Focus Features

Posted on December 1, 2014 by jepflieg

by John Pflieger

[21] Focus Features Logo

Focus Features is a film production and distribution company that serves at the art house film department of the NBCUniversal brand. Started in 2002, Focus Features is currently run by CEO Peter Schlessel, who took the helm in late 2013 after Focus and the FilmDistrict merged in 2013 [1]. Focus Features has had great success over the last 12 years with critically acclaimed releases like Brokeback Mountain, Dallas Buyers Club, and Lost in Translation just to name a few. The former being the most successful Focus Feature production to date, grossing $83 million and receiving 3 Academy Awards and receive nominations for 5 more along with a slue of other awards [2][3].

Financials

Catering usually to more specific audiences then some of the major production house, Focus Features is currently ranked 12^th for top grossing production companies in the 2014 year, with a total gross of $104 million, which puts them in control of 1.1% of the current market share [4]. Though falling short to its 5^th ranked older brother Universal Pictures, the smaller production company has managed to sustain an average gross of $8.7 million per release over the course of its 11 releases in 2014 [4][5]. With award season approaching, Focus has the potential to see continued growth in revenue through the beginning of 2015. With Oscar buzz surrounding actor Eddie Redmayne of Focus Features most recent release The Theory of Everything, a nomination for best actor has the potential to increase revenue by about $600,000, where a win in the category could yield nearly $6 million in increased revenue[6][7]. Though Focus is only responsible for a small portion of NBCUniversal’s $1.4 billion filmed entertainment revenue, the small production house continues to boast impressive figures[8].

Recent Releases

“The Theory of Everything “

[22] The Theory of Everything Poster

The biographical film chronicles the life of astrophysicist Stephen Hawking as he fell in love with his wife Jane, explored the science of universal time, and struggled with the debilitating neurological disease of ALS [9]. Eddie Redmayne, who plays Steven Hawking, has already been labeled by Variety as one of the main contenders for the Best Actor Academy Award[6]. The film, which opened November 7^th in a limited release to 5 theaters grossed $208,763 and continued to succeed as it hit a wide release November 26^th in 802 theaters and grossed slightly over $5 million in its wide release opening[10]. As of December 1^st the film has grossed $9.6 million and has the potential to see continued success as the holidays and award season approaches[10].

“Kill The Messenger”

[23] Kill The Messenger Poster

A political thriller starring Academy Award nominated actor Jeremy Renner, tells the story of journalist Gary Webb, who stumbles across a dark story that involves drugs and government cover-ups[11]. The film opened October 10^th in 374 theaters and grossed $941,809 in its opening weekend. At its widest relapse the film was only in 427 theaters and to date has only grossed $2.4 million, having been stifled by the Buena Vista release of “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” which was release the same day and saw far greater success[12][13].

“The Boxtrolls”

[24] The Boxtrolls Poster

This family film tells the tail of an adventure of a group of unique creatures as they raise an orphan and fight for their lives in an effort to thwart their local town villain[14]. This film has been the most successful release for Focus Features this year having grossed nearly $50 million. The feature opened September 26^th 3,464 theaters and gross $17.2 million, which accounted for 34.9% of the films total gross domestically[15]. The film went on to gross $56.2 million worldwide, making a total of $105.7 million, which is a huge success not only for Focus Films, but also for the small Oregon based stop-motion animation house Laika Studios, which carried out the animation for “The Boxtrolls.”[15][16] The small animation studio also produced “ParaNorman” and “Coraline” for Focus Features, which are both in Focus Feature’s top 5 for most successful domestic grossing films[5]. Only days after the opening of “The Boxtrolls”, Focus Features signed an agreement with Laika to work with them on 3 more feature length films[17]. This agreement proves to be especially wise when looking at the fact that all three of the films that Laika and Focus have teamed up on have grossed over $100 million world wide, making them highly profitable[17]. There is still room for more success in the coming months, seeing that “The Boxtrolls” received 13 nominations in this years Annie Awards, and is only expected to receive more nods as award season get underway[18].

Upcoming

Focus Features consistently releases 10-12 films a year, making them a highly productive production house for the scale of their operation[5]. As of now, Focus has announced a few new projects that will be coming up in 2015 which will have the potential to make quite a splash in the market place in the upcoming year.

