“Foreign Films Get a Hand From Hollywood”

I knew Hwood studios had opened international production divisions some years ago, but I had no idea the amount of business they are doing as this NY Times article explains:

Hollywood has certainly not given up on exporting its own, U.S.-made fare. Blockbusters are as popular as ever internationally, and now consistently generate more of their revenue outside the United States than they do at home. But many lower-profile Hollywood films struggle to connect with international audiences, and that is where local production comes in.

“For a studio to thrive they are going to have to keep delivering blockbusters, but will also have to operate with a tremendous amount of cultural expertise in markets around the world,” said James Schamus, chief executive of Focus Features, a Universal Pictures division that includes that studio’s international filmmaking business.

Sony Pictures and Warner Brothers were the first of the major Hollywood studios to set up international production arms, in the 1990s. Since then, they have been joined by most of the others, and they have expanded their operations significantly. Warner, for instance, plans to produce, co-produce or distribute more than 40 films in local markets this year, Mr. Fox said. That compares with a typical slate of about 25 films for the main Warner studio in Hollywood.

Hollywood’s increasing interest in local production has contributed to a big increase in the number of films that are being made: 1,145 of them in the European Union last year, according to the European Audiovisual Observatory in Strasbourg, and the number has been increasing at an average annual rate of 7 percent since 2004.

That number — 1,145 — is at least double the number of movies produced and distributed by Hwood major, minors and indie outfits last year (somewhere between 450–500). And while Hwood loves blockbusters, bottom line all they care about is generating revenue — period. So if the international market continues to show strength, not only for U.S. product, but also locally produced films, then why not spend money on the latter?

Maybe, too, this is an angle for screenwriters. Obviously for those who live in Europe to write stories that would appeal to local audiences. But if the marketplace in the U.S. continues to be so competitive with likely less films being produced for the foreseeable future, what about writing scripts set in England, Germany, Spain, France, or Italy, and approach production entities in Europe with spec scripts?