Corporate Operations
Brian Goldsmith: Co-Chief Operating Oficer
Steven Beeks: Co-Chief Operating Officer and President, Motion Picture Group
Recent News
September
The Possession, courtesy of imdb.com
September 3rd, 2012
Lionsgate’s The Possession, a terrifying horror film about a young girl who’s body has been taken over by an evil spirit, was the top ticket seller at the box office over Labor Day weekend. The horror film grossed $21.3 million over the four day-weekend, making it the second-highest Labor Day opening ever, behind only Halloween, which opened with $30.6 million during 2007’s Labor Day weekend. The film was produced by Sam Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures with a budget of only $14 million, and stars Jeffery Dean Morgan and Kyra Sedgwick.
To read the full LA Times article on 2012’s labor day weekend ticket sales, click here [11].
September 17th, 2012
Celestial Tiger Entertainment, one of the largest independent entertainment companies in Asia, announced that it has expanded its content distribution deal with Lionsgate to cover all of East Asia. Now Lionsgate will be represented by Celestial Tiger Entertainment in Greater China and Southeast Asia, and CTE will be distributing all Lionsgate television content and feature films to Japan and Korea [8].
To read the full article by Yahoo! Finance, click here [8].
October
October 5th, 2012
Brian Goldsmith, after serving as executive vice president of corporate development and strategy since 2008, was promoted to co-chief operating officer, alongside Steve Beeks, to handle corporate development for the studio’s platform of channels and digital projects [7]. Goldsmith was recognized for his work in Lionsgate’s acquisition of Summit Entertainment in January, as well as the partnerships with Viacom and MGM in the Epix channel, Sony and Comcast in the FEARnet channel, as well as the output deal with Celestial Tiger Entertainment in Asia [7]. “Brian played a leadership role in many of the initiatives that made 2012 a transformative year for us,” said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer and vice chairman Michael Burns [7].
For the full article from Variety, click here [7].
October 30th, 2012
Domino’s, a leading pizza franchise that specializes in lightning-fast delivery, made a video-on-demand deal with Lionsgate U.K., in which customers who order pizza from the Domino’s website will also be able to instantly watch Lionsgate titles online. Domino’s sales and marketing director Simon Wallis is excited about their move with the video-on-demand service, as he described pizza and film as “a match made in heaven” [9]. Touching on the service’s universal appeal, Wallis said: “we pride ourselves on offering a vast choice when it comes to pizza, and the same is true of Domino’s Pizza Box Office–whether you’re into action, horror, or romantic comedies, there’s something for every pizza-eating occasion” [9]
Domino’s “Pizza Box Office” venture with Lionsgate, courtesy of tqs.com
Lionsgate has made a strong active effort to sign output deals with major distributors. On November 1st the company announced a partnership with Belgium’s Belga Films for release of the studio’s titles in the Benelux. Jerome de Bethune, COO of Belga Films, said “this output agreement provides us with a consistent pipeline of some of the most commercially exiting films in the world, including the next three installments of the blockbuster Hunger Games franchise” [4].
To read the full Hollywood Reporter article on the deal with Belga Films, click here [4].
To read the full Hollywood Reporter article on the deal with Metropolitan Filmworks, click here [5].
Michael Burns, courtesy of www.hollywoodreporter.com
November 5th, 2012
Lionsgate vice chairman, Michael Burns, announced the extension of his contract through October 2017. Burns, after acquiring Summit Entertainment and having such great success with TheHunger Games, is maintaining his position as vice chairman for another five years. “We’re delighted that Michael will continue to help guide Lionsgate’s growth through 2017,” said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer [6].
To read the full article from The Hollywood Reporter, click here [6].
November 28th, 2012
Lionsgate, in an attempt to further create an international distribution network with top partners around the world, announced yet another output deal, this time with Russia’s West Company. The deal will allow Lionsgate films and television shows to be distributed in Russia and other nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region.”Our Lionsgate and Summit labels have both successfully partnered with West Company on numerous films in the past, including the blockbusterTwlight franchise,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Co-Chairs Rob Friedman and Patrick Wachberger [11]. “This new output agreement for Lionsgate titles is a natural evolution of our alliance that promises significant benefits for both our companies for many years to come” [11].
To read the full press release from Yahoo! Finance, click here.
December
December 3rd, 2012
The weekend from Friday, November 30th to Sunday, December 2nd was the third weekend in a row that Breaking Dawn – Part 2–the final installment of the teen vampire Twilight saga from Lionsgate–led U.S. and Canadian ticket sales, outselling both the James Bond film Skyfall and Lincoln. As of December 3rd, according to Bloomberg’s website, this fifth film in the series has taken in $254.6 million in domestic sales, exploiting a post-Thanksgiving lull in big releases to stay on top of the box-office standings. The five Twilight films have taken in $1.33 billion in domestic theaters, according to Box Office Mojo, making it the eighth most successful film franchise of all time [10].
