How Blockchain Is Breathing New Life Into The Film Industry

The sudden onset of a pandemic can certainly bring things into perspective, revealing what is most useful and sustainable, and what adds unnecessary weight in a crisis. We are witnessing an incredible volatile market, as seen by the Chicago Board Options Exchange's CBOE Volatility Index VIX rise of 49% over the past week. 

As we watch what happens within the film industry, we can see that the response is far more nuanced. Some sectors are doing better than ever, and others need major adjustments in order to thrive in the future. Advertising spend has also drastically changed throughout the crisis. 

The Big Six movie production companies may be among the hardest hit by the pandemic. Movie theater closings have damaged box office revenue for nearly the entire summer blockbuster season. In March, a Hollywood Reporter article predicted that the theater industry would lose around $17 billion due to a lack of visitors to the big screen and major releases will be limited or delayed because production everywhere has temporarily halted.

There is no denying that the part of the industry dependent on giant box office revenues is in trouble, but the film industry isn’t going anywhere. Technology is evolving faster than ever, and entertainment is an integral part of everyone’s lives. The challenges moving forward present an opportunity to innovate and adapt. 

It is time for the industry to break away from the cumbersome, expensive and prohibitive methods perpetuated by tradition, and move into a more sustainable standard that has the flexibility to change with the times. The most adaptable elements are thriving right now, becoming the new anchor for the future of the industry. 

Creating a more effective strategy requires new technologies to support growth and investment. Blockchain technology creates an exciting new landscape that simplifies and accelerates the process for independent creators and new investors entering the market. It abolishes the gatekeeping and black boxing that has historically made it impossible for newcomers to thrive, and it provides powerful metrics that allow investors to predict a project’s success.

What Investing In The Film Industry Normally Looks Like

Breaking into the film industry is almost as much of a mystery for investors as it is for creators and artists. Unless the numbers are being released for bragging rights, a movie’s budget is almost always top secret. Large studios are incredibly exclusive, they spend a fortune on finding out what audiences want to see (though some would say they are still fairly out of touch), and they are not going to share their predictive data with anyone.

Independently funding a film project may be easier. There are always aspiring artists looking for someone to provide the cash needed to fuel their dream production. The only problem here is that investors could end up losing everything they invest without proper analysis of a film’s potential, and legal battles can get quite costly if they come about. Copyright infringement claims are a common occurrence with investors often footing the bill.

Why The Film Industry Is Hot Right Now

Streaming services are on the rise due to the normalization of social distancing. Since March, people are consuming more content, including on social media, podcasts, streaming services, and applications. At the core of this demand is the expectation of original and user-generated content (UGC) that connect time-sensitive social themes into a narrative. 

These recent events have sprouted new areas of growth for the film industry, making room for new investors to make their mark without having to be part of the exclusive Hollywood studio club or take the risk alone. Blockchain platforms bolster these opportunities, making it possible to produce a film or TV show completely independently, while minimizing risks that typically make investors hesitant.

Investing In Films Made Easy

Filmio is one such blockchain platform that opens up the industry, creating an accessible ecosystem of investing and production that is entirely contained on-chain. When a creator loads their content onto Filmio, it is immediately verified, timestamp, and loaded onto the chain. The intellectual property then has a degree of protection, potentially eliminating associated legal costs due to blockchain’s transparency and immutability. 

On the Filmio Decentralized Platform (FDP), every change to data stored must be verified across a majority of its networks, and data can never be altered— only amended. This means that no one can tamper with transactions or blocks of data that have been loaded, and every single event gets permanently recorded.

The FDP’s structure makes collection of analysis metrics simple and trustworthy as well. One of the most appealing features of the platform is its facilitation of creator and fan interaction. Fans can follow creators and projects, providing feedback and ratings the whole way through the process. The greater the level of engagement a project gets, the higher its GO score becomes, making it more visible in its genre and category. 

Investors can look at which projects are seeing the most popularity and success, monitoring how they evolve over time. If an investor is interested in funding a project, they can deal directly with the creator through the platform, rather than going through intermediaries who extend the process and take hefty fees for their services.

A Shift Toward Sustainability

The film industry is in the process of reinventing itself in an era when content is king and flexibility is paramount. People are looking for thoughtful and meaningful things to watch, and the requirement to socially distance has audiences viewing more than they ever have. The traditional Hollywood system, dependent on enormous blockbusters with equally enormous budgets may be fading. But a new, decentralized system has a bright future ahead.

Filmio is an opportunity for investors who have always wanted to break into the film industry, or for those who are frustrated with the old ways of doing things. The platform gives creators, fans, and investors a place to collaborate and create in an open, transparent environment; and it shines a light on what audiences are really looking for. With Filmio, no one is ever left in the dark.

Photo by Erik Witsoe on Unsplash