The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-01-03
THE HASKIN
The PEACE TREATY AND The MOVIES
BY ]. HASKIN.

held a virtual monopoly, which brought
them billions Of dollars. England
alone says one movie authority, has
been known to pay 100000 for n of
our big pictures, Thirty thousand dol
lars is a common price. The continent
is good for $50, 900 per picture. The to-
tai income of one concern for n year
during the war, when the European
trade was only half alive, was nearly
IS 900, 900"
80. you see, the American movie in
dustry was u~nprepared when the war
suddenly ended and the foreign eX-
change began to interfere with business.
The exchange situation makes American
film cost to the European something like
twice the money it used to-, The price
is prohibitive. Although. the foreign
public is as mad Tor amusement as
ever, and new picture houses are
springing up all over Europe, the Amer
lean product is now practically barred,
in some cases by government e1nbar,-
goes. Germany and Italy have both
placed strict embargoes on the lmporta-
ton Of American films.
Meantime the European moving pic
ture manufacturers are making haste TO
take advantage of this condition, work
ing hard to o the business they
lost during the war. Today England,
for the first time, is not only supplying
it's own dominions with films, but Is
shipping films to this country. Brit
ish producers are importing American
stars and American directors to work
in English studios, in some cases featur-
ing an American leading woman with a
British leading man, and vice versa.
London, which lost its hold upon the
expectation Of films to the British pos
sessions during the war, is now rapidly
regaining 1t.
No wonder the American producers
are sore at the senate. The situation IN
81 - .,a-fI L. fnIAnI nrtt1aol 'Anyu
do you suppose" n movie, produce
demanded the other day, as he nervous
" chewed a prodigious cigar, we are
going to continue to buy $4,000 stories
for our business; pay our artists ana dl-
| rectors tremendous salaries, and adver-
+ tise their pictures at ar enormous cost
without our European velvet? II cam
be done, unless-and here is what Is go
ing to happen-the production costs are
passed on to tie exhibitor.
Either we will have to lower the
standard of the pictures we are pro-
ducing, which will hurt the exhibitor
through a decreased patronage at his
theater. or we will have to charge high
or rentals for our films. The higher
rentals, in turn. will, OF course, pc
passed on the public in the form OF a
higher admission price
In considering this problem facing
the movie industry, the producers con-
tend, 1t must he borne in mind that pic
lures are different from other export
commodities. The closing of the foreign
market does not tend to glut the mar
ket on. this side, as might occur in the
case of foodstuffs or other manufac-
tured goods, thus reducing the price.
There will be no more pictures here
than there were before, because the
manufacturers will merely cease making
extra prints. But the cost of pictures,
whether the European market takes
them or not, remains the same. The
only alternative, therefore, will be to re-
duce the cost or to charge more for the
product.
1t is encouraging to note, however,
that the producers are not placidly &C
cepting present conditions without a
valiant struggle. Some of them have
moved their entire equipment, including
furniture as we'll as players and camera
men to Europe, where they can stage
the whole production in foreign money
and thereby escape the embarrassment
of exchange difficulties. Others are at
tempting to make an arrangement
whereby the foreign exhibitors shall pay
for American films in merchandise In
stead of money. Still others are ex-
tending long-term credits until the rate
of exchange comes back. But all are
united In working for what they believe
will be the solution Of all their tragic
difficulties-the ratification of the peace
treaty.