THE FUTURE OF FILM & TV: Entertainment as We Know It? BY VANESSA NIRODE In 1977, as a 7-year-old, I saw “Star Wars” at a drive-in theater with my Mom and my three brothers. My older brother and I sat in awe, having shifted our way to the very edge of the front seat of our family’s 1975 Ford van. A janky speaker hung from the nearest window. The franchise’s original trilogy defined our childhoods. Streaming services, video-on-demand platforms and even naturally-occurring events have shifted the viewer experience so much since then. Waiting for a new episode of a favorite show to air at a specific time, on a specific date and on a specific channel is gone. People have grown used to watching an entire season of a series in one go: wherever, whenever. Major film and TV studios have jumped on the streaming bandwagon. But are they making money and is it a sustainable business model? The film industry alone has undergone an evolution in the past 100 years or so—and the current landscape may be cause for some of the biggest changes. Several experts weigh in on how and why.
16 | DIGITAL UNICORN Q4 2020
