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It's time to talk about Bootleg culture, kids. |
MVintheheartland said: "If the public (who can't necessarily get to NYC) could see a show online for a fee, (maybe after it's closed), there would be a happier public and more money to be made. Just sayin'"
But in all seriousness... that's not exactly a certainty.
We producers would love to make a regular release schedule of filmed versions of shows happen, but for it to work for us financially, and to keep going at a more steady rate, people need to buy these (be it a digital product or physical) like they buy Hollywood blockbusters, and they just don't.
Now, this is one situation where, much to the apparent joy of our fearless leader at present (ahem), there are B.S. arguments on both sides. Allow me to break them down.
Some producers (and consumers) say, "Filming shows conveys a deadly idea, that the film version of a show is a reasonable substitute for the live show, and that's the exact opposite of the message we want to communicate; besides, given the rise in ticket prices, who's to say someone doesn't opt for the video instead and take money out of our pocket?" Wrong. It's intelligent not just in terms of preservation, but in terms of revenue for live performances, as seen from the upward spike in ticket sales that long-running Broadway shows like Chicago and The Phantom of the Opera received when their movies came out.
Some consumers (in fact, most consumers) point to the above statistic and say, "And this is why we should film everything; it expands interest in theater and preserves the art form!" Also wrong. While such taping could expand interest in theater, from a purely economic standpoint, Broadway is not dying. Grosses last year increased in record numbers. Flop rates generally have remained the same for a long time. Some would argue that the giant ticket price increases in the past few years may seem a big reason for Broadway to buckle under its own weight, but the numbers indicate that the audience has simply shifted. Now, New York is a destination for deep-pocketed tourists with beaucoup tourist dollars. The industry simply hasn't gotten to a point of "adapt or die" for media accessibility, even if your favorite shows are closing, and an "evolution" where we move more toward taped theater will only be necessary when theater-going as a hobby/tourist attraction falls in both ticket sales and gross.
Allowing for the fact that theater is legally defined as a high-risk investment, most people who invest in a business venture generally want to see a return on their investment. And a video is a serious investment, both of time and money, with little chance of return, especially when it is a filmed record of a live performance. The bottom line, sad to say, is money. And the problem with filming and releasing musicals (or even plays) is that it's simply not lucrative. Why set aside money to professionally film even a hit, when it's hard enough to fund a show as it is without throwing in the additional cost of filming a video which is probably even less likely to be profitable than the show itself?
Between securing the rights, union costs before, during, and after filming, the filming itself, production costs, finding a distributor, etc., after all is said and done, the relatively few people who actually pay the fee don't constitute enough revenue to create a good profit margin. There are always exceptions to what I've said above, but they also always have a reason that they are the exception and not the rule.
For all the obvious reasons, I, as a producer, am nominally opposed to bootleg culture. But in all honesty, it's cheaper than going the legal route, and we as an industry have to address that, especially as bootlegging technology exponentially increases to the point where, in the not-too-distant future, it might even (visually speaking, at least) put a professional taping to shame.
Broadway Legend
joined: 5/1/05
Blocked: After Eight, suestorm, FindingNamo, david_fick, emlodik, lovebwy, Dave28282
Broadway Legend
joined: 5/1/05
Blocked: After Eight, suestorm, FindingNamo, david_fick, emlodik, lovebwy, Dave28282
joined:12/5/14
joined:
12/5/14
Posted: 10/26/18 at 11:16am