China's movie post-production companies feel the pinch

May 19, 2021
How one visual effects and animation firm that services Hollywood and China productions is weathering the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dachang Movie Town near Beijing is where reality shows and feature films are shot.
Jennifer Pak/Marketplace

As China's movie theaters return to normal, domestic releases top box office

Mar 1, 2021
The top four films this week are all domestic Chinese films. In the past, at least one of those would be from Hollywood.
"Hi Mom," a sentimental comedy, has rapidly become one of the most popular films of all time in China.
Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images

How the Spanish flu contributed to the rise of Hollywood

Nov 19, 2020
The 1918 pandemic helped shift the film industry’s center of power. Could the coronavirus pandemic do the same?
A scene from the 1923 film "The Ten Commandments," one of the films that helped establish Southern California as the center of the film industry in the years following the pandemic of 1918.
Topical Press Agency/Getty Images

Weak box office is scaring Hollywood into delaying theater releases

Sep 16, 2020
With the release of "Tenet," Hollywood hoped to prove Americans were eager to fill seats in cinemas. Nope. Now what?
Moviegoers watch a film at a reopened AMC theater in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, in August. While theaters are reopening, dragging box office numbers are spooking studios.
Tom Cooper/Getty Images

Taiwan is "disturbingly normal," but not immune to pandemic

May 8, 2020
Many businesses remain open, but the island and its economy are not untouched by the global COVID-19 crisis.
People divided by plastic partitions, amid concerns of COVID-19, eat their food at Q Square in Xindian district, New Taipei City.
Sam Yeh/AFP via Getty Images

What will Hollywood look like when it finally reopens?

Apr 28, 2020
Set staff may be tested regularly for COVID-19, and studios are reportedly thinking of limiting the use of extras.
The Walt Disney Studios in Los Angeles halted production April 8.
Amy Sussman/Getty Images

SXSW films to stream on Amazon without a paywall

Apr 27, 2020
For some filmmakers, the exposure could be a boon. But there may be financial downsides.
The SXSW film festival marquee in 2016. This year, the festival goes virtual.
Mike Windle/Getty Images for SXSW

For public good, not for profit.

How Hollywood is using AI predictions in business decisions

Jan 21, 2020
Although the algorithms can crunch numbers and other data, they can't quite crack creativity.
Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

Why has it taken so long for the Oscars to embrace stunts?

Sep 3, 2019
After a century of thrilling movie audiences, will stunt workers be recognized?
Quentin Tarantino, Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt attend the screening of "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" during the 72nd Cannes Film Festival.
Andreas Rentz/Getty Images

Actress Fan Bingbing's disappearance is tied to tax fraud and a slowing Chinese economy

Apr 10, 2019
It was a scandal last year when one of the world's biggest movie stars vanished from the public eye for months.
Chinese actress Fan Bingbing arrives on for the screening of “L'Amant Double” at the Cannes Film Festival in southern France in 2017.
LOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images