Film Industry Survey 2014-StephenFollowsstephenfollows.com/reports/Film_Industry_Survey_2014... · 2020-07-04 · Film Industry Survey 2014 A survey of 1,235 film industry professionals,

Film Industry Survey 2014

A s u r v e y o f 1 , 2 3 5 f i l m i n d u s t r y p r o f e s s i o n a l s , w h o h a v e a t t e n d e d a t l e a s t o n e o f t h e t h r e e m a j o r f i l m m a r k e t s ( C a n n e s , B e r l i n o r A F M ) w i t h i n t h e p a s t f i v e y e a r s .

By

Stephen Follows www.stephenfollows.com

Contents

Introduction 1 1. Has piracy affected business? 2 2. Do film professionals illegally download films? 4 3. Is film a sensible business investment? 7 4. Do women have a harder time than men? 9 5. Is 3D better than 2D? 11 6. What are the average distribution fees? 13 7. How do professionals pick their next project? 15 8. How optimistic is the industry about the future? 18 9. When will VoD pay like DVD? 20 10. Where does film financing come from? 22

About the survey 23

More details and other film surveys at stephenfollows.com/blog 1

Introduction

Thank you for reading the full results of my 2014 Film Industry Survey On my blog I explore data and statistics within the film industry. This started as sharing existing public statistics but quickly grew to include the gathering of new data. The film industry is heavily influenced by shifting opinions, so I thought it would be fascinating to take its temperature on a number of hot topics including piracy, the appeal of 3D, gender, and how optimistic industry professionals are for 2014. I contacted a cross-section of industry professionals and asked them questions on a variety of topics. My full methodology is outlined at the end of this report. As with all my research, my aim is not to prove a particular point but to see what interesting results the data provides. Some of these results confirm the conventional wisdom while others challenge it. I am looking forward to seeing how film professionals, pressure groups and journalists respond to these results. If you would like to know more, offer help/advice on future research or to just drop me a line, I can be reached at www.stephenfollows.com/contact. It’s always nice to hear from people who enjoy or use my research. I am also open to new collaborations and commercial projects. Enjoy the results,

Stephen Fo l lows M a r c h 2 0 1 4

About The Author – Stephen Follows

Stephen is a writer and producer who runs the production company Catsnake Film from Ealing Studios. He has produced two feature films and over 100 short films, and his writing has won Virgin Media Shorts, was nominated for a British Independent Film Award and long-listed for a BAFTA. In addition, Stephen also teaches producing at film schools (NFTS, The Met Film School, Nashville Film Institute), weekend courses (Practical Producer, 7 Step Producer, Guerrilla Filmmakers Masterclass) and bespoke events (BFI, British Council, London Screenwriters Festival). He blogs about film data every Monday at www.stephenfollows.com


1. Has piracy affected business?

Key Findings

• 53% said that piracy had either no effect or a positive effect on their business. • The largest effect of piracy is within Sales & Distribution, where 67% said it had hurt their business

in some way. • One in five people working within Sales & Distribution feel that piracy has threatened their

profession. • Nearly two thirds of those working on budgets under $1 million do not feel piracy has negatively

affected their business.

Headline Result

C h a r t 1 . 1 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w h a s f i l m p i r a c y a f f e c t e d y o u r b u s i n e s s ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s .

9%

37% 50%

3%

1.1 How has film piracy affected your business?

Massively, it has seriously threatened my profession. A lot, it has reduced my business' income

Not affected, my business is unaffected by piracy

Its a good thing, piracy has helped my business


Breakdown by Sector

C h a r t 1 . 2 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w h a s f i l m p i r a c y a f f e c t e d y o u r b u s i n e s s ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e i r p r i n c i p l e s e c t o r ( s ) o f b u s i n e s s .

Breakdown by Budget Level

C h a r t 1 . 3 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w h a s f i l m p i r a c y a f f e c t e d y o u r b u s i n e s s ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e b u d g e t l e v e l i n w h i c h t h e m a j o r i t y o f t h e i r p a s t p r o j e c t s l i e .

