‘The Small Films That Stood Tall Against The Odyssey! Here Is Hollywood’s New Formula’

— Surya Prakash Josyula

A film does not need bad reviews to die at the box office. Many times, it does not even need a bad story. If a big film releases right next to it, that is enough. The small film automatically disappears from theaters. That is why when a big movie is coming to theaters, many small filmmakers think twice. They step aside. Only those who have not found release dates or theaters for a long time jump into theaters thinking, “At least we get a week’s gap.” This is the math that has been running in the film industry for years, not just in Telugu, but worldwide. But this time, that math went wrong.

The movie the whole world is talking about right now is Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’. Everyone is talking about the grand release of this film and the World Cup Finals competition against it. In times like this, with thousands of screens and record-level collections running, it is customary for small films to disappear without a trace from theaters. But that did not happen. That is why it became special.

A few small films that came quietly are capturing audiences, increasing a show every week, and standing strong at the box office. Hard to believe? What is the strategy Hollywood is following to save its small films?

Big Movie Came… Why Didn’t the Small Movie Die?

If you look at the latest US box office report (July 20), an interesting truth emerges. While ‘The Odyssey’ occupied theaters on one side, films like ‘Maddie’s Secret’, ‘Young Washington’, ‘Obsession’, and ‘The Invite’ did not stop their journey on the other side.

Some are in their 5th week, some in their 10th week… and others are just now increasing their screen count. This means that even when a big movie storm came, these small boats did not sink.

Just 84 Theaters… Yet $1 Million!

Magnolia Pictures’ ‘Maddie’s Secret’ is living proof of this trend. Directed by and starring John Early, this film is currently screening in just 84 theaters!

Even though it brought in only $80.5k this week, by the end of its 5th week, it achieved total collections of $1 million (approx. ₹8.3 crore). Even without thousands of screens, this was possible because the available 84 theaters were filled to maximum capacity. In Hollywood, this is called Screen Average strength.

‘Obsession’ Still in Top 10 in Its 10th Week

Another amazing wonder… Focus Features’ ‘Obsession’. Directed by Curry Barker, this small film started out as an independent effort. But with solid word-of-mouth, it has collected a massive $258 million (approx. ₹2,150 crore) worldwide so far.

Even in its 10th week of release, it stayed in the Top-10 chart by collecting $2.5 million across 1,500 screens this week. It proved that not just the first weekend, but a ‘long run’ can also change a film’s scale.

Sequel Announcement in Just the Third Week!

The historical film ‘Young Washington’, produced by Angel Studios, collected $3.7 million in its 3rd week from 2,200 centers, reaching total collections of $41 million. Seeing the collections achieved by this film starring William Franklyn-Miller as George Washington, the studio even announced a sequel titled ‘1776’.

Similarly, the comedy film ‘The Invite’, directed by Olivia Wilde, collected $3.9 million in its 4th week from 2,100 screens, touching the $15 million mark.

The Real Secret Is Here!

In Hollywood, they are not forcing a small film into 1,000 theaters on day one. They are planning the release strategically and moving forward.

Step 1: Initially in a few cities, just 5 or 10 theaters.

Step 2: Observing the screen average and audience response there.

Step 3: If the talk is good, expanding to 50… then 100… and only after that to 1,000 screens.

(For example, just this week, Oscilloscope’s ‘The Kidnapping of Arabella’ released in a single theater at NYC’s IFC Center, grossed $11k, and went housefull. They are increasing its screens starting next week. Similarly, ‘Reading Lolita in Tehran’ collected $24k, expanding to 100 theaters next week).

Hollywood now believes that what decides this entire journey is not crores of rupees spent on advertisements… but purely positive audience talk!

This Is ‘Specialty Box Office’

There is a special market ecosystem in Hollywood for these types of films. That is called Specialty Box Office. These are not mass films meant to entertain everyone. They are films made for a specific audience taste. The success of these films is not measured by first-day collections… it is measured by how long they stayed in theaters (Long Run).

What About Us?

In Telugu as well, many films like Jathi Ratnalu, Balagam, Committee Kurrollu, Court, and Baby stood as big successes with good talk. This means our audience is not rejecting small films. If there is a good story and narrative, they are definitely encouraging them.

However, the Indian market structure and American market structure are completely different. We cannot compare the two directly. But in our industry, there has long been a debate about the ‘hurried distribution’ system that decides a film’s fate in the first three days and pulls it out of theaters. It is a fact that many good films by new directors disappear from theaters before even reaching the audience.

Anyway

Hollywood’s Specialty Box Office reminded us of a truth once again this week: for a small film to win, a good story alone is not enough… it must also get the ‘time’ and ‘opportunity’ to reach the audience.

If given that opportunity… these small films are proving how box office numbers can change.

Now the same question stands before our Tollywood box office… do we not have an audience for small films? Or are those films not getting enough time to reach the audience?