Audiences and Institutions

ACTIVITY #1

1. What are the two different financial models that distribution agreements are based on?

• Leasing
• Profit sharing

2. Describe what they both entail. 

• Leasing is when the distributor agrees to pay a fixed amount for the rights to distribute the film.  
• Profit sharing is when the distributor gets a percentage of the films profits e.g. 10-15% 

3. What are ancillary rights? 

• Ancillary rights are the rights the film has to everything put in the movie or series such as soundtrack rights, stage play rights etc.

4. What is the definition of the film's 'opening' and what factors are taken into account when making decisions about a film's opening?

• Opening is the first or ‘official’ debut of the film. Factors include studio, target audience, star power, buzz and season.

5. What does it mean if a film has 'legs'? What factors might determine this?

• If a film has “legs” it means the film has big actors and is doing well but if it doesn't then it means the film has no legs and wont last long in popularity. Factors affecting this include, the amount of buzz created around the film, its target audience, may be the wrong time of year (season).

6. At the time of this article, how many theatres were there across USA and where are they mostly located?

• There were around 37,000 screens (theatres) in the United States at the time of the article, typically located in urban areas.

7. What role does a 'buyer' play and what are some of the terms they negotiate?

• Buyers are used in representing theatres in negotiating with distribution companies

8. What is meant by a 'loss leader'?

• It means that the theatre makes most of its profits from selling household items such as popcorn or drinks rather than the actual movie tickets.

ACTIVITY #2

- who distributed the films?

• Suicide Squad: Warner Bros. Pictures 
• Hunt for the Wilderpeople: Piki Films (N.Z.) Madman Entertainment (N.Z./Australia)
• Moonlight: A24 Plan B Entertainment Pastel Productions
• The Interview: Sony Pictures Releasing 

- how were they distributed?

• Suicide Squad: Strong release with box office records, seen in imax, REALD and 3D.
• Hunt for the Wilderpeople: Premiered at the Sundance Film festival
• Moonlight: Premiered at the Telluride Film Festival
• The interview:

- Where were they released and when?

• Suicide Squad: Beacon theatre, New York. 1st of August, 2016 
• Hunt for the Wilderpeople: Sundance festival, New Zealand. 31st of March 2016
• Moonlight: Released in the USA. 2nd of September, 2016
• The Interview: Premiered in Las Angeles. 11th of December, 2014

- What type of release did they have?

• Suicide squad: Cinema premiere 
• Hunt for the Wilderpeople: Film festival release
• Moonlight: Film festival release 
• The interview: Theatre (cinema) release