Warner Bros. Pictures

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Jacob Fleischman

by Jacob Everest Fleischman

Warner Bros. Pictures

Courtesy of thefilmstage.com

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, The Hangover 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 28^th, 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 8^th, 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 16^th, 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.

See the Man of Steel trailer here

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.

Sources:

[1] Warner Bros. History http://www.warnerbros.com/studio/about/company-history.html

[2] Warner Bros. Overview http://www.warnerbros.com/studio/about/company-overview.html

[3] Jeff Robinov Bio http://www.warnerbros.com/studio/executives/operation-officers/jeff-robinov.html

[4] Dan Fellman Bio http://www.warnerbros.com/studio/executives/divisional-executives/dan-fellman.html

[5] Sue Kroll Bio http://www.warnerbros.com/studio/executives/divisional-executives/sue-kroll.html

[6] Time Warner Quarterly Report http://ir.timewarner.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=70972&p=quarterlyearnings

[7] Kevin Tsujihara Bio http://www.warnerbros.com/studio/executives/kevin-tsujihara.html

[8] The Hobbit Press Release http://www2.warnerbros.com/web/corpcomm/portal/press_release.jsp?id=WBPTheHobbitAnUnexpectedJourney1BillionDollarRev_03.03.13

[9] Christopher Nolan New Movie http://www2.warnerbros.com/web/corpcomm/portal/press_release.jsp?id=WBPInterstellarNov7ReleaseDate_03.08.13

[10] Godzilla Press Release http://www2.warnerbros.com/web/corpcomm/portal/press_release.jsp?id=WBPLegendaryPicturesGodzillaStartofProduction_03.18.13

[11] Pacific Rim Publicity http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/wondercon-pacific-rim-mortal-instruments-431926

Warner Bros Pictures

Posted on September 18, 2012 by jdsaffre

by Jarrad Saffren

The Warner Bros Pictures logo, courtesy of WarnerBros.com.

A Brief History and Profile

Warner Bros Pictures is a major film studio that produces film, television, and music entertainment. Founded by the four Warner brothers, Albert, Harry, Sam, and Jack in 1918, Warner Bros Pictures has been a “Big Three” or “Big Six” American film studio since the development of the “major film studio” classification in the 1930s. Based on revenue and market share statistics from the 2011 fiscal year, Warner Bros Pictures is the most profitable entertainment subsidiary of the Time Warner conglomerate and the second most profitable major film studio behind only Paramount Pictures. It merges several divisions and brands including New Line Cinema, HBO Films, Castle Rock Entertainment, Warner Bros Animation, and DC Entertainment.

Financial Situation

On the strength of a lucrative summer performance at the box office that included the seventh highest grossing film of all-time (“The Dark Knight Rises”), Warner Bros Pictures had its strongest financial quarter in a year in terms of net income. Including the cost of revenue and after taxes, Warner Bros raised its net income from $430 million at the end of the second quarter of 2012 in June to $838 million at the end of the third quarter in September (1). This is the highest total for the company since it netted $822 million in the third quarter of 2011.

Unfortunately, Warner Bros’ net income is expected to drop slightly at the end of the fourth quarter. At the box office, the fall and early winter season has been a mixed bag for Warner Bros based on its two most prominent releases. Ben Affleck’s “Argo” is a smash hit that has grossed over $111 million and counting, surpassing its $44 million budget with flying colors (2). “Cloud Atlas,” on the other hand, has been a resounding box office failure in spite of critical acclaim. The film has grossed just $25 million against an estimated $100 million budget (3).

This mixed bag is not alarming because the fall movie season is typically less lucrative than the summer and holiday seasons that bookend it. As one of the most prominent film studios on the planet, Warner Bros has also finalized a steady stream of high profile releases featuring A-list stars coming out this holiday season and throughout 2013.

On a long-term scale, Warner Bros has raised its total shareholder equity this quarter to $30.02 billion, its highest total since the third quarter of 2011 (4). More people are investing in Warner Bros because the company has finally started to market its vast intellectual property holdings via alternative media sources like Flixster, a company-owned online streaming service.

Recent News

August 2012

Peter Jackson is teaming up with Warner Bros for another Hobbit trilogy beginning this December. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.org.

