Let me just get right to the meat and potatoes of this topic. The shift to subscription and cable services has drastically changed the business dynamic of film and TV. The old rules no longer apply. Seasoned and professional writers with impressive resumés are being cut loose. Producers and executives are being fired. Entire departments are being slashed to lower corporate costs.
All true.
Not scary.
That’s my first message to my dear writers. This is a cycle the industry has seen before. We tend to think of entertainment as a business that isn’t privy to the whims of outside forces. We treat Hollywood like it has magic and won’t fall or wobble or collapse. But it does. It’s a cyclical occurrence that happens less frequently because of international markets, digital forecasting, and knowledgeable execs who know how to adjust business plans as they read the statistical horizon. In other words, for the most part everyone does a pretty good job of doing their job.
But there are always X-factors.
The X-factors can create a confluence of crazy that hits our industry hard. Like it or not, we’re still in the aftermath of COVID. We haven’t fully recovered financially from a very deep hit that happened at an international level. Along with a national grief that we’re still recovering from, we’re dealing with an international financial marketplace that’s trying to reestablish itself. Unfortunately that is going to take time, because like the stock market, the entertainment market can have an emotional component. Even if the facts are positive, and they are, the population doesn’t “feel” the improvement of their circumstances. Even if there is more money in their bank account, or if they have a better job because employment is very strong, people still “feel” an uncertainty. It’s hard to speak facts to that deep fear.
So what do we do?
Be smart.
When the industry is uncertain, it’s always to the advantage of new people, new writers, new ideas. Hone your scripts. Create a TV series. Push a new idea that five years ago everyone would’ve said no to.
Write.
When the industry turns upward again, and it will, be ready to go. Have your scripts crafted, finalized, and ready to launch. The turnaround happens fast. Suddenly everyone is selling product and nobody remembers the recent bottom that seemed like a black hole sucking us into oblivion.
Stop wringing your hands and start typing.
When the green light flashes, be ready to step on the gas.
Write on.
L. VOORHEES