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Lately DreamWorks SKG has been a wandering tribe. The would-be studio, which made films such as “American Beauty” and “War of the Worlds”, sold itself to Paramount in 2005. When that arrangement fell apart it found new partners in Reliance Big Entertainment, a Bollywood outfit, and Universal Studios. Then it fell out with Universal. So it was rather a surprise when, on February 9th, DreamWorks abruptly found itself in the promised land. Disney, the world’s foremost purveyor of wholesome entertainment, lent it money and agreed to market and distribute its films.
It is a good illustration of how the economic downturn is affecting Hollywood. Until recently executives were boasting that the film business was resistant, perhaps even immune, to recession. The number of cinema tickets sold actually increased during three out of the past four recessions. Box-office receipts so far this year are higher than last year. Admittedly, the share prices of media companies have tumbled—but that is because of the collapse in television and print advertising, and has little to do with Tinseltown.
Yet the downturn has profoundly affected the art of deal-making. Although the breakdown of negotiations between DreamWorks and Universal has been followed by a storm of recriminations, the heart of the problem was that DreamWorks was finding it unexpectedly hard to raise debt. It is hardly alone in that. Two years ago investors were lubricating all sorts of strange alliances and start-ups—Tom Cruise wants to resurrect United Artists? Why not? But now the outside money has all but disappeared. The big studios, the primacy of which was never exactly threatened during the boom years, are now almost the only game in town.
The alliance with DreamWorks is something of an about-turn for Disney. Under Bob Iger, who took over as chief executive in 2005, Disney has culled films that are a less than perfect fit for its family-friendly brand and has concentrated on turning those that are into amusement-park rides, lunch boxes and other spin-offs. This week’s deal will add as many as six films a year to Disney’s pipeline, swelling it by about half. The surge will not happen at once, however: DreamWorks will have to raise more money before it is capable of producing that many.
These days DreamWorks is largely Steven Spielberg’s outfit. Jeffrey Katzenberg (the “K” in SKG) runs DreamWorks Animation, a separate, publicly owned company. David Geffen (the “G”) has retired from the studio. The remaining founder spoke warmly of Disney this week, calling it the “birthplace of imagination”. He is said to be looking forward to making more family films. Perhaps, but he still looks a little out of place in the magic kingdom.
Mr. Spielberg became America’s best-known, and perhaps best, film director by fusing blockbuster spectacle with an unflinching take on family life. The households even in his PG-rated films are almost uniformly dysfunctional. Think of Richard Dreyfuss flinging plants through the window in “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”, Frances O’Connor abandoning her adopted robot son by the roadside in “A.I.” or the defeated, self-deluding Christopher Walken in “Catch Me If You Can”. It is hard to imagine any of them donning Mickey Mouse ears.
1. Why is DreamWorks SKG described at the beginning of the article as a wandering tribe?
A) Because it has recently made some movies about different ancient tribes.
B) Because it has recently moved from Hollywood to Bollywood for development.
C) Because it lately has seen many ups and downs when cooperating with peer companies.
D) Because it eventually reached its promised land of partnership with Disneyland.
2. According to the text, which is the influence of economic downturn on Hollywood’s entertainment business?
A) Companies’ operation and other business activities are profoundly affected.
B) Hollywood provides the services that are resistant to economic crisis.
C) The recession has promoted the movie industry as more people watch movies.
D) Most movie companies are sunk in debt crisis because of the economic recession.
3. Bob Iger’s strategy for Disneyland centers on ______.
A) adding more movies to the company’s pipeline
B) switching from movie-making to amusement park
C) raising more money to expand the size of the company
D) further clarifying the company’s brand
4. Steven Spielberg, according to the text, is said to be ______.
A) the founder of DreamWorks
B) good at combining grand scenes with details in real life
C) the best director in American movie history
D) a major advocator of family movies
5. What does the author think of the partnership between Disneyland and DreamWorks?
A) It will result in Spielberg’s concentration shift onto more family movies.
B) They will add cartoon characters like Mickey Mouse to real-life movies.
C) The combination looks somewhat weird and the prospect is not cheerful.
D) The two companies will definitely find themselves incompatible with each others.