.jpg)
Transformers 2 will earn $800m.
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen might have scored a near-record global take of $400 million in five days, but that didn’t stop new Paramount Pictures head Adam Goodman from wiping out the New York literary office, shuttering the company’s award-winning boutique arm Paramount Vantage and seeking out video distribution mergers with other studios.
Goodman’s internal memo:
Best Picture winner No Country for Old Men.
"As you know, last week we announced that we would be streamlining the leadership of the production organization. As an extension of that process and with the goal of managing the business for the long term, I wanted to make sure everyone was aware of the changes we’re making.
Today, we are reducing our production workforce by 31 people across some departments. These cuts represent a mix of job eliminations, layoffs and reorganizations in creative, casting and physical production, as well as the Paramount Vantage label. People whose positions are being impacted are being notified today, and supervisors are working through a transition plan with these employees.
While this reduction is small relative to the full strength of our organization, its size did not make our decisions any easier. The great contributions made by these colleagues will be felt at the studio for years to come. But in order to create an environment that is efficient while at the same time maximizes the considerable talent we are fortunate to have, these moves were essential. In today’s challenging environment, we need to be a nimble organization, with a sharp focus, promoting a culture where our best work can get even better. I believe our new structure will allow us to do exactly that."
Paramount Vantage’s brief history includes acclaimed (and profitable) award-winners such as Babel, There Will be Blood, No Country For Old Men, Into the Wild, Revolutionary Road and is set to distribute Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island in October.
Vantage’s death is not surprising, but disappointing. An alarming number of the specialty studios that have nurtured, financed and distributed the bulk of the recent independent and foreign films have been folded into their parent companies. The list of casualties includes New Line Cinema, Picturehouse, Fine Line Features and Warner Independent Pictures.
Goodman also shut down Paramount’s New York literary office after 20 years of scouting for promising book properties and other potential source materials. It was through this office that the studio developed Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events.
If that wasn’t enough, Paramount is also exploring a plan to combine its home distribution with either 20th Century Fox or Sony Pictures Entertainment. Paramount would continue to pay for and control the marketing of the products, but the cost-cutting move is not without its risks. Home video is more profitability than theatrical distribution and abandoning marketing plans altogether might make it difficult for the studio to attract top-flight filmmakers.
So what does this mean for moviegoers? With a new push toward developing mega-franchises and less reliance on literary materials, emerging talent and prestige films, there might not be any room in the play room for the likes of filmmakers Paul Thomas Anderson, the Coen Brothers, Sam Mendes or Scorsese – because Optimus Prime will be hogging all the toys.
And yes, there is a third Transformers flick on the way. Can the big-screen version of Ow, My Balls be far behind?
Comments