Sounds rather exciting doesn’t it. There is your name right up there on the big screen with the Director and the stars. “YOU – Executive Producer.” Yeah but what does that mean really and is it something you might actually want to do?
Well according to Academy Award winner Tony Bill, in his very entertaining and informative book “Movie Speak” the term “executive producer” is generally understood to be “the money” that is, the one who raises it, not the one who has actually has it. Not that I want to pick a fight with Mr. Bill, but in small independent films the executive producer is as often as not the actual source of the money. But by any view executive producer means money to make a film. So why would anyone want to be an “Executive Producer?”
Well there can be many reasons but the one dominating reason is because the person investing in the film project does so believing that he has a better than average chance to make a great deal more than he invested. Is that a realistic expectation? There are many factors that go into that determination but let’s start with some film history. Here are some well known Hollywood movies and what they cost to make and what the returned at the box office.
Title Cost Box Office
Avatar $237,000,000 $2,780,000,000
Titanic $200,000,000 $1,840,000,000
Lord of the Rings, Return $94,000,000 $1,130,000,000
Pirates of the Caribbean $225,000,000 $1,070,000,000
Toy Story Three $200,000,000 $1,080,000,000
For a much more extensive list go to: www.ronirwin.net/id13.html.
There are also occasional flops. “Ishtar” comes immediately to mind. This 1987 Columbia Pictures release cost a then huge $57 million to make and has so far returned well less than half the production cost. It received such awful reviews one of the stars Dustin Hoffman asked to have his name removed from the film. For what it is worth, I like Ishtar but I am clearly in the minority.
Then there is the much more recent Disney flop “Mars Needs Mom” which cost Disney an estimated $200 MILLION to make with little chance of ever breaking even.
So YES people, even big time studio executives can and do lose money making films. Just like ExxonMobil has been known to drill a rare dry hole and major pharmaceutical firms will occasionally invest millions in a new drug only to have it fail FDA scrutiny. No human activity ever comes with an iron clad guarantee of success and that is why absolutely every investment carries with an element of risk.
However, a careful analysis of the overall film business reveals far more success than failure and this is by no means limited to the big studios. One of the best known classic examples of a tiny independent film maker turning a few hundred thousand dollars into hundreds of millions of dollars is the fabled “Blair Witch Project.” So what is there for someone with anywhere from $10,000 to $100,000,000 to invest?
The truth is that there are many opportunities at many levels. Each must be evaluated on its own merits and each I stress is unique. And then there is you. What is your risk tolerance? Should the project not work out so well, how damaging would a possible loss be for you? But if you love movies and you do have some risk capital to invest this could very well be a great opportunity for you. That only leaves the question, where do you begin?
If you want to buy a stock you simply call a broker. If you want to invest in real estate, you call a broker. But to my knowledge there is no existing money investment exchange for the movie business. Maybe there should be and maybe someday one will emerge. Until then you can start by visiting www.ronirwin.net/id13.html/ At any given time I am working with a small group of film makers seeking to fund a tiny group of projects. In every case I have a high level of confidence in the success potential for each project. In several cases I have invested with the film maker myself. Since it would be utterly irrational, however, I still offer no guarantees. Nevertheless if you want to start looking at potential movie projects send me a short note with your contact information and interest level to drcommunicator@gmail.com. Your information will be held in strict confidence and you will be introduced to a few deals with absolutely no obligation on your part. If you like something you see then and only then will introductions be made.
Then some day you can take the family to the movies and right there up on that big screen will be your name. A big smile will sweep over your face and life will never get any better. Plus there is the fun you can have in the production process. You will almost certainly have the opportunity to visit the set and see how movie magic is actually performed. Of course there is always risk, but in movies the returns are often phenomenal and I know of no other business that is as much flat out fun.
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