Made in Hollywood

The active party to steal the box office is the theater chain, so will there be a situation where the film studio and distributor colluded with the theater chain to steal the box office of competing films?

This kind of box office stealing is not uncommon. Nowadays, the mainstream accounting ratio in the market across the Pacific is that the theaters get 57%.

Suppose there are two movies released at the same time: A movie and B movie, A is a Hollywood blockbuster imported, and B is a domestic large-scale youth idol inspirational romance movie.

The producer of movie B knew that he was far inferior to movie A in terms of appeal to the audience, so he negotiated privately with the theater: If you transfer part of the box office of movie A to our box office, I will give you a rebate. Through methods such as rebates, the film studio took the initiative to reduce its share of accounts, thereby encouraging theaters to help it steal the box office.

Theaters are also profit-seeking commercial companies. They also sell 100 million yuan of movie tickets, and if they transfer some of them to movies with a higher proportion of their accounts, they will naturally earn more.

As for the B movies that conspired with theaters to steal the box office, although the share of accounts is low, they may or may not make money, but at least the box office is high! The higher the box office, it can affect the movie viewing choices of subsequent audiences, and it is also more favored by capital. This benefit can be described as indescribable...

Like "The Dark Knight Rises" and some previous Hollywood films were stolen at the box office, Duke guessed that this may be the case.

Of course, in the movie market on the other side, in addition to this kind of box office move that actively seeks profit as the starting point, there is also a kind of helpless move to move the box office, that is, for some main theme films, each theater has a screening index, but no one is willing to show it. What should I do if I buy a ticket? Some departments don't look good, don't they? Sneak a little away from other blockbuster movies.

In this case, even if the film crew who stole the box office finds out. Only dare not speak out.

If it is said that stealing the box office is a competition between theaters and film producers, then there is naturally a competitive relationship between different film producers.

Movies can't compare to others? It doesn't matter, just like all business circles, there are naturally various means of fierce competition under the table in the film industry.

Rebates are the most common means of suppressing competitors.

The movie-watching choices of mainstream audiences are easily affected by the theaters' schedules. If the film studio and the theaters agree, as long as you increase my schedule. I will give you a rebate so that you can get a higher share.

For example, when a movie of a certain era is shown, in the first week of the movie's release, the film studio spends money to buy a large number of tickets in many theaters; if the theater schedule reaches 40%, the theater will be given a point rebate, and 45% will be given to the theater. The rebate of two points in the theater...

As for buying box office, it is also to obtain high-ranking film volume and good film slots.

Still the previous example: movie A and movie B are released at the same time, so they both want to compete for the golden spot on weekend afternoons. Whichever movie the theater line assigns this film to, that film will be able to take the lead.

So Movie B negotiated with the theater, and I covered all these shows, and I bought half of the tickets for all the seats. For theaters, the film studios pay for it themselves. You can guarantee your own attendance rate, and ultimately your own benefits will be greater. For the B movie that is reserved, although it costs money, it has obtained high box office and high attention in the early stage. Take the lead in the follow-up box office competition.

The film market here is different from that in North America, where production and distribution and theater chains are forcibly separated. And many group companies here have not only production companies, distribution companies, but also theater companies, which also gives some people and films more room to operate.

For example, the box office championship of Duke's previous life, in order to get the championship position. Almost all the means were used, and later on, in the name of welfare screenings, he paid for his own movie box office.

These welfare shows are all bought by the film crew under the banner of respecting the old and loving the young. If it’s just that, it’s fine. In the theater, there is such a welfare movie every ten minutes...

With the length of that movie and the duration of one show, how much box office can it generate?

In fact, in the eyes of theater practitioners, the film's box office champion is just a joke.

This is also a typical method of operation, and it is not an exception in companies that integrate film production, distribution and theater chains.

If you start a film company with a production company, a distribution company, and theaters, invest in a film, and now you want to hit the top of the annual box office, but it is estimated that there is still a shortfall of 300 million box office, what should you do? ?

Opening a fake show and checking the box office, anyway, most of the money comes out of the company's left pocket and goes in the right pocket.

What is the cost? Assuming that a fake box office of 300 million yuan is to be obtained, it will cost 300 million times 8.3% to equal 24.9 million yuan. This 8.3% is the film development fund and tax that must be handed over to the country.

It took a small cost and gained a big reputation. This is the choice of the film crew of that championship film.

Falsification of box office numbers like this, even the film studios don't cover it up, and it is plausible in the end. In this rapidly developing and chaotic market, it is just one of many chaotic phenomena.

