Replacing old cinema with the new (1)
I have an idea: why don’t we just abandon the Philippine film industry, as it exists now, and grow something else more vibrant in its stead? Something that’s been sprouting from the mudholes and gutters of the desolate Philippine cultural landscape anyway?
I’m not exactly an avid movie buff. But on my way to Manila and back the next day, with nothing else to do on the road but read two newspapers and watch the onboard video, I realized that the local film industry is being choked to death by forces beyond its control. Scrutinize the newspapers’ movie skeds, take stock of what video stores sell, and you’ll realize the same thing.
According to an article by Jude O. Marfil in the Aug. 25, 2004 issue of Manila Standard, the number of locally produced films steadily dropped from 164 in 1996 to 80 films in 2003. Film industry leader Esperidion Laxa said the industry may not exceed 60 films this year.
Yes, some films still enjoy top-grosser box office success, such as those shown during the Metro Manila Film Festival, but they are too few and far in-between to turn the tide.
First, local films are being swamped by foreign films, which are coming in like crazy due to the liberalized import policies imposed by GATT-WTO. Local films cannot compete based on the Western standards and expectations, which are set by Hollywood and ingrained among wider sections of the local audience.
Second, film production costs have shot sky-high, now ranging from P5 million to P20 million per full-length movie. This is not to include very costly digital effects (estimated at P2 million per minute), which some producers consider as de rigeur if local films were to compete with Hollywood.
And third, the industry is burdened by exorbitant taxes. Supposing that the cost of a theater ticket is P50. About P24 or P25 of that are divided between theater owners and producers. The rest goes to taxes: a 30% amusement tax, a 35% corporate income tax, miscellaneous VAT’s, a 5% withholding tax, and an MTRCB fee of P8,500 per film.
The amusement tax (which goes to local governments) is particularly onerous, considering that it is the highest among Asian countries. In comparison, Japan charges only 5%, Taiwan 7.62%, South Korea 6.5%, and Singapore 3%; Hong Kong and Thailand do not charge amusement taxes at all.
First, the worsening economic crisis is forcing local moviegoers to change their habits. A big percentage of them no longer go to the movies as frequently as before, but content themselves with daily TV fare. Those who can afford rent or buy VCDs, now available on the streets at varying qualities, and at prices less than that of a movie ticket.
In this regard, the local film industry has failed to adapt to the digital revolution. Nowadays, a high-school kid using a PC with a CD-RW drive could recopy a VCD in less than 20 minutes, at the cost of P15 or less. In short, digital video is changing the basic rules of the game.
The industry should have viewed the CD pirates as its allies in redefining the economics of film-making and distribution. But instead, it unleashed the likes of Bong Revilla, Edu Manzano, and the CD-crushing bulldozers of MTRCB. The CD pirates’ operations simply became more sophisticated.
Second (and this is the hardest lesson for movie folk to swallow): The local film industry has long thrived on a defective structure, which employed highly-priced stars and formula stories (read: crap) to ensure box-office success. Those days are gone.
Now that TV networks can offer more glitz with the help of big advertisers, local film producers are left with few options, such as churning out fantasy films for the annual MMFF or sleazy sex films for provincial runs.
In short, the Filipino film industry is being killed by our flawed economy and its own internal defects. # (Next week: Evolving the new cinema)
From Northern Dispatch Weekly, Aug. 29, 2004
I’m not exactly an avid movie buff. But on my way to Manila and back the next day, with nothing else to do on the road but read two newspapers and watch the onboard video, I realized that the local film industry is being choked to death by forces beyond its control. Scrutinize the newspapers’ movie skeds, take stock of what video stores sell, and you’ll realize the same thing.
According to an article by Jude O. Marfil in the Aug. 25, 2004 issue of Manila Standard, the number of locally produced films steadily dropped from 164 in 1996 to 80 films in 2003. Film industry leader Esperidion Laxa said the industry may not exceed 60 films this year.
Yes, some films still enjoy top-grosser box office success, such as those shown during the Metro Manila Film Festival, but they are too few and far in-between to turn the tide.
###
As I read the Manila Standard article, the reasons for the local film industry’s impending collapse clicked into place.First, local films are being swamped by foreign films, which are coming in like crazy due to the liberalized import policies imposed by GATT-WTO. Local films cannot compete based on the Western standards and expectations, which are set by Hollywood and ingrained among wider sections of the local audience.
Second, film production costs have shot sky-high, now ranging from P5 million to P20 million per full-length movie. This is not to include very costly digital effects (estimated at P2 million per minute), which some producers consider as de rigeur if local films were to compete with Hollywood.
And third, the industry is burdened by exorbitant taxes. Supposing that the cost of a theater ticket is P50. About P24 or P25 of that are divided between theater owners and producers. The rest goes to taxes: a 30% amusement tax, a 35% corporate income tax, miscellaneous VAT’s, a 5% withholding tax, and an MTRCB fee of P8,500 per film.
The amusement tax (which goes to local governments) is particularly onerous, considering that it is the highest among Asian countries. In comparison, Japan charges only 5%, Taiwan 7.62%, South Korea 6.5%, and Singapore 3%; Hong Kong and Thailand do not charge amusement taxes at all.
###
The article implied without stating at least two more reasons for the malaise of Filipino cinema. So I’ll include them here:First, the worsening economic crisis is forcing local moviegoers to change their habits. A big percentage of them no longer go to the movies as frequently as before, but content themselves with daily TV fare. Those who can afford rent or buy VCDs, now available on the streets at varying qualities, and at prices less than that of a movie ticket.
In this regard, the local film industry has failed to adapt to the digital revolution. Nowadays, a high-school kid using a PC with a CD-RW drive could recopy a VCD in less than 20 minutes, at the cost of P15 or less. In short, digital video is changing the basic rules of the game.
The industry should have viewed the CD pirates as its allies in redefining the economics of film-making and distribution. But instead, it unleashed the likes of Bong Revilla, Edu Manzano, and the CD-crushing bulldozers of MTRCB. The CD pirates’ operations simply became more sophisticated.
Second (and this is the hardest lesson for movie folk to swallow): The local film industry has long thrived on a defective structure, which employed highly-priced stars and formula stories (read: crap) to ensure box-office success. Those days are gone.
Now that TV networks can offer more glitz with the help of big advertisers, local film producers are left with few options, such as churning out fantasy films for the annual MMFF or sleazy sex films for provincial runs.
In short, the Filipino film industry is being killed by our flawed economy and its own internal defects. # (Next week: Evolving the new cinema)
From Northern Dispatch Weekly, Aug. 29, 2004
posted by moonriver at 11:31 AM
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