CBS Films is a division of CBS Corporation, which is one of the original broadcast companies.[2] CBS is a mass media company that produces and allocates entertainment content that reaches the entire world. Today it is one of the largest groups of media content companies as well as it owns the most watched Television station in the United States. The film division is just one of their many facets.[3]
4
CBS Films is a baby in the large scope of the entertainment industry. It started in 2007. It has many jobs within its company, including development, financing, production and marketing of theatrical motion pictures. It projects to release four to six films of a wide variety of genres per year with budgets no more than fifty million, but has not been able to debut more that two films per year. They released their first film in the beginning of 2010. CBS films manages the global distribution with partners as well as self-distributing the films in the United States. Currently CBS Films has releases nine films: “The Back –Up Plan”, “Faster”, “The Mechanic”, “Extraordinary Measures”, “Beastly”, “The Woman in Black”, “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”, “The Words”, and “Seven Psychopaths”.[5]
Fall of 2012 Happenings
6
In October of 2012, CBS Films released Seven Psychopaths. This has been their second release in 2012. Even though it opened in ninth place making $ 4.17 million[7], Seven Psychopaths earned two nominations for Independent Spirit Awards for the Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Male categories. Writer and Director, Martin McDonagh is up for the award of Best Screenplay and Sam Rockwell for Best Supporting Male.[8] McDonagh has also written and directed “In Bruges”. In addition he has also produced many short films.[9] Rockwell has been seen on screens in many occasions and will be seen in films to come. Some of his leading roles include “Lawn Dogs”, “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind”, and “Choke”.[10]
11
Even though this picture is receiving nominations, CBS was disappointed in the response from its audience. The weekend report on boxofficemojo.com said that it earned the “lowest nationwide opening ever for CBS Films”. The demographic for this film is male age twenty-five and up. It only opened in half as many theaters as its competing movies during its opening weekend, which could have contributed to its minimal box office gross. CBS Films predicted it would make forty percent more upon its release. It has not been determined the exact reason for its low outcome, but the small demographic that it appeals to is said to have an impact. [12]
According to boxofficemojo.com, Seven Psychopaths ranked 19 in the quarterly reports. It had a total gross of $14,666,353 and was released in 1,480 theaters.[13]
This film follows Colin Farrell who plays a struggling screenwriter in Los Angeles. He entangles himself in the web of the criminal underworld because Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell decide to steal a dog.[14]
15
[16]
Following their release of Seven Psychopaths, CBS Films accomplished something that has never been done before. After long negotiations, four of Hollywood’s most acclaimed actors will be seen on the big screen at once. On November 15th, CBS announced that in late 2013 “Last Vegas” will be released in theaters. With a cast consisting of Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman and Kevin Kline, this film will be the premiere of these Oscar nominated actors on screen simultaneously. This movie, which has a plot that follows the four friends around Las Vegas for the bachelor party of the last friend to walk down the aisle, has a budget of $16.6 billion. CBS is working with Good Universe to produce and distribute this film that Jon Tureltaub will direct and Dan Fogelman will write.[17]
18
Following a similar trend, CBS Films announced its plan to release another 2013 movie with major stars as its leading actors. Like “Last Vegas”, they have also connected Rachel Bilson and Andy Samberg to a movie coming out Valentines Day of 2013 called “The To Do List“.[19]
They also attempted to attach “Thor” actor, Chris Hemsworth, for the leading role in their production of “American Assassin”, a film based on the novel by Vince Flynn. He reported rejected due to scheduling time conflicts.[20]
21
Even though Scott Derrickson is not a leading actor in Hollywood, in the directing world he is very highly recognized. He has previously directed projects such as “Sinister” which was released early this year, as well as the Exorcism of Emily Rose.[22] CBS Films has attached him to making the iconic video game, “Deus Ex: Human Revolution” into a screenplay.[23] He will not only direct this film but write the screenplay as well. It will take place in the near future when major scientific advances debut focusing on human augmentation. The main character, an ex-SWAT security specialist, must take on mechanical augmentation to be able to figure out a global conspiracy.[24]
25
In addition to attaching big name industry personal to their projects in the month of November, CBS also announced that it acquired the distribution rights to The Last Exorcism Part II from studiocanal. This is the sequel of The Last Exorcism, which grossed more than $20 million its opening weekend. Ed Gass-Donnelly will direct this film, which will continue from where the last film left off. Star Ashley Bell, is found abandoned in the woods with no recollection of the previous months. As she begins to live her new life, the evil force possesses her body again stating the exorcism over again. This film is said to be released march of 2013. Scott Shooman, who is the Executive Vice President of Acquisitions and Co-Productions, collaborated with Harold van Lier of Studiocanel. [26]
27
Money, Money, Money
As a corporation as a whole, CBS has had a 5.4% profit increase from 2010 to 2011 reaching $1,276 billion revenue in just movies, TV production, and video games alone.[28] In 2012, at the end of September, the entertainment segment of CBS had total revenue of $ 1,680 million; compared to the previous year it had $ 1,632 million.[29] Even though there is no concrete source to confirm this, from the comparison between 2011 and 2012, I can assume that CBS’s profit slightly increased from numbers in 2011. And although the third quarter results released by CBS Corporate did not include CBS Films specifically in their entertainment segment with their individual earnings, they are included in the total number given.
