I am a big Marvel, Star Wars, and DC comics fan. But I'm also a savvy adult who likes good stories told well. Watching Warner Bros. and Disney allow their tentpole IP to become diluted reminds me of a key point in The Innovator's Dilemma: "There are times at which it is right NOT to listen to customers, right to invest in developing lower-performance products that promise LOWER margins, and right to aggressively pursue small, rather than substantial markets."
Applied to Warner Bros. and Disney: Fan service can only go so far.
Warners and Disney have shackled themselves to the superfans. As a result, they've been pumping out remixed stories that tickle every fan fiction fantasy. There have been a few bright spots, but larger audiences seem to be turning away. Pumping huge amounts of money into these retreads is a sign that the studios are milking their businesses dry.
🔆 It's time to grow the IP garden. Nurture new voices, explore new tonal combinations, delve into a wider library. Pursue the glories of longtail art. Allow the artists to guide this content and give audiences time to find it.
✴ Find production savings by integrating innovative technologies in pre- and post-production to help eliminate inefficiencies. Allow the tech to help the humans.
⚾ Moneyball the process. Take a hard look at the price of talent versus the yield in ticket sales/views/subscriber numbers. Don't lower the wages of middle class artists. Instead, fill your projects with these journeyman performers. The IP is the star.
🛳 I get a sense that the various ships in the Hollywood sea are in the midst of massive course corrections, and I'm excited to see what James Gunn does with the DC stable of characters. But what's Disney's play on Marvel and Star Wars? Time for another leg in that IP stable!
#Disney #warnerbros #marvel #marvelstudios #dccomics #starwars #IP #hollywood #filmmaking
