Funding Modern Cinema
With all of the glitz and the glamour of show business, it’s easy to forget the logistical demands necessary to make a production happen. Massive budgets can too often seems like statistics, belying the amount of work done by financial professionals to ensure that a film makes it to the big screen. This is one of the major reasons why hotly anticipated films stay unshot for years; often, funding concerns can delay a big production, setting it off course or even derailing it completely.
Film finance inevitably involves a lot of moving parts. Investors in film are similar to those in any other industry. They will want to see that a film is a tenable product before they back it; for this reason, many won’t even discuss investing in a film until it has been confirmed that key actors will appear in it.
This is one of the reasons that I’ve recently taken to working with films in post production — seeing it in a finished state reassures investors that nothing catastrophic will go wrong on set, and the spectacle of a semi-completed film doesn’t hurt either. That said, even in a relatively safe area like this, a financial expert’s presentation of the film as an investment must be airtight to draw interested parties.
In order to work in film finance, you need to look at productions with the eye of an investor. The cast should be immediately recognizable; not only for any marketing directly attached to the film, but because the rules of promotion have changed. An actor renowned for their social media presence can drive traffic to the movie without much input on the studio’s part.
Of course, if an actor ends up not being involved, it can pull investors away and erode faith in a film’s ability to succeed. This is why diligence is perhaps the most important trait for any individual working in film finance. Even before I get fully involved, I make it a point to do as much research about a film as possible, searching budgets, letters of intent from actors, and script quality for any red flags.
It’s a lot of work, but it’s also important to note that it needs to be done as quickly as possible. With the coordination required to see a film through, a financial advisor may only have a small window of opportunity to ensure that actors and investors alike are committed to a film. Recognizing opportunity and the potential draw of a certain actor or director is key when determining which films to work with.
While this may make film finance sound like a daunting prospect, it is nevertheless a great time to get involved in the industry. Though political unrest has left parts of society in a state of flux, I believe that the desire for good entertainment is more pronounced than ever. Many investors are starting to shy away from the big-budget leviathans of Marvel and its ilk and instead seeking other opportunities on a smaller scale. Culturally, we as a society will always appreciate good cinema.
Plus, film outside of Hollywood has started to gain prominence. I’ve noticed a growing trend of high-quality British movies, and in many circuits, greater emphasis is placed on indie movies that may have escaped the notice of the average film patron. Just look at Spotlight, winner of the 2016 Academy Award for best picture. With a $20 million budget, it may not be as indie as it gets, but its victory demonstrates the potential widespread appeal for a more cerebral sort of genre — and it shows in recent filmmaking.
Not only that, but other distribution outlets for film, mainly websites such as Netflix and Hulu, has added a whole new dimension to funding film. It may give financial experts something extra to consider, but at the same time, it also gives more obscure films the chance to shine in a different market than usual. Even if they’re not directly involved in the process, investors should be aware of the potential that a film has to travel elsewhere long after its creation.
The reign of the big-budget blockbuster is certainly far from over, but a higher diversity in offerings and a need for critical minds in the industry makes film finance a challenging — but ultimately rewarding — field to become involved in.
