Franchises run in fours

Not that long ago, three was the magic number for sequels in Hollywood. Of course there have been plenty of franchises that have gone beyond this: Harry Potter had eight, James Bond has had … a lot, but ultimately blockbuster franchises travelled in packs of three.

In the past several years, more and more franchises add a fourth chapter to their production line. As more screens compete for people’s attention – from Youtube to Facebook, the need for pre-awareness in the form of franchises is one of the few sure-fire models for getting butts in cinema seats.

As an aside, it’s interesting to note the explosive growth of online poker games that has in turn fueled brick-and-mortar tournaments and thriving casinos. New poker websites pop up every day, such as poker.dk, where people practice making money in the privacy of their own home. The industry booms, despite legal action against some of the most high-profile sites such as Full Tilt Poker. What used to be an intimidating game for pros, suddenly has become a private game where people gamble anonymously. Meanwhile, real-life poker has become a booming business. Similarly, I see a potential strategy for film producers to cultivate audiences with online shows and made-for-online movies that gradually build a franchise and following. These properties can then be produced for the big cinematic experience once the audience is sufficiently proven.

Here are three franchises that have ‘unexpectedly’ gone over the threequel limit:

Pirates of the Caribbean

For a film idea that had so many sceptics in the beginning, this franchise has certainly had legs. Based on the Disney theme park ride, the first film, spawned two immediate sequels, Dead Man’s Chest and At World’s End. The third concluded the plot-line of two of the central characters who carried the weight of the films. It would have been enough. And then they made the fourth, On Stranger Tides without them.

Ice Age

It would appear that Ice Age are planning to make films up until the present day. So far they have had the ice age begin, a meltdown, and an adventure somewhere under the ice where the Dinosaurs still reign supreme. Have they left it there? Of course not. In Ice Age number four we will get to see the continents split.

X Men

The first film was OK. The second film was better, and the third was brilliant. The X Men franchise did the unusual and got better rather than worse with each release. So, of course they had to round it out with a fourth one. Only this time they went back in the past and made the prequel X Men: First Class. Different actors playing younger versions of the same characters. Genius.

The trend toward developing intellectual property with pre-awareness is quickly going to meld with the power of online audience-building. Small-scale, niche productions funded by brands and product placement will grown audiences that can then be tapped for bigger productions. A sea-change is just around the corner.

Telluride Film Festival – “The Story of Film: An Odyssey”

Last night in the mountains of Telluride, Colorado, I sat in the little Nugget Theater for the first two hours of Mark Cousins’ epic documentary about the origins of film, as a medium, a cultural language and a mode of visual thought. This patchwork of clips is mind-expanding, occasionally pedantic yet always surprising, seeking to express the history of cinema through cinema. It poetically explores the early days of cinema to the more recent works of Scorsese and Spielberg. Narrated by Cousins’ lyrical, precise Northern Irish accent, we are transported into the luminous footage of the early works of Edison and Lumiere, intercut with juxtapositions – poetic, relevant and occasionally disorienting images from Hollywood, cities and nature. At this thin-air altitude, it was a heady, inspiring experience to pull me in to the meditative, carefully curated ambiance of this jewel of American film festivals. Tilda Swinton, sitting a few rows behind me, walked directly up to the filmmaker after the Q&A to offer her warm congratulations. Up next, my review of The Artist.

A great interview with Mark Cousins here.

Early Work Spotlight: BOY AND BICYCLE by the Scott Brothers

I’ve been interested in finding famed directors’ early work lately.  Here’s my latest discovery.  Tony Scott, director of such acclaimed classics as TOP GUN and CRIMSON TIDE, is one of hollywood’s famed siblings.  He and his now more famous brother, Ridley Scott, started collaborating early on.  Their first short film to get attention was BOY AND BICYCLE.  Here’s an exerpt that shows some surprising command of editorial style and pacing.  And a pure celebration of a youth (Tony) on a bicycle.  The music was done by famed composer  John Barry (James Bond soundtracks) after he was surprised by the quality of the brothers’ short film.