At the Oscars, we witnessed winning performances from films like Universal Pictures. oppenheimer, with 7 wins. While traditional studios scooped up awards, streamers were largely shut out of the Oscars. Netflix (NFLX) got him 32 nominations but lost with just one statue of him. Chris Fenton, producer and author of “Feeding The Dragon,” and Andrew Stachler, CEO of Max Stax Media, join his Yahoo Finance Live to discuss the impact of the Oscars.
Fenton points out that oppenheimer's Seven Winds “rewarded this premium experience” of watching movies in theaters despite the availability of streaming services. Fenton said franchises such as Dune, Mad Max and Joker could have similar success at next year's Oscars due to their “premium outdoor experiences.”
Stahaller explains why such spending is necessary, with huge amounts of money being spent on advertising to promote talent. He points out that when a talent wins an award, it “impacts their career” and draws attention to the studio that makes the film. However, Stahaller acknowledged that the Oscar method used to “drive a theatrical box office campaign” no longer has the same effect.
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Editor's note: This article was written by angel smith
video transcript
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– Oppenheimer and blockbuster studio Universal were the big winners at last night's Academy Awards, taking home seven Oscars, including the coveted Best Picture. But while traditional studios scraped statues, streamers were largely shut out of this year's Oscars. This is despite receiving 32 nominations. Netflix walked away with the only award of the night for the streaming giant.
Joining us this time are Chris Fenton, film producer and author of Feed the Dragon, and Andrew Stuckler, CEO of Max Stax Media. Thank you both for joining us this morning. So Chris, first I…
Chris Fenton: Thank you to us.
– –I would like to start from here. of course. No, you're welcome. Chris, first of all, was it any surprise that some of the traditional studios swept the awards here and left the streamers out in the cold?
Chris Fenton: Well, I think it was a great weekend for me. Because, frankly, I got to go see Dune 2 in an IMAX theater, and then I got to see the Oscars last night. And it really rewarded this premium experience, the ability to go to the theater and watch this wonderful IMAX movie of his that was shot on 65mm film, outside of the house.
You made this “Oppenheimer” movie and obviously it won a lot of awards. But on top of that, it also showcased the fact that box office success and a premium outdoor experience to escape in-home entertainment actually provides an opportunity to win these huge awards.
So if you're watching “Oppenheimer” this year, you might be betting on “Dune 2” next year. I'd bet on the “Mad Max'' series, and possibly “Joker'' in late October. These films are going to be incredibly successful in keeping with the social zeitgeist and offer a truly premium outdoor experience.
– And Andrew, as audiences now tend to see themselves picking and choosing what they want to see in movies, huge movies like “Dune 2'' and “Oppenheimer'' have really benefited from this kind of thing. I am. But what kind of investments do these companies and studios have to make here, leading up to an Oscar nomination and a campaign there? And if they win an Oscar, how will they be rewarded in the long run?
Andrew Stacher: Yes, that means you have to invest and you have to campaign. And talent is a big part of that. I mean, they're shaking hands and kissing babies and doing some really charming attacks here and there. And it's very difficult to run these campaigns if they're not affiliated with you.
But obviously they also involve a lot of advertising, and they are closely related. From a profit perspective, these are talent relations campaigns after all. You want talent to bring their projects to the studio first. And talented people want to win these things, and it affects their career.
That's really the first thing. They used to drive more of the theatrical box office revenue. Additionally, the theatrical release campaign was designed to coincide with the nominations and awards. They still have a little bit of it left. “Poor Things” is still playing in select theaters. You'll be in for a bit of a shock. But modern campaigns aren't designed that way. Theater is no longer as profitable as it used to be.