7% 9% 9%

18%

6%

13%

8%

33% 37%

30%

49%

40% 41%

29%

53% 50%

56%

30%

53%

40%

59%

6% 3%

6% 3% 1%

6% 4%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Development Production Post-production Sales & Distribution

Exhibition Marketing Other

1.2 How has film piracy affected your business?


Not affected, my business is unaffected by piracy Its a good thing, piracy has helped my business

8% 8% 9%

30%

46% 49%

58%

43% 40%

4% 3% 2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Low Budget (under $1m) Mid Budget ($1m-$10m) High budget (over $10m)

1.3: How has film piracy affected your business?


Not affected, my business is unaffected by piracy Its a good thing, piracy has helped my business


2. Do film professionals illegally download films?

Key Findings

• Of those who said piracy had hurt their business, 34% admitted to downloading an illegal film or TV show themselves.

• Those whose businesses have been negatively affected by piracy are only marginally less likely to illegally download films than those who feel piracy has been a positive or neutral influence on their business.

• Professionals working on lower budgets are much more likely to have downloaded an illegal film or TV show than those working on higher budgets.

• Only 2% of people working on films over $10 million admitted to illegally downloading a film or TV show, compared with 65% of those working on films under $1 million.

• No one who worked in Exhibition admitted to illegally downloading a film or TV show.

Headline Result

C h a r t 2 . 1 s h o w s w h a t p e r c e n t a g e o f a s u b s e t o f r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s a g r e e d w i t h t h e s t a t e m e n t “ I h a v e i l l e g a l l y d o w n l o a d e d a T V s h o w o r f e a t u r e f i l m ” . T h e s u b s e t s h o w e d t h i s q u e s t i o n a m o u n t e d t o 2 7 6 p e o p l e . F u l l m e t h o d o l o g y c a n b e f o u n d a t t h e e n d o f t h i s r e p o r t .

39%

61%

2.1 Respondents who have illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film

Yes, has illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film

No, has not illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film


Breakdown by Sector




46% 42% 33%

43%

0%

55%

31%

54% 58% 67%

57%

100%

45%

69%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%

Development Production Post-production

Sales & Distribution





65%

12% 2%

35%

88% 98%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%

Low Budget (under $1m)

Mid Budget ($1m-$10m)

High budget (over $10m)


No, has not illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film Yes, has illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film


Cross Referenced With Those Whose Businesses Are Affected By Piracy I asked respondents two types of questions on the topic of piracy…

1. I openly asked if piracy had affected their business (see Section 1 of this document for full results)

2. I secretly measured how many admitted to illegally downloading a TV show or feature film. Full methodology for this process can be found at the end of this document.

It therefore occurred to me that I could cross-reference the answers to these questions, allowing me to measure if the people negatively affected by piracy are any more or less likely to illegally download content. The results show that respondents who were negatively affected by piracy were less likely to illegally download content, but by a very small margin. Overall 39% of all my surveyed respondents admitted to illegally downloading content and when I looked only at people who have experienced negative effects of piracy it drops by 5% to 34%.

C h a r t 2 . 4 s h o w s w h a t p e r c e n t a g e o f a s u b s e t o f r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s s t a t e d t h a t p i r a c y h a d n e g a t i v e l y a f f e c t e d t h e i r b u s i n e s s a n d w h o a g r e e d w i t h t h e s t a t e m e n t “I h a v e i l l e g a l l y d o w n l o a d e d a T V s h o w o r f e a t u r e f i l m ” . F u l l m e t h o d o l o g y c a n b e f o u n d a t t h e e n d o f t h i s r e p o r t .

44% 37% 32% 28%

0%

55% 58%

56% 63% 68% 72%

100%

45% 42%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

2.4 Have the respondents whose business has been negatively affected by piracy illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film




3. Is film a sensible business investment?

Key Findings

• Over half of the industry feel that investing in film is a “sensible business investment” • There is more confidence in the soundness of film investment on lower budgets than on higher

budgets. • The two sectors which had the least confidence in film as a business investment were

Development and Sales & Distribution. • The sector with the highest confidence in film investment is Marketing.