[25] 50 Shades of Grey Poster

One of the more anticipated Focus Features releases of 2015 is the adaptation of the novel 50 Shades of Grey. The popular 3 part book series will be treated as a trilogy by focus and will follow the saga of the novels quite closely. The film is scheduled to be released on Valentines Day, offering an interesting option for holiday viewing[19].

[26] Black Sea Poster

Another highly anticipated 2015 Focus release is the upcoming release starring Jude Law, “Black Sea”. The apparent action movie casts Law as a submarine captain who is working with a team of Russian and English crew members to salvage Nazi gold in a sunken U-boat. The film is scheduled to be released January 23 of 2015[20].

Future of Focus Features

The future for Focus Features appears to be very bright. With a recent 3 film deal with Laika Studios, this is a air of optimism, because with the success of the studio’s earlier films, we can only assume that with the proper marketing and distribution the next 3 should be just as successful. Also with the “50 Shades of Grey” series on the horizon, there are multiple prospects for continued growth. As we see the success of Comcast and NBCUniversal and their continued growth, the potential for the expansion of Focus Features is exponentially increased.

Citations:

1. Focus Features Announces More Key Senior Hires, hollywoodreporter.com, RT; 12/01/14

2. Brokeback Mountain, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

3. Brokeback Mountain Awards, imdb.com, RT: 12/01/14

4. Studio Market Share, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

5. Focus Features, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

6. Contender: Lead Actor Preview, Variety.com, RT: 12/01/14

7. How Oscar Nominations Affect the Box Office, Businessinsider.com, RT: 12/01/14

8. Comcast Earnings Release, cmcsk.com, RT: 12/01/14

9. The Theory of Everything, Rottentomatos.com, RT: 12/01/14

10. The Theory of Everything, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

11. Kill the Messenger, Rottentomatos.com, RT: 12/01/14

12. Kill the Messenger, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

13. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

14. The Boxtrolls, Rottentomatos.com, RT: 12/01/14

15. The Boxtrolls, Boxofficemojo.com, RT: 12/01/14

16. Laika Studios, Laikastudios.com, RT: 12/01/14

17. Focus Features, Laika Ink Three-Film Pact, hollywoodreporter.com, RT; 12/01/14

18. Boxtrolls leads Annie Award nominations, bbc.com, RT; 12/01/14

19. 50 Shades of Grey, fiftyshadesmovie.com, RT; 12/01/14

20. Black Sea, focusfeatures.com, RT; 12/01/14

21. Focus Features Logo, thewrap.com, RT; 12/01/14

22. The Theory of Everything Poster, imdb.com, RT; 12/01/14

23. Kill the Messenger Poster, imdb.com, RT; 12/01/14

24. The Boxtrolls Poster, imdb.com, RT; 12/01/14

25. 50 Shades of Grey Poster, imdb.com, RT; 12/01/14

26. Black Sea Poster, imdb.com, RT; 12/01/14

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Posted on September 18, 2012 by jsrich02

by [Jeffrey Rich ]

MGM Logo Courtesy of Google Images

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer is a media company, most often involved in the distribution of films, television productions, and home video.

Contact Information

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc.
Address: 245 N. Beverly Drive,
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Phone: 310-449-3000
E-mail Address: comments@mgm.com

Brief History

Its trademark roaring lion has become the beacon of MGM. Marcus Lowe, who organized the merger of Metro Pictures Corp. with Goldwyn Pictures and Louis B. Mayer Productions, established Metro- Goldwyn- Mayer (MGM) in April 1924.

It was under the prolific leadership of Louis B. Mayer and Irving Thalberg, a visionary of production, that MGM became a leading company of film making. It is said that the studio attracted “more stars than are in the heavens.”

From 1924-1954, known as the golden three decades in Hollywood, MGM managed to produce a Best Picture Nominee for twenty years in a row. One particularly spectacular year, in 1939, Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz, both MGM films, were nominated for Best Picture. Together the two films took home ten Oscars that year.

MGM Building, Beverly Hills, CA. Picture Courtesy of mgm.com

Today MGM possesses more than 175 Academy Awards, including 15 for Best Picture, in their vast vault. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer is a leading entertainment company and is focused whole-heartedly on the distribution of films and television programing across the globe. With one of the largest libraries of films and television content, MGM invests in television channels and film distribution both domestically and internationally. [1]

Key Figures

Gary Barber- Appointed Chairman and CEO in October 2012. Prior to this her served as a Co-Chairman and and CEO since December 2010.

