The Economic Downturn's Effect on Filmmaking

Historically, during bad economic times, it is the entertainment industries that flourish - presumably, because people want to forget about their financial woes and drown themselves in happy distracting entertainment. Going to the movies is a good way out. And today, films are more accessible and available via NetFlix, video stores, and now online, meaning it doesn't break the bank no matter what age you are, or how bad off things are financially.

Here is another interesting tidbit. Fifteen years ago, the Sundance Film Festival got 500 submissions. This year, they received 5,000. Virtually all of these are privately financed films. Yet Mark Gill, who recently addressed an audience of film making professionals at the Los Angeles Film Festival, sited that Disney has gone from releasing 47 films in a year not too long ago to putting out only 12 films this year. Many of the “independent” branches of the studios have either been shrunk or dissolved altogether.

Gill also said, “If you want to survive in this brutal climate, you’re going to have to work a lot harder, be a lot smarter, know a lot more, move a lot faster, sell a lot better, pay attention to the data, be a little nicer, trust your gut, read everything and never, never give up.”

Yes, the competition is tough, and economics are making things challenging, but it is also a time where creative people can learn and seize their full potential, both now and later on.

That said, one also might wonder how this economy has effected the film school business, or those interested in programs at recording schools or radio schools for that matter. Because their mentorship programs are so reasonably priced, the Entertainment Career Connection's alternative film schools are really valuable, because people actually get jobs after they complete the programs - 74 percent to be exact. And, there has been a big increase in those taking the company's courses since January 2008. Student registrations in film, radio and recording are running about 160 percent over January 2008 -meaning the increase in the number of people who want to learn how to be a film director, or sign up for an audio engineer program or even those who want to learn to be a sports announcer, has been substantial.