Future of Film Industry

Entertainment is a key source for people to escape from their day to day activities and the daily hustle that follows. It helps to relax and get away from the anxieties and worries and the movies have proven to be one of the great forms of Entertainment for the people over the decades. Apart from providing entertainment, they are also quite beneficial for the mental well-being of the people. With the movies comes the Film Industry, that comprises of all the Companies, Studios and People involved in making commercial films as a whole. The Film Industry made its mark back in the late 19th century and since then the world has witnessed many great films that are considered as Masterpiece. The people over the time have made hitting the theatres a great way to escape from the boredom and to freshen up their mind.

With an increase in the COVID-19 cases worldwide, the Global Film Industry too had to suffer when many blockbusters franchises movies such as the 7th Mission Impossible, the 25th James Bond film No Time to Die, Marvel Universe’s Black Widow and Wonderwoman 1984 and Spider Man’s much awaited Far From Home had to be delayed. Huge amount of dollars had been invested in making and marketing these films but due to the virus that turned from an Epidemic to a pandemic, the release date of these movies along with the others had to be postponed. Like any other Industry, the Film Industry too is trying their level best to cope up with the pandemic and are reaching out to the public and offering their services by releasing the movies in the OTT platforms. The OTT platforms have seen a drastic surge in their subscriptions due to the COVID-19. Many movies have been released in the Over the Top content streaming channels like Amazon Prime, Netflix and Disney Hotstar. They have been providing people with outstanding services and are changing the way people defined Entertainment. 

The Film Industry has been clinging on to the hope that a fine Blockbuster in the future would save them from the losses that they had to incur owing to the pandemic. Although the industry had to bear huge amount of loss and the Coronavirus decimating the business, the OTT platforms have turned out to be a saviour amidst the Pandemic. It is obvious that in the current time, 8 in 10 people have the access to the gadgets, atleast smartphones, along with the access to the Internet. These OTT platforms are easily accessible with the availability of the Internet, this is how the people during the Pandemic didn’t miss out on the movie entertainment fun. In the near future, the Film Industry would still make its mark as films are deeply in the people’s veins and are determined in finding ways to deliver their service no matter what the situation is. Also, if seen exhaustively, the Film Industry has witnessed an inter-cultural scene which have made this industry more transparent and is likely to thrive more in the future. People also have an emotional attachment with the movies since the childhood and are easily fascinated by it and once the situation seems stable, they will flood back to the movies, provided the precautions measures are followed.

The restrictions on the Cinema and the Movie Theatres have had a negative impact causing a fall in the film revenue. According to the report provided by Statista, the Global Film Industry has suffered a revenue loss of 7 billion U.S. dollars as of the middle of March 2020. With the halt in the production of movies, screenings being cancelled and the release dates being shifted to the future dates, the Film Industry had to face a situation that could have been never imagined and releasing their works in the OTT platforms was the only escape point. In the context of India, the film industry has suffered loss such huge that it might take as long as two three years to recover. Many big projects have been kept at halt and many are gradually adapting to the new normal way. With more and more people being cautious about the Virus, the psyche of most of the people would be to avoid gathering in crowded places which would mean the OTT platforms witnessing more audience and more projects being out on these platforms. As per the report presented by Aljazeera, the shares of the two big multiplex operators of India, PVR and INOX Leisure, have plunged more than 40% from all-time highs in late February.

With the life getting back on track after months of halt, the Film industry too shall see a ray of home and the providers continuous trying to figure out ways to delight the customers so that the people’s attachment with the film industry doesn’t fade away. People shall still experience this source of entertainment sitting and lying down in their comfort zone if not out in the big screens but the Film Industry shall continue to survive the Pandemic.

“Film is one of the three universal Language, the other two: Music and Mathematics”

-Frank Capra

-Rakshanda shrestha