M O N D AY, N O V E M B E R 0 6 , 2 0 0 6Is Hollywood Getting Budget-Conscious?Not really.</p><p> The New York Times runs down some recent examples ofstudios pulling back on pricey flicks: "Halo," "Used Guys" and "Ripley'sBelieve It Or Not." But Hollywood history is filled with stories of stalledor failed projects -- as well as projects that went ahead despiteenormous price tags.</p><p> Russell Crowe had the funniest line.</p><p> When askedwhy he dropped out of Baz Luhrmann's Aussie epic a la "Gone WithThe Wind," Crowe said, “I do charity work, but I don’t do charity workfor major studios.” Good on ya, mate.</p><p> Most of the examples the NYTcites aren't examples of being budget-conscious, but examples of tryingto screw actors and others out of their fair share of the profits.</p><p> Writersfor reality shows like "America's Next Top Model" (and yes, "reality"shows do have writers) want to be part of the WGA and Hollywood isfighting them tooth and nail.</p><p> They want to work reality show writers tothe bone and give them a pittance in money and recognition comparedto what writers on sitcoms and dramas make.</p><p> Since reality shows arelinchpins of network tv now, trying to pretend they're still cheapo fillerfor the summer and that writers don't really deserve the samecompensaiton as their counterparts in other genres doesn't wash.</p><p> Also,networks expect the talent behind every TV show to produce weeklypodcasts and videocasts, audio commentary to be placed online, shortoriginal webisodes for cell phones and countless other add-ons -- all forfree and all without them ever seeing a penny of profits no matter howwell these add-ons do.</p><p> And of course the studios are desperate to keepthe honey pot of DVD profits away from all but the most powerful.That's why DVD sales figures are so hard to come by -- studios areworried that the more attention paid to the fact that they make twice asmuch on DVD as they do at the box office, the more likely actors are todemand a cut.POSTED BY MICHAEL IN NEW YORK AT 1:11 PM 0 C O M M E N T S :Post a CommentL I N K S T O T H I S P O S TCreate a LinkNext Blog»sal1mineo@hotmail.comSEARCH BLOG FLAG BLOGFOLLOW BLOGP O P S U R F I N G .</p><p> C O MS U R F I N G T H E WAV E S O F P O P U L A R C U LT U R EB Y M I C H A E L G I LT Z & F R I E N D SPOPSURFING.COM: Is Hollywood Getting Budget-Conscious?http://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2006/11/is-hollywood-getting-b... 1 of 37/28/09 3:29 PMFAV O R I T E L I N K SAmericablogFive O'Clock Lightning baseball blogDeep Pop -- Lori Lakin's BlogThe Back Page -- Jason Page on ESPNRadioCine-Blog -- George Robinson's BlogDocuments On Art & Cinema - DarylChin's BlogBrucie G's Wondrous Blog OfAdventure and Mystery -- BruceGreenspan's BlogB L O G A R C H I V E▼ 2009 (17)▼ July (3)1939 -- The Greatest Year ForMoviesSwimming Bans Those Hi-TechSuits!Best Movies Of The Year -- TheMaster List► June (3)► May (1)► March (2)► February (1)► January (7)► 2008 (86)► 2007 (781)► 2006 (2412)► 2005 (5)C O N T R I B U TO R SMichael in New YorkBiboyAaron POPSURFING.COM: Is Hollywood Getting Budget-Conscious?http://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2006/11/is-hollywood-getting-b... 2 of 37/28/09 3:29 PMPOPSURFING.COM: Is Hollywood Getting Budget-Conscious?http://popsurfing.blogspot.com/2006/11/is-hollywood-getting-b... 3 of 37/28/09 3:29 PM