Headline Result

C h a r t 4 . 1 s h o w s w h a t p e r c e n t a g e o f a s u b s e t o f r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s a g r e e d o r d i s a g r e e d w i t h t h e s t a t e m e n t “ I n v e s t i n g i n f i l m s i n 2 0 1 4 i s a s e n s i b l e b u s i n e s s i n v e s t m e n t ” . T h e s u b s e t s h o w e d t h i s q u e s t i o n a m o u n t e d t o 2 2 8 p e o p l e . F u l l m e t h o d o l o g y c a n b e f o u n d a t t h e e n d o f t h i s r e p o r t .

54%

46%

3.1 Do you agree with the statement "Investing in films in 2014 is a sensible business investment"?

Agree

Disagree


Breakdown by Sector




47% 54% 58% 46%

68% 71% 66%

53% 46% 42% 54%

32% 29% 34%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%


Disagree

Agree

60% 48%

34%

40% 52%

66%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%



Disagree

Agree


4. Do women have a harder time than men?

Key Findings

• There is a divide in opinions over whether women have a harder time in their careers than men. 68% of professionals working predominantly on low budgets felt that women had it harder, compared with just 37% of those on budgets over $10 million.

• Only a quarter of those in Exhibition feel women have a harder time than men. • The sectors which were most pessimistic about gender equality were Development and Other

(which includes those working in training, finance, festivals, legal, among others).

Headline Result

C h a r t 4 . 1 s h o w s w h a t p e r c e n t a g e o f a s u b s e t o f r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s a g r e e d o r d i s a g r e e d w i t h t h e s t a t e m e n t “ I t ' s h a r d e r f o r w o m e n t o s u c c e e d i n t h e f i l m i n d u s t r y t h a n m e n ” . T h e s u b s e t s h o w e d t h i s q u e s t i o n a m o u n t e d t o 2 4 4 p e o p l e . F u l l m e t h o d o l o g y c a n b e f o u n d a t t h e e n d o f t h i s r e p o r t .

63%

37%

4.1 Do you agree with the statement "It's harder for women to succeed in the film industry than men"?

Agree

Disagree


Breakdown by Sector




71% 67% 67%

41% 33%

61% 82%

29% 33% 33%

59% 67%

39% 18%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%


Disagree

Agree

68% 62%

37%

32% 38%

63%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%



Disagree

Agree


5. Is 3D better than 2D?

Key Findings

• 5% of the industry think that a film being in 3D makes it more enjoyable than 2D • 1% of people working on films over $1 million believe that a movie is more enjoyable in 3D

compared to 2D • The sector that enjoys 3D the most is Marketing.

Headline Result

C h a r t 5 . 1 s h o w s w h a t p e r c e n t a g e o f a s u b s e t o f r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s a g r e e d o r d i s a g r e e d w i t h t h e s t a t e m e n t “ A m o v i e i s m o r e e n j o y a b l e i n 3 D t h a n i n 2 D ” . T h e s u b s e t s h o w e d t h i s q u e s t i o n a m o u n t e d t o 2 3 4 p e o p l e . F u l l m e t h o d o l o g y c a n b e f o u n d a t t h e e n d o f t h i s r e p o r t .

5%

95%

5.1 Do you agree with the statement "A movie is more enjoyable in 3D than in 2D"?

Agree

Disagree


Breakdown By Sector




0% 3% 0% 3% 5% 21% 24%

100% 97% 100% 97% 95% 79% 76%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%


Disagree

Agree

13% 1% 1%

87% 99% 99%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%



Disagree

Agree


6. What are the average distribution fees?

Key Findings

• The average commission charged by a Sales Agent is 19% • The average commission charged by an International Distributor is 27% • The average commission charged by a US Distributor is 30% • The average commission charged by a Cinema / Movie Theatre is 44% • According to those working in Sales & Distribution, the cinema share is 49% • There is a clear trend of each sector reporting that their fees were lower than the rest of the

industry thinks. For example, those in Exhibition report that cinemas take a 43% fee, whereas those in Sales & Distribution put the cinema share at 49%. This is quite telling as they are selling to each other so one would expect their guesses would align.

• As well as providing low estimates of their own fees, both sectors reported high estimates for the other. For example, Exhibitors feel that the average fee charged by a US distributor is 36%, whereas those working in Sales & Distribution put that figure at 28%.

