When Yılmaz Erdoğan's film Organize İşler: Sazan Sarmalı was included in the Netflix content network while it was still in theaters and the Netflix production made its mark on the Oscars of Rome, the filmmakers suddenly asked the question: Will Netflix bring the end of traditional cinema?
As the world changes, movie enjoyment changes rapidly. In other words, after waiting in long ticket queues and grabbing the best place, watching movies with huge popcorn in huge halls is now replaced by watching movies on digital platforms with pajamas and slippers. Does this tradition of watching a new generation of films, which the Hollywood film industry is not at all satisfied, really pose a threat to traditional cinemas? Let's look for the answer to this question together ...
How did Netflix get here?
Artwork by: Brecht Vandenbroucke
Although there are many digital film and television platforms that provide content on a local and global scale, Netflix, with 149 million members worldwide as of the end of 2018, does not lose its leadership in this field. In addition to the thousands of productions that it bought the copyright, Netflix Originals presented the audience with its own productions.
Netflix was originally founded in 1997 as a DVD rental company in the USA. The company, which offers users a choice of subscription packages according to type and likes, and delivering these packages to subscribers by mail, realized 1 billion DVD rental transactions in 10 years and surpassed its competitors in its field. 2007 was the year of the digital transformation movement for Netflix. This year, for the first time, it offered its subscribers content to watch on their personal computers. In 2010, iTunes and Wii platforms became accessible. In 2013, the House of Cards and Orange Is The New Black series, the first original productions of the platform, the platform is used today in more than 130 countries. Of course, behind this incredible rise is Netflix's ability to keep up with the digital transformation and innovations smoothly.
Common enemy: Netflix!
However, all this success and love of the user cannot prevent the producers of Hollywood and European films from hating Netflix. The latest Hollywood director Steven Spielberg argued that films of Netflix and other digital platforms should not be included in the Oscars, while the Cannes Film Festival board announced that they will not award Netflix-produced films. However, there was an astonishing counter-boycott and Netflix left the ceremony with the Golden Lion award with Rome by Alfonso Cuaron in Venice Film Festival instead of the Cannes Film Festival. However, the development of the tension between the traditional cinema community and Netflix increased when Rome got the Best Film in Golden Globe, then the Best Director, Best Cinematographer and Best Film in Foreign Language figurines in the 2019 Oscar Awards.
What awaits the film industry?
When Netflix signed 40 productions in the past year, both the cinema and conventional TV sectors had to make serious action plans. For example, while local television channels in Turkey establish their fee range of platforms, production companies is taking steps to establish a partnership with the Netflix original productions such as Hakan: Guardian / The Protector.
Although there is a serious dislike for Netflix and similar platforms on the producer and director front, the US-based National Cinema Hall Owners Association report reveals that these platforms encourage people to go to the cinema rather than undermine the industry. On the other hand, Netflix is said to be focusing on the purchase of Los Angeles-based Landmark Cinemas.