Like Hollywood, many studios will do whatever it takes to gain profits and box office figures.

Whenever a movie makes a bold statement at the premiere that it will win more than one billion or two billion at the box office, netizens will smile tacitly—they will always do whatever it takes to make the box office look good.

Stealing the box office has long become an unspoken rule of the industry that box office careerists are familiar with. Even within the industry, if you don’t steal a box office, you are ashamed to say that you are in the movie business.

Stealing and concealing the box office, using "red envelopes" and "high rebates" to arrange more shows... Perhaps box office careerists are also holding regular topic selection meetings to develop new tricks to steal the box office.

For example, in a document submitted to Duke by Warner Greater China, "Ghost Field" has become a new force in the film industry on the other side of the coast in the dark night.

Just like the champion film, the film suspected of "ghost field" usually chooses the early morning or midnight when the theater is not open, arranges a fake screening for tens of minutes, and turns it into a "full house" on the "book", or the film crew And the distributors pay out of their own pockets to create the illusion of high attendance during the prime time, with only one purpose, to increase the box office in a short period of time, stimulate follow-up audiences, create the illusion of popularity and big sales, and increase the premiere week and subsequent screening rates.

Such chaos naturally aroused the vigilance of Hollywood. MPAA not only formally negotiated with the relevant departments on the opposite side, but also set up a special Asia-Pacific regional office to deal with market disputes on the other side of the Pacific Ocean.

Any film market needs a development stage from inception to maturity. Duke is well aware of this, so even though he understands the chaos in that market, he never gives up.

Moreover, the relevant departments on the opposite side are also introducing some relevant laws and measures to make this industry more regulated.

For example, after the protests of Duke and Warner Bros. were submitted, the person in charge of a certain scissors publicly stated that for the box office stealing phenomenon in theaters, it will be based on facts and punished according to chapters, and there will be no pardon.

The Film Distribution and Projection Association on the other side of the Pacific will also regularly announce the list of theaters that have been found to have "stealed the box office", and all of them are published under their real names. Theaters that violate the regulations will receive a huge fine of 3, and stop the film for four to six months. Theaters that violate the regulations will be disqualified for various subsidies and awards for the year's "return first and return later".

Big Scissors is even planning to set up a special vote monitoring company to conduct monitoring nationwide.

In addition to setting up a ticket monitoring company, they are also introducing measures to encourage ordinary audiences to monitor. Photos of theaters changing titles and handwritten tickets will be used as evidence that the Film Bureau handles illegal theaters.

These are all gratifying, and can further improve market norms.

Subsequently, the MPAA once again proposed a film rating system to the big scissors on the other side, but was rejected again.

"The film classification system is obviously beneficial."

Scarlett Johansson, who came back from Tennessee, flipped through some letters just delivered by the housekeeper Emma, ​​and said to Duke who was sitting on the terrace drinking tea, "Why do they keep rejecting it?"

Duke shrugged, "Who knows?"

The big scissors do not want a grading system or a dividing line, because it does not want to be considered to allow pornography and violence to anyone. Its restrictions on film and television content reflect the various anxieties of the opposing ruling class. Film and television content must not "endanger" unity , security and honor, and it should not "distort" history, have explicit sex or gambling scenes, advocate "religious supremacy" or "detailed descriptions of fortune-telling and divination".

In theory, these are all prohibited.

To some extent, the film classification system may lead to the gradual legalization of pornographic and violent films, which is a fact that cannot be ignored.

Of course, some reasons are not critical, but it can barely be counted as one of them.

For example, this does not meet the requirements of the scissors across the board. Grading means that there are standards. If there are standards, it will not be too outrageous. Some movies that do not want to be released, under the grading system, always have to work hard to find suitable reasons and excuses. The situation is that if a certain movie doesn't want to be shown, it can't be shown, and the excuse is that it is inappropriate.

In any case, film classification on the other side of the Pacific is a false proposition, and there is no need to fight for it. It is too difficult for films like Quentin Tasdino to appear in that market, even if it is imported , It may also happen that the clip is urgently notified by the scissors during the screening.

Duke couldn't explain these things to Scarlett at all, so he didn't bother to explain them.

At this time, Scarlett Johansson opened what seemed to be an invitation letter, and her face couldn't help becoming a little weird, "These adult associations actually sent you invitations?" (to be continued ~^~)

PS:  Ask for monthly and recommendation tickets!