Headline Result

C h a r t 6 . 1 s h o w s t h e a v e r a g e f i g u r e t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ W h a t i s t h e a v e r a g e c o m m i s s i o n ( % ) t h a t t h e f o l l o w i n g p a r t i e s k e e p f r o m r e v e n u e ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s .

19%

30% 27%

44%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Sales Agent US Distributor International Distributor Cinema / Movie theater

6.1 What is the average commission (%) that the following parties keep from revenue?


Breakdown by Sector

C h a r t 6 . 2 s h o w s t h e a v e r a g e f i g u r e t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ W h a t i s t h e a v e r a g e c o m m i s s i o n ( % ) t h a t t h e f o l l o w i n g p a r t i e s k e e p f r o m r e v e n u e ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e i r p r i n c i p l e s e c t o r ( s ) o f b u s i n e s s .

19%

19%

19%

18%

22%

17%

18%

30%

30%

31%

30%

36%

28%

29%

27%

27%

27%

28%

30%

25%

27%

44%

43%

42%

49%

43%

42%

41%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

Development

Production

Post-production


Exhibition

Marketing

Other

6.2 What is the average commission (%) that the following parties keep from revenue?

Sales Agent US Distributor International Distributor Cinema / Movie theater


7. How do professionals pick their next project?

Key Findings

• The quality of the script and the concept are the most important factors when deciding which projects to work on.

• The strength of the cast matters less than the script, the concept, the talent of the director and the reputation of the producer.

• The two least important factors were both based around data; namely performance of similar films and trends within the industry.

Scale Used Respondents were asked to rate each factor on a scale of 1 to 5, which was described as such…

1. I don't care 2. Not very important 3. Mildly important 4. Very important 5. Incredibly important

Headline Result

C h a r t 7 . 1 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w i m p o r t a n t a r e t h e f o l l o w i n g e l e m e n t s i n d e c i d i n g w h i c h p r o j e c t s y o u w o r k o n ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s .

4.4 4.4

3.4

4.2

3.7 3.3

3.0 2.9

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

5.0

Concept / Idea The quality of the script

How popular the cast are

Talent of the director

Reputation of producer

Budget level Performance data of similar

films

Trends within the industry

7.1 How important are the following elements in deciding which projects you work on?


Breakdown by Sector

C h a r t 7 . 2 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w i m p o r t a n t a r e t h e f o l l o w i n g e l e m e n t s i n d e c i d i n g w h i c h p r o j e c t s y o u w o r k o n ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e i r p r i n c i p l e s e c t o r ( s ) o f b u s i n e s s .

4.6

4.6

3.4

4.4

3.9

3.4

3.1

2.9

4.6

4.6

3.4

4.3

3.8

3.4

3.0

2.9

4.5

4.4

3.3

4.3

3.8

3.3

2.9

2.8

4.3

4.3

3.7

4.2

3.5

3.2

3.4

3.3

4.5

4.5

3.1

4.3

3.2

2.9

2.8

2.8

4.4

4.4

3.5

4.1

3.7

3.3

3.2

3.2

3.9

4.0

3.1

3.9

3.7

3.1

2.8

2.8

0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0

Concept / Idea

The quality of the script




Budget level

Performance data of similar films



Development Production Post-production Sales & Distribution Exhibition Marketing Other



C h a r t 7 . 3 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w i m p o r t a n t a r e t h e f o l l o w i n g e l e m e n t s i n d e c i d i n g w h i c h p r o j e c t s y o u w o r k o n ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e b u d g e t l e v e l i n w h i c h t h e m a j o r i t y o f t h e i r p a s t p r o j e c t s l i e .

4.5

4.4

3.1

4.2

3.7

3.3

2.9

2.8

4.4

4.6

3.6

4.3

3.9

3.4

3.2

3.1

4.4

4.6

3.6

4.3

3.9

3.5

3.2

3.1

0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0

Concept / Idea

The quality of the script




Budget level

Performance data of similar films





8. How optimistic is the industry about the future?

Key Findings

• 65% of the respondents think that business will be better in 2014 than it was in 2013. • Only 9% feel that 2014 will be worse than 2013. • The most optimistic sectors are Development and Post-Production. • The most pessimistic sectors are Sales & Distribution and Exhibition. • There was almost no difference in the level of optimism across budget ranges

Headline Result

C h a r t 8 . 1 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w d o e s t h e f u t u r e l o o k f o r y o u r b u s i n e s s ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s .

