Whether it was a sci-fi thriller taking place on a made-up, alien planet, or a romantic
comedy, feature-length Hollywood movies are widely known to have a budget of several tens
of millions of dollars.
Sure, big-name actors and special effects can be expensive, but that’s not all that
movies need, so why do movies cost so much to make?
It is common trivia knowledge that, while James Cameron’s Titanic, often cited as
the most expensive movie ever made, cost around $200 million, while the actual RMS Titanic
cost $300 million in 2017 dollars, this isn’t to say that they might as well have rebuilt
the real ship.
There are numerous costs and fees to making a movie.
For the sake of explanation, I will not be adding up each individual cost, like in Wendover
Productions’ video on why flying is so expensive, but I will be bringing up some major things
that professional blockbuster movies often have that jacks up the price.
(Oh, and to be perfectly clear, I am not a director, cinematographer, accountant, or
anything like that, and have yet to set foot on an actual movie set, so just a quick disclaimer).
Arguably the most important part of a live-action movie is the camera, and some cinematic cameras
can cost up to tens of thousands of dollars.
Some sources say that an IMAX camera, for example, can cost $12-16,000 per week of rental,
and movies aren’t KhAnubis Productions videos, in that they could never be filmed in a week.
Next up is the set, which can either be built in a studio, or shot in real life, either
one will probably require some extra CGI to tie everything together.
Of course, each method of set design has its own cost requirements.
For filming on location, there are obvious costs in transporting all the crew and equipment
(which we’ll get into later on) or in hiring new crew and renting new equipment, as well
as with filming permits for certain areas.
That is, of course, unless you’re in this area around the Los Angeles area, the so-called
studio area, which is why this rock formation is so well known from science fiction.
If those rocks were on the other side of the line, they probably wouldn’t be too well
known, as it wouldn’t be cost effective to film there.
Obviously, sets also have their own costs, notably construction and rental, even if it
is just a bunch of harnesses and green screens.
Another big cost is people, which is a big one, considering how long productions may
take.
Of course, you need actors, producers and directors, but you also need set designers,
light and sound experts, stunt doubles, cinematographers, electricians to power all that gear, editors,
extras, costume designers, art directors, and this isn’t even mentioning how movies
generally tend to have their own soundtracks, often by big-name musicians like Hans Zimmer
or Michael Giacchino.
This is, of course, a lot of people, and they need to be paid for the entire time they’re
there, since the movie is basically a temporary job for a lot of them.
Of course, big-name also means big-pay, like a couple million big pay.
Oh, and you also need to provide things like trailers, food and transport and the like.
What about animated movies, though?
Surely they don’t need a full cast… oh, right, voice actors.
While animated movies may not need cinematographers and set constructions, they do still need
designers, animators, voice actors, and all the components that go into making the story
itself.
You can’t have a story without a… story.
Animated movies aren’t any cheaper than live action movies, in fact, if we cherry-pick
two random examples, The Martian had a budget of $108 million, while How to Train Your Dragon
had a budget of $165 million.
Of course, animated movies are entirely CGI, so there’s that.
There is also one more component that comes out just before and just after a movie’s
release, that you may or may not have previously considered, marketing.
Movies, in order to be successful enough to make a profit in theaters and sales, need
to put word out of the movie’s release, which often means major ad campaigns.
This can be anything from commercials, to cross-promos, to billboards, to metro seat
displays that look absolutely terrifying out of context.
So that’s basically what you may need to take into account.
Once again, I am really nothing more than someone who has been pondering the answer
themselves, so I have linked a couple helpful videos in the description below.
Thanks for watching, and I’ll finally see you next Sunday.