Ken Shapiro- Chief Operating Officer, as of February 2011. Before joining MGM Shapiro co-founded a private investment management company.

John Glickman- President of Motion Picture Group. Previously Glickman was president of Spyglass Entertainment.

Roma Khanna- President of MGM’s Television Group and Digital. She joined MGM having recently worked for NBCUniveral, as President of Universal Networks International and Digital Initiatives.

Top Competitors

Fox Filmed Entertainment

The Walt Disney Studios

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Finances

In November of 2010 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer declared bankruptcy. A federal court had decided to reject the takeover bid by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and therefore MGM instead declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy. About 80% of MGM’s creditors supported a pre-packaged bankruptcy plan to eliminate $4 billion in debt. [2]

This third quarter has shown a loss for MGM operating income. A loss of $4.3 million from $32.8 million the same quarter the year before. However, Gary Barber, CEO, is not at all worried. MGM had recorded a net profit of $23.4 million compared to last year’ $15.2 million in the same quarter. This is mainly because MGM sold many of its satellite TV channels.

The worldwide success of the new James Bond movie, Skyfall, and the excitement surrounding the anticipated release of the first, of the three, Hobbit, movies has Barber predicting a very successful fourth quarter. [3]

Movies Today

Skyfall Movie Poster, Courtesy of Google Images

Currently MGM has the film Skyfall, the twenty-third James Bond movie, out in wide release. The movie was released on the weekend of November 9^th-11^th, and it grossed $88 million in that first weekend. Currently it has domestically grossed almost $250 million in only four weeks. Internationally it has taken in over $870 million. [4]

In the United Kingdom, Bond’s homeland, Skyfall, has become the largest grossing movie of all time, surpassing James Cameron’s, Avatar. The movie has taken in £94.27 million (or $151.8 million) in 40 days, surpassing Avatar’s £94 million (or $151.3 million) which is astonishing, considering that it took Avatar 11 months to reach that total. [5]

Not only has Skyfall become the largest grossing movie in the UK, but also it has claimed the title of greatest Bond ever, in terms of money, taking in the largest gross from any other Bond thus far. However, even though Skyfall is the largest grossing movie in the UK, it is still not the most attending. That title still belongs to another, far older, MGM classic from 1939, Gone With the Wind. [6]

Hobbit Movie Poster, Courtesy of Google Images

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is the first installment to the three-part prequel of the critically acclaimed Lord of the Rings trilogy. Peter Jackson returns as director in this new trilogy, which plans to be released in the United States on December 14, 2012. However, unlike the high remarks her won for his adaptation of the Ring’s trilogy, he is garnering some criticism for his new rendition of this J.R.R. Tolkien’s book.

One Variety critics calls the film an “artificial quality in which the phoniness of the sets and costumes becomes obvious, while well-lit areas bleed into their surroundings, like watching a high-end home movie.” [7]

The reason for these unlikely reviews is that Jackson decided to shoot the entire Hobbit movie using 48 FPS (Frames Per Second) filming. Usually films are shot in 24 FPS, the switch, as some like James Cameron agree, is that 48 FPS eliminate the “strobing” seen in standard films. Some people, however, argue that the effects look almost soap opera-ish. However, audiences will have to weigh in on their opinions about the new FPS shooting when The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, hits theaters later this month. [8]

One more film in the works for MGM coming up soon is Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters. This new dark twist on the classic fairy tale of Hansel and Gretel makes the sibling duo a team of witch hunters who find and kill witches all around the world. [9]

Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters Movie Poster, Courtesy of Google Images

The film has had its problems in production. It was originally set to be released in March of 2012, but was pushed back to January of 2013. The fact that it’s now an R-rated film might have something to do with that problem in the production schedule. There is much skepticism now about the success of the film. After similar fairy tale spin offs have flopped, such as Snow White and the Huntsman and Red Ridding Hood, critics are not very optimistic about this latest revived concept. However, the film has some nice stars, including Jeremy Renner, Gemma Arterton, and Famke Janssen. [10]