In a joint announcement on the last day of the month, Warner Bros Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures revealed that the final film in Peter Jackson’s trilogy adaptation of “The Hobbit” will be released worldwide on July 18, 2014. All three films are set in Middle-earth 60 years before “The Lord of the Rings,” which Jackson and his team adapted into an award winning trilogy of its own from 2001 to 2003. The first installment in the new trilogy “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” kicks off the holiday movie season next Friday and could provide an end-of-quarter financial boost for the company. The second “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” will be released on December 13, 2013. (5)

September 2012

In the first week of September, Jack Horner was named Executive Vice President, Theatrical Communications, Warner Bros Pictures Group. Sue Kroll, President, Worldwide Marketing, Warner Bros Pictures, created this new position. Horner will primarily handle corporate PR issues relating to the film division. He will work closely with the domestic and international publicity units of the film division as Warner Bros tries to expand its reach across multiple platforms and cultures. Horner most recently worked at News Corporation, where he was Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Corporate Communications. (6)

About a week after the Horner announcement, shooting began for “The Hangover Part III,” the third and final film in director Todd Phillips’ wildly popular comedy trilogy. The project is a team effort between Warner Bros Pictures and Legendary Pictures. Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, and Justin Bartha are back to star as the beloved “Wolfpack” foursome of Phil, Stu, Alan, and Doug. “The Hangover Part III” is scheduled for a worldwide release on May 24,2013. (7)

October 2012

Always staying proactive, in addition to “The Hangover,” Warner Bros Pictures announced a slate of four new films set for release during 2013. “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” stars Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, and Jim Carey as dueling magicians on the Las Vegas strip. It comes out on May 15^th. “The Conjuring” stars Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as paranormal investigators who are forced to take on the most horrifying case of their careers in a secluded farmhouse. It hits theaters on July 19^th. “We’re the Millers” stars Jason Sudeikis as a small-time pot dealer forced to travel to great lengths to pay off a debt to his big-time supplier. It will premiere on August 9^th. “Prisoners” stars Hugh Jackman as a desperate father who abducts the man he suspects is behind the kidnapping of his eight-year-old daughter. It is set for release on September 20^th. (8)

“All You Need is Kill” is based on a 2004 Japanese sci-fi novel of the same name. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.org.

Looking even further into the future, Warner Bros Pictures, Legendary Pictures, and Village Roadshow Pictures announced jointly that “All You Need is Kill,” a sci-fi thriller starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt and based on the book of the same name, will be released on March 14, 2014. The film is a futuristic, society-on-the-brink drama where an alien race is swiftly destroying the human race. Cruise and Blunt star as the military lieutenant and Special Forces warrior tasked with destroying the alien invaders and saving the world. (9)

Such a bright future would not be possible without Warner Bros’ landmark past. This January, Warner Bros Pictures will pop the corks on a yearlong celebration of its 90^th anniversary. On the strength of the largest film library in the world–6,800 feature films including 22 Academy Award-winning Best Pictures–Warner Bros will be releasing seven new exclusive film collections to DVD and Blu-ray. 100 of the films will be on DVD, 50 on Blu-ray. Both will be the largest such collections of their formats in history to date. Several classics will also be released individually on Blu-ray for the first time including “The Jazz Singer” and “Driving Miss Daisy.” (10)

In addition to its innovative approach for bringing old classics onto newer formats, Warner Bros is also getting in on the newest media. In the last week of October, after announcing its anniversary celebration, Warner Bros revealed that it is teaming with Paramount Home Media Distribution to release more than 600 catalog titles from the Paramount film library via Flixster, the Warner Bros movie streaming and discovery service. Warner Bros will now have exclusive rights to Blu-ray and DVD distribution of those movies in the US and Canada, expanding the company’s massive reach into the pivotal Internet streaming sector. (11)

Finally, to conclude its busiest month of the third quarter and most progressive technological month of any quarter in recent memory, Warner Bros Home Entertainment agreed to a multiyear deal with Redbox, a DVD, Blu-ray, and video game distribution service owned by Coinstar, to bring Warner Bros titles to Redbox kiosks. All Warner Bros titles will be released to the kiosks just 28 days after their initial retail release dates. In addition, Redbox has agreed to promote Ultraviolet, Warner Bros innovative streaming service that would allow consumers to buy a title once and then access it anywhere on any device. (12)

November 2012

Warner Bros picked up in November right where they left off in October, continuing its mass effort to release content across multiple platforms. The new hobbit trilogy is not even out in theatres yet, but it is already hitting the mobile circuit. Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment has teamed up with Kabam, a leading producer of multiplayer games for electronic devices, to launch “The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-earth” app for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Android devices. The game is based on collective strategy with other users and is free for all consumers of the aforementioned devices. (13)

In the midst of these new platforms, Warner Bros did not forgot about the one that made it a player in the first place: the big screen. In 2003, Warner Bros became one of the first film companies to partner with the IMAX Corporation. A few weeks before Thanksgiving, the two sides agreed on a new 20-picture deal over the next three years. Among the anticipated Warner Bros titles that will be showcased via the IMAX experience are “300: Rise of an Empire” (August 2, 2013) and “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” (December 13, 2013). (14)

References