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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Valley Studios Bring Strong Summer Film Slate

Another summer movie season has started and that means multiplexes filled with tentpole superhero movies, sequels and reboots. Oh, and the odd one-off original movie here and there. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst in the Sherman Oaks office of comScore, said that while not expected to reach the box office heights of last year with its $4.5 billion in domestic receipts, the next four months will still prove valuable. “I think we will be surprised how well the collective slate does this summer,” Dergarabedian said. The summer movie season – from the first weekend in May through Labor Day – accounts for about 40 percent of the domestic box office. This year 52 films will be released during that span. On paper, analysts are not as high on this summer’s slate as a year ago, with such blockbusters as “The Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Jurassic World” “Minions” and “Inside Out,” all of which brought in $300 million or more in the U.S. alone. “Jurassic World” ended up with the No. 4 all-time domestic box office take. While this summer does not have the equivalent of “Jurassic World,” it does get out of the gate strong with “Captain America: Civil War.” Upcoming months will see “Finding Dory,” from Pixar, “The Angry Birds Movie,” and the Memorial Day weekend double bill of “Alice Through the Looking Glass” and “X-Men: Apocalypse,” which will play to different audiences. Even small films, such as sequels “The Conjuring 2” and “Now You See Me 2,” while not bringing in the big box office of a superhero movie, have their place in the bigger picture, Dergarabedian said. “Every film that contributes can help the bottom line,” he added. What makes this year different from last is that the summer season will end much stronger, Dergarabedian continued. By last August, the studios began to run out of gas and certainly had shot their bolt by Labor Day. Seeing the success that Burbank’s Walt Disney Co. had two years ago with “Guardians of the Galaxy” in August, Warner Bros. Entertainment has its superhero flick “Suicide Squad” hitting theaters Aug. 5. The week prior will see the return of Matt Damon as “Jason Bourne” and the third “Star Trek” movie. “If it delivers on the promise of the trailer, I think people are going to be excited,” Dergarabedian said of “Suicide Squad.” Crew Recruits Cast & Crew Entertainment Services made some additions to its executive team this month. The Burbank payroll and production management services firm appointed David Benavente as the new vice president of strategic sales and promoted Durressa Powers to vice president of payroll operations. Benavente is a long-time industry veteran who worked for 22 years at Warner Bros. Entertainment and most recently served as director of business development at Tax Credit Co., in Los Angeles, where he handled implementation of the California Enterprise Zone Tax Credit Program. At Cast & Crew, Benavente will oversee independent television sales and the financial services division, one of the company’s core services focused on production incentive financing, administrative services and consulting. “Cast & Crew is the best in the business,” Benavente said in a prepared statement. “It is a truly innovative company that is effectively emphasizing new-product development while continuing to deliver the highest level of client services.” Powers joined Cast & Crew in 2014 with a knowledge of unions and guilds, as well as federal and state regulations. As vice president of payroll operations she will oversee the payroll-processing department, client onboarding team, account management and specialized staff of payroll coordinators. Startup PR Corporate communications veteran Sue Fleishman has been named head of communications at Amblin Partners. She will head up external and internal communications for the Universal City production company and report to Chief Executive Michael Wright and Co-Chief Executive Jeff Small. Fleishman had previously worked in corporate communications at Warner Bros. Entertainment, in Burbank, and Universal Studios. She most recently was founder of September Media, a corporate communications and public affairs consulting firm. She called joining Amblin a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. “It’s exciting and rewarding to become part of a highly regarded team,” she said in a statement. Amblin Partners was founded in December by director Steven Spielberg and three partners to release feature films and television programming. Staff Reporter Mark R. Madler can be reached at (818) 316-3126 or [email protected].

Mark Madler
Mark Madler
Mark R. Madler covers aviation & aerospace, manufacturing, technology, automotive & transportation, media & entertainment and the Antelope Valley. He joined the company in February 2006. Madler previously worked as a reporter for the Burbank Leader. Before that, he was a reporter for the City News Bureau of Chicago and several daily newspapers in the suburban Chicago area. He has a bachelor’s of science degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

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