65%

26%

9%

8.1 How does the future look for your business?

2014 will be better than 2013

2014 will be the same as 2013

2014 will be worse than 2013


Breakdown by Sector

C h a r t 8 . 2 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w d o e s t h e f u t u r e l o o k f o r y o u r b u s i n e s s ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e i r p r i n c i p l e s e c t o r ( s ) o f b u s i n e s s .


C h a r t 8 . 3 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ H o w d o e s t h e f u t u r e l o o k f o r y o u r b u s i n e s s ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e b u d g e t l e v e l i n w h i c h t h e m a j o r i t y o f t h e i r p a s t p r o j e c t s l i e .

74% 70%

73%

58% 60%

68%

60%

20% 23% 22%

29% 31%

22%

30%

6% 7% 5%

13% 9% 10% 10%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Development Production Post-production Sales & Distribution



2014 will be better than 2013 2014 will be the same as 2013 2014 will be worse than 2013

66% 68% 70%

25% 23% 21%

9% 9% 10%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%



2014 will be better than 2013 2014 will be the same as 2013 2014 will be worse than 2013


9. When will VoD pay like DVD?

Key Findings

• 61% of respondents thought that within 4 years the income from new revenue sources, such as iTunes and Video on Demand will match the revenue earned by DVD at its peak.

• Those who work in Sales, Distribution and Exhibition are the most pessimistic about the income from new sources.

• 48% of those who work in Sales & Distribution feel it will take more than 4 years to reach the revenue levels of DVD at its peak, if ever.

Headline Result

C h a r t 9 . 1 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ D o y o u t h i n k t h a t n e w r e v e n u e s t r e a m s ( s u c h a s i T u n e s , V i d e o o n D e m a n d , e t c ) w i l l m a t c h t h e l e v e l o f r e v e n u e D V D u s e d t o g e n e r a t e a t i t s p e a k ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s .

7%

22%

20%

12%

20%

19%

9.1 Do you think that new revenue streams (such as iTunes, Video on Demand, etc) will match the level of revenue DVD used to generate at its peak?

Yes, in the next 12 months Yes, within the next 2 years

Yes, within the next 3 years Yes, within the next 4 years

Yes, but it will take more than 4 years No, we will never reach the same income levels of DVD


Breakdown by Sector

C h a r t 9 . 2 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ D o y o u t h i n k t h a t n e w r e v e n u e s t r e a m s ( s u c h a s i T u n e s , V i d e o o n D e m a n d , e t c ) w i l l m a t c h t h e l e v e l o f r e v e n u e D V D u s e d t o g e n e r a t e a t i t s p e a k ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e i r p r i n c i p l e s e c t o r ( s ) o f b u s i n e s s .

7%

7%

6%

7%

10%

14%

8%

22%

22%

25%

19%

21%

23%

29%

22%

21%

21%

13%

19%

18%

18%

12%

12%

15%

14%

6%

12%

14%

19%

21%

19%

20%

19%

20%

13%

18%

17%

13%

28%

24%

13%

18%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

Development

Production

Post-production


Exhibition

Marketing

Other

9.2 Do you think that new revenue streams (such as iTunes, Video on Demand, etc) will match the level of revenue DVD used to generate at its peak?

Yes, in the next 12 months Yes, within the next 2 years

Yes, within the next 3 years Yes, within the next 4 years

Yes, but it will take more than 4 years No, we will never reach the same income levels of DVD


10. Where does film financing come from?

Key Findings

• 27% of film financing came from private finance / high net worth individuals • Government grants and tax incentives combined account for 21% of film funding

Headline Result

C h a r t 1 0 . 1 s h o w s t h e r e s u l t s t o t h e q u e s t i o n “ O n a v e r a g e , f o r t h e f i l m s y o u h a v e w o r k e d o n i n t h e p a s t t w o y e a r s , w h e r e d i d t h e f i n a n c i n g c o m e f r o m ? ” f o r a l l 1 , 2 3 5 r e s p o n d e n t s o f t h e 2 0 1 4 F i l m I n d u s t r y S u r v e y b y S t e p h e n F o l l o w s , s p l i t b y t h e i r p r i n c i p l e s e c t o r ( s ) o f b u s i n e s s .

