MOTION PICTURES

Evening Star, Issue 22146, 28 September 1935, Page 21

MOTION PICTURES

OPERATIONS OF AMERICAN COMPANIES Sir Victor Wilson, the president of the Motion Picture Distributors’ Association, recently gave some interesting figures covering the operations of eight American film-producing companies for the financial year ended June 30, 1935. says the ‘ Sydney Morning Herald.’ The distributing companies concerned are. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Ltd., Paramount Film Service Ltd.. Fox Film Corporation (A’sia) Ltd, Warner Bros. First National Pictures Ltd., 8.K.0. Radio Pictures (A/sia) Ltd., United Artists (A/sia) Ltd., Universal Film Manufacturing Co. (A/sia) Ltd., and Columbia Pictures Pty. Ltd. The figures disclose some interesting facts; showing that the motion picture business is something of a trade barometer, the takings rising in good times and falling in periods of depression. Thus, for 1934-35, the gross Australian rentals amounted to £1,740,315, as against' £1,461,806 for the previous year. This year’s figure is the highest since 1930-3 i, when £1,858,075 was received, the rentals having dropped in that year from £2,162,109 in the peak year, 1929-30. “ Rentals ” means the amount paid bv the exhibitors to the distributors for the hire of films. The lowest year between 1929 and 1935 was 1932-33, with £1,361,381. , A feature of interest in the figures is the amount paid in Customs duty, primage, and so on. This amount was £315,043 for 1934-35 —the highest paid in the history of the industry In 1929-30, the peak year, the amount paid in duty was £309,180, apd in 1933-34 £301,563. , „ , Other outgoings included for the year just ended were Australian operating expenses (excluding salaries and taxation), £191,460; salaries paid in Australia, £225,231;, advertising posters purchased, in Australia, £71,497; as against £62,632 in the previous year. The net profits of the Australian companies, after deleting from Australian expenses and exchange on remittances overseas, were £138,597, against £83,328 in the preceding year, and £208,309 for 1929-30. The higher amount paid in taxation last year is said to be responsible for the proportionate loss of profit as compared with 1929-30. The amount available for remittances to producers and suppliers, before deducting exchange, American cost of production' of films and posters, and producers’ administrative costs,' etc., was, for 1934-35, £754,754, the amount in each pound of revenue which would have been received by the producers, assuming that their proportion had been remitted each month is 7s. This compares with 6s 5d in the previous year, with 5s in 1932-33, and with 9s 2d in 1929-30. The figures show that of £1,740,315 gross received for the rental of American films during the year, practically a million pounds was disbursed in Australia, over a third of it going to the Government. This statement deals only with the operations of the distributors of the films. In order to get an idea of the value of this industry as a moneycirculator, it would be necessary to take into account the activities of all exhibiting houses. Throughout the six States this figure would reach large proportions, and would show that a great deal of employment is given by the motion picture business. The eight distributing houses alone pay _ almost a quarter of a million annually in salaries. Summing up, said Sir Victor, this budget shows in round figures that the producer or manufacturer of the film gets a third of the gross takings, the other two-thirds being required to pay working expenses and taxation in, Australia.