“Old People, Old Stars: Hollywood’s New Hot Demo Is Saving the Box Office”
On Monday, we considered how this summer’s movie attendance is likely the lowest in two decades.
Yesterday we analyzed how The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Moonrise Kingdom led a strong summer in the indie film market, fueled by women and Baby Boomer ticket-buyers.
Yes, there is a reality check. We are talking apples [Avengers = $1.5B] to oranges [Marigold = $131M]. Major Hollywood studios will likely never veer away from its obsession with pre-awareness titles, prequels, sequels, remakes, franchises, and the like, and yet here is a fact: Young people simply do not have a commitment to movies that old people do. Witness two recent articles.
First from THR:
After years of fawning over the fanboy, Hollywood is suddenly embracing the boomer, who is turning out to be the most avid moviegoer of all as teenagers and young adults disappear behind video game consoles, computers and iPhones. “It’s the next frontier. Younger people have pretty much been milked,” says Bill Newcott, entertainment editor at AARP’s The Magazine.
Not even the youth-obsessed studios can ignore the numbers. There are 78 million baby boomers, defined as those born between 1946 and 1964. In 2010 — thanks in great part to advances in medicine — 40.3 million were over age 65, making them the fastest-growing segment of the population, according to the U.S. Census. That compares with 30.7 million people between 18 and 24. It’s also the segment that most likes to go to the cinema. The MPAA reports that movie attendance across all age groups dipped in 2011 — save for those 60 and older.
“Our demo has more time, more disposable income, and when they like a movie, they reward it very well,” says Newcott. “They give a movie legs, and that’s the real value of our audience.”
Then there’s this article from Fast Company:
For decades, advertising has been aimed mainly at the coveted 18–49 demo. The creative industry has strained to keep its finger on the pulse of the ever-shifting members of that age group (and often embarrassed itself in its efforts to appeal to the youngsters). Mention old folks and ad people would have run screaming. Only no one ever really mentioned them.
That’s changing. The ad industry, like other sectors, is being forced into the present by the awesome reality of the numbers. Right now, seniors control nearly a third of total U.S. net wealth, according to a study by Leo Burnett Group. There are 72+ million boomers, the oldest of which turned 65 last year and another 50-odd million people in the older or “silent” generation. And, their growth is outpacing every other demographic group. In fact, by 2030 one in five Americans will be 65 or older. When it comes to broadcast media, the oldening of audiences is profound — the average network TV viewer is over 50. And it’s not just America; across many developed Western markets there is a similar picture. Yet, traditionally, only 5% of worldwide advertising budgets have been geared toward older consumers while 80% is spent trying to reach 18–34-year-olds.
Hm. Hasn’t somebody been trumpeting this point about ‘Old Farts’ and movies before? Like here, here, here, here, here, here, and here [among many other posts].
This is all I’m saying. Baby Boomers and Seniors grew up loving movies. If a studio commits to making good, entertaining movies aimed at that target demo, they will make money. Maybe not Avengers dollars. Maybe not all the merchandising dollars of toys, video games, etc.
But if young people have a fickle relationship with movies… and Old Farts have a longstanding love affair with movies, doesn’t it make sense for studios to target at least some of their acquisition and development dollars into quality projects for a motivated target demo?
For more of the THR article, go here.
For more of the Fast Company article, go here.
Tomorrow: Whither mid-budget movies?
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