Chapter 1. LaunchPad for Media and Culture 11e

Digital Update Activity: How the International Market Influences Hollywood Films

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You must read each slide, and complete any questions on the slide, in sequence.

American movies exported abroad are a huge part of the movie business. American films capture up to 90 percent of the market in many countries, and international box-office gross revenues are more than three times that of U.S.-Canadian box-office receipts. While the domestic (U.S. and Canada) theatrical market for Hollywood movies is relatively flat, the international box office keeps growing. How do international successes of certain kinds of movies influence the kind of movies Hollywood makes? That is the question we want you to consider for this brief in-class activity.

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Question 1

Visit the page within the Box Office Guru Web site that lists recent releases for Worldwide Box Office Grosses of Hollywood movies: http://boxofficeguru.com/intl.htm.

Use the space below to answer the following question.

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Look at the column “% Foreign” and analyze the films that made the majority of their gross profits—over 50 percent—from international ticket sales. What do you generally find in common among these films? Are they animated? Are they action films? What else? Write down these common traits on a list.

Question 2

Use the space below to answer the following question.

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Now look more closely at the films in the “% Foreign” column that made the highest percentages (over 70 percent) from international box office. What commonalities do you find among these high-grossing films? These films made a huge amount of money for the studios that made them.

Question 3

Use the space below to answer the following question.

Question

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Finally, analyze the films in the “% Foreign” column that are below the 50 percent mark. These films were successful in the Unites States but did not do as well abroad. In a separate list next, write down the common traits. Did they star a woman? Did they have a topic that was uniquely American? What other commonalities can you find?

Question 4

Use the space below to answer the following question.

Question

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What do you think all this means? Discuss with the entire class.