27%

20%

15%

13%

10%

6%

6% 2%

10.1 On average, for the films you have worked on in the past two years, where did the financing come from?

Private finance (high net worth individuals) Pre-sales (all media)

Soft money (tax incentives) Pre-sales (TV)

Crowd-funding (kickstarter etc) Hollywood studio

Government grants Other


About The Survey

Methodology Using a few industry resources I built up a list of 22,940 film industry professionals who have attended at least one of the three major film markets (Cannes, Berlin or AFM) within the past five years. Each was emailed and asked to fill in an online survey. Of those emailed, 44% opened the email, 15.7% clicked on the link and 34% of those (1,235) completed the survey. Interestingly, over 100 people then emailed back to let me know that they had taken part. I feel that these rates are extremely high, showing how open and communicative the industry can be.

The Respondents The surveys were anonymous, although the link was only emailed to suitable people and not shared publicly. Of those who completed the survey,

• 39% were in Production • 21% in Development • 13% in Sales & Distribution • 9% in Post-Production • 9% in Other • 5% in Marketing • 4% in Exhibition

Respondents were permitted to select multiple sectors. 56% selected just one sector, 23% selected two, 14% selected three and 5% selected four or more. 86 countries were represented, which included the United States (20.5%), the UK (15.7%), Canada (6.9%), France (5.5%), Germany (5.1%), Spain (4.0%), Australia (3.6%) and 79 other countries (38.8%). I asked for the number of films they had in development, in production, finished but not released and distributed in different budget ranges. I then used this to assess which of three budget categories best describes their work to date.

Sneaky questions In one section of the survey I wanted to illicit truthful answers on tricky topics and so I resorted to a sneaky technique. To one randomly assigned set of participants I presented three statements about the industry (such as ‘I prefer to watch films on DVD than in the cinema’). I then asked the respondent how many of the three statements they agreed with, but only asking for the combined total (i.e. “I agree with two of the three statements”).


Then, to a different randomly assigned set I offered the same three statements with the addition of one of the following statements…

• It's harder for women to succeed in the film industry than men • A movie is more enjoyable in 3D than in 2D • Investing in films in 2014 is a sensible business investment • I have illegally downloaded a TV show or feature film

By subtracting the average number of agreed-with statements (for example 3.45) from the average of the control group (for example 2.87) I was able to calculate the percentage of people who agreed with the additional statement (in this case it would be 58%).

Limitations As with any survey, there are a few limitations to this project. The most significant which occur to me are…

• Lying – I have no way of verifying that the answers given are correct. I did all I could to prevent this by making the survey anonymous, by asking key information in subtle ways and by providing no reward for particular answers. I hope that this reduced any pressure respondents may have felt to lie, exaggerate or downplay.

• Language – My emails and survey were both in English, which will naturally exclude non-English speaking professionals.

• Weighting – In order to calculate how the opinions altered at differing budget ranges I asked respondents for the number of films they had made in a variety of budget ranges (see Methodology for details). I then used this to calculate which their principle budget range was. I would have preferred to have had a more precise method of determining in which budget range to place people, as this cannot take account of the significance of each movie. A ‘low budget producer’ may now be making larger films but if their move is recent then they would still be regarded as ‘low budget’ for this survey.

• Selection bias – By targeting people who have attended a film market I am already providing a certain skew on the answers.

• Self-selection bias – Respondents were exclusively made up of people who were willing to open my email, click on my link and complete the survey.

Thanks This survey would not have been possible without the continued support of Mike Mindel, Sophie Lifschutz, Lucy Fazey and Edward L Dark – thank you all!

What’s Next? I am partnering with a few industry organisations to run surveys with their readership/members. I hope that this, along with other methods, will allow me to drill deeper into the stats behind the industry. I will publish all of my results at http://www.stephenfollows.com, where you can also see my previous surveys, research and data.

Film Industry Survey 2014-StephenFollowsstephenfollows.com/reports/Film_Industry_Survey_2014... · 2020-07-04 · Film Industry Survey 2014 A survey of 1,235 film industry professionals,

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