‘EAST’ IS THE NEW ‘WEST’
“The King’s Speech” won the 83rd Annual Academy Award this year for the ‘Best Picture’. However, instead of the Oscars, those were youngsters of China, India, Brazil, et al that the big movie studios were looking at this time. Today, the success of a film depends on how it does in foreign markets and not on how many Oscars it gets. From Harry Potter to Sherlock Holmes to even Inception; all were declared hits because they did big business outside America. Avatar, the highest grosser of all times, made 3/4th of its money outside US & Canada. The markets with the biggest growth potential are Russia, China India, et al. There seems to be a ‘cinema boom’ in these countries and they are lapping up Hollywood films like nobody’s business. So, for Hollywood movie production houses, the most important task today is to distribute their films in these markets and make the maximum money. The focus is not just on a good script, but also on choosing the right actors and locations that will appea...