The most recent release, “Seven Psychopaths”, ranked sixth making a total gross of $ 14,676,509. CBS Films in total has profited $219,338,027[30] from their entire collection of movies since they opened their doors in 2007.[31]
Five specific individuals keep CBS Films active. Wolfgang Hammer[33], who has also been the COO of CBS Films, oversees business, finance, legal affairs and acquisitions. Joining the company in April, Terry Press is head of the creative distribution, marketing and the physical production.[34] On December 5th, 2012 she was ranked number 71 in The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment: Power 100.[35] Steven Friedlander, the Executive Vice President of Theatrical Distribution is in charge of the domestic theatrical acquisitions and distributions.[36] Rik Toulon who has been recognized as a leading attorney for media and entertainment in California and noted in Best Lawyers in America, is the Executive Vice President and General Counsel. As this title he oversees all the legal activities and is involved with the company’s distribution, finance, acquisition, key vendor and strategic alliance arrangements.[37] Lastly, Maria Faillace holds her second job at CBS films as Executive Vice President of Production. There is she in control the production for the division’s homegrown titles.[38]
Coming up in 2013
CBS Films has yet to reach its quota of releasing six films a year, but 2013 will be different. “Last Vegas” is in production now and has a projected release date of Christmas of 2013. “Gambit” is complete and is also to be released in December 2013. “7500” and “Get a Job” are both in post-production now. ” The To Do List” and the “Last Exorcism Part II” are also on the horizon to come to theaters this year.[39]
The Weinstein Company is a production and distribution company focused on movie and television production. The Weinstein Company describes itself as producing “mainstream, genre, and specialty films”, and has a sub-imprint, Dimension Films, for self-defined “genre” movies. (2) The company is also partnered with Weinstein Books, a book publisher, Project Runway, a series produced by Weinstein, Chopard, a jeweler, L’Oreal, and Lexus Short Films (see Upcoming), a project between Lexus and The Weinstein Company. (3)
The Weinstein Company is located at 345 Hudson St., New York, NY, 10014. Its contact phone number is (646) 862-3400. (4)
Management
Bob and Harvey Weinstein (5)
The company’s founders, brothers Bob and Harvey Weinstein, first founded Miramax, a film production company, in 1979. (2) During this period, some of their greatest successes were Pulp Fiction, Shakespeare in Love, Bridget Jones’s Diary, and Chicago. (6) The company was independent until 1993, when it was bought by Disney. Over the course of their professional tenure, the brothers have received 303 Oscar nominations and 75 Academy Awards for their films. (2)
The Weinstein Company’s President of Television is the former Miramax President of Production, Meryl Poster. Current investors in The Weinstein Company include Goldman Sachs, TF1 – a French television company – and WPP Group, an advertising firm. (4)
History
The Weinstein Company itself was founded in October of 2005, when Bob and Harvey Weinstein left Miramax after a falling-out with Disney. (4) The company absorbed Dimension Films, which Bob had founded in 1993. (2) Their first film release was Derailedin November of 2005,which grossed $57 million (7), and their first animated release was Hoodwinked, released in December of 2005, which grossed $51 million on a budget of $8 million. (8)
Michael Moore and Harvey Weinstein (10)
In February 2011, documentary filmmaker Michael Moore sued the Weinstein Company, alleging that the company had re-routed $2.7 million of the profits from his documentary Farenheit 9/11 that had been meant for him, among other accusations of wasteful spending. The case was settled in February 2012, and terms were not disclosed. (11) The Weinstein Company has also been sued over The Reader (see September 2012) and Escape From Planet Earth (see Upcoming).
August 2012
On August 10th, Vivek Shah, a largely unknown actor, was arrested for blackmailing Harvey Weinstein, among four others, and threatening to kill members of his family unless $4 million was wired to him. He is now being held without bail and if convicted could face 20 years in prison. (12)
This aside, the largest event for The Weinstein Company this month was the release of Lawless on August 29th. One week before its release, the Company attempted to drum up publicity for the film by tweeting about a redband trailer, viewable above. (13) The film, directed by John Hillcoat and starring Shia LeBoeuf, Tom Hardy, and Gary Oldman, was, according to a Hollywood Reporter article, “greeted politely [at Cannes] but didn’t capture any prizes.” (14) Its budget was approximately $26 million, and as of November 2012 it grossed $37 million domestically – a modest success. (15)
September 2012
(17)
On September 16, The Master, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, had a limited art-house run, which brought in record-breaking numbers – $729,745 for the weekend, with a per-theater gross of $145,949. At Cannes the film was received as “ambitious and exciting” and some talk was made of the film’s inspiration in the form of L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. (16)The film was released nationwide on September 23, with an opening weekend gross of $4.3 million. (17)
In the background of this hype, the Weinstein Company battled – and lost – another lawsuit, this one from Bernard Schlink, author of The Reader, the book on which the 2008 Weinstein film was based. In the suit, which was filed in January, he claimed that the Weinstein brothers owed him over $1 million in movie profits based on the original film rights contract he had signed with Miramax in 1998. While The Weinstein Company claimed that this deal was never made, Los Angeles Superior court ruled in Schlink’s favor on September 21st. (18)
October 2012
On October 1, 2012, the Weinstein Company released an article about “The New Film By Quentin Tarantino”, which until then had only been previewed and promoted at Cannes. (16) Django Unchained, the “violent story of a slave (Jamie Foxx) on a mission to free his wife (Kerry Washington) from the plantation of the man who owns her (Leonardo diCaprio)”, was heavily inspired by Italian spaghetti westerns. (19) The film will be released on Christmas Day.
Throughout the month, The Weinstein Company continued to promote The Master. New York Times editorial writer A.O. Scott called it “the great polarizing puzzle-film of 2012, in no small part because it unfolds with what seems to be a total disregard for the audience’s expectations.” (20) The film did not quite live up to its art house promise in terms of ticket sales, however – it only grossed $15 million of its $35 million budget. (17) Members of the Church of Scientology also reacted negatively to the film, and made multiple harassing calls to the company, despite claims by lead actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman that “it’s not the L. Ron Hubbard story.” (21)
November 2012
The Company continued to release information about Django Unchained, and on November 13 they revealed on the company Twitter (22) that an official site had been made for the movie.
(23)
The largest release for Weinstein this month was Silver Linings Playbook, starring Jennifer Lawrence of The Hunger Games fame and Bradley Cooper. The film won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival and the award for Best Feature at the San Pedro International Film Festival. (24) Playbook had a limited 16-screen opening of $443,000 on November 18th, and was widely released on November 23rd. It has grossed $11 million of its $21 million budget thus far. (25)
Riding on the cottails of Playbook is Killing Them Softly, which stars Brad Pitt. The film was widely released in theaters on November 30th, and has grossed $7 million. (26) Released with far less fanfare on November 2nd was This Must Be The Place, starring Sean Penn. The film was only on 15 screens nationwide, and has thus far grossed only $128,000. (27)
Upcoming
The next project in store for The Weinstein Company is its partnership with the Lexus company to make Lexus Short Films (see About). On the front page of the project site, the project is explained: “To highlight the new look and feel of the brand, Lexus approached The Weinstein Company to produce a series of short films that will offer similar levels of inspiration to viewers.” (28) Five directors will come together to make these films, which will be released in early 2013.
(31)
Another large forthcoming event is the Escape From Planet Earth, due out in February of 2013 in the midst of a lawsuit surrounding its production. In March of 2011, Brian Inerfeld and Tony Leech, filmmakers of Hoodwinked and Escape, sued The Weinstein Company for over $54 million over claims that the brothers, Harvey in particular, had botched Escape by canceling and reinstating the project multiple times, ordering 17 script rewrites, and eventually firing Inerfeld and Leech from the project, among other accusations. (29) Desperate to avoid bad publicity at the time when The King’s Speech, a large Weinstein success at this time, was due to receive an Academy Award for Best Picture, the Weinstein brothers attempted to pay Inerfeld and Leech $500,000 to keep quiet until after the Oscars were over. The suit is still in settlement, and the current version of Escape was directed by Cal Brunker and written by Brunker and Bob Barlen. (30)
Footnotes
The Weinstein Company, “Publicity Materials.” http://www.twcpublicity.com
The Weinstein Company, “About Us.” http://weinsteinco.com/about-us/
The Weinstein Company. http://weinsteinco.com
Hoovers, “The Weinstein Company LLC Company Information.” http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.The_Weinstein_Company_LLC.ec1a5102f95ba0bd.html
