China or Unions
California has the largest economy in the US. With $3.2 trillion GDP, it is ranked fifth largest in the world at the turn of the Millennia. In its heydays, Hollywood was behind California’s rise to the prominence, hence it also contributed more ways than one to the image of the superpower America. Since the second decade of the 21st century though, a new reality settled in this land of opportunity and progress. Reportedly, only ten of the top one hundred movies in the world are now being made in Hollywood. Movie making away from Hollywood had long become a modus operandi for some reason. Naturally, like in most everything, China received its share of blame in Hollywood woes. Yet, the underlying problem for the Hollywood elite, it was not it. It was Unions. Were Hollywood’s Peril: China or Unions, or yet something else?
Exodus from Hollywood
Ironically, exodus from Hollywood at the end of the century had been following a similar path like it did in the beginning. In the early 20th century, there was an exodus of movie makers from New Jersey.
That was how “Hollywood” came into being in the first place. In other words, movie makers left New Jersey during the Great Depression. They ran away, in particular, from Thomas Edison. He was making it impossible for them to operate there.
In Hollywood-California, are Unions now doing the same, like Edison did then? What about the economic woes of California? Maybe it is the culprit, not Unions! Nevertheless, movie makers, this time, are running away from Hollywood.
Only this time, they are also going overseas, away from the grand old USA. Sadly, they are no longer viewing America as a land of opportunity. Perhaps 1.5 trillion dollar state and local dept of California also present a bleak future for them.
Hollywood’s Peril: China or Unions
Is it fair solely to blame unions for this exodus? What about the share of blame for divided America. How about blaming Globalists that were part of this unfolding division and being at the helm in California at the same period of time?
Retrospectively, division in America and Globalism became part of the fabric in the early 1990s. Right around the same time, Hollywood also showed fatal deterioration in box offices.
Until then, the Hollywood movie industry and California were economically prospering. The economic growth of the superpower was also full steam ahead. Unions or China were not on the horizon. No one was pointing at them as evil.
Hollywood’s Peril: China or Unions or Maybe Neither
Globalists completely kept the reins in the US from 1992 to 2016. As a result, an exodus from Hollywood in epic terms ensued. China of course took the lead, opening arms to the migrating movie makers. Three Globalist US Administrations did their part to fuel the momentum to turn it into a lasting problem.
In a twenty-four years period, America first lost the high moral ground with Clinton. Then, Bush (43) divided America and the world between “us vs them.” Obama was the cherry on top of the cake. He finished Hollywood with a two percent stagnant economy and eight trillion dollar Obama Care burden.
Simply put, loss of morality in America made Hollywood lose half of its domestic audience. When the world was then divided between “us and them,” Hollywood this time lost half of the world’s audience. Finally, when the economy never grew three percent for eight years in a row, there was not enough domestic fluidity in the market to fund movies anymore.
Based on these simple facts, neither China nor Unions could be blamed, but the Globalist US Administrations. They failed and the ripple effect reflected as a big demise in the industry.
Hollywood’s Peril: China or Unions
Or Movies for the Globalists Only!
Before Bill Clinton in 1992, there was Jane Fonda and the likes in Hollywood in the 1960s with their movies. Neither was good for Hollywood. The left-leaning cadres in Hollywood, or the Globalists, simply took their toll over decades.
Nowadays, the majority of the world does not care much about Hollywood movies because of the choice of movies and narratives. Not much “Made in America”, in that sense, resonates anymore with billions of people on Planet Earth when it comes to Hollywood.
Subject matters are the number one problem of movies made in Hollywood. Not until the Hollywood elite admits the prevalent problem, Unions will remain their scapegoats. Considering there are Unions wherever movies are made on earth is one way to counter their argument.
The other is the fact that the rising East, led by China, has its own stories to tell and narratives to put forward. Plus, there are tons of other rising eastern powers small and large, along with their cultures and languages in play.
A Globalist Problem!
Considering Hollywood made a killing when Hollywood depicted the good life in America, the problem must be with Globalists. Ever since the 1960s, Globalists did not stop finding something wrong with good life in America. Eventually, the world at large had enough of American problems and stopped watching Hollywood made movies. That is one way to simplify the problem.
Otherwise, there has to be another reason why for example the Turkish TV series are very popular all over the planet. The social life or history or real life based drama series have been attracting ever-growing size of global audiences. People have been appreciating about new cultural perspectives. Plus, they were noticing that their socio-economic problems have similarities with others.
Hollywood that sold the good life in America never thought to open up to other cultures when it was decaying. Not that Hollywood needed to delve into other cultures but the rest of the world did not want to have anything to do with irrelevant Hollywood depictions of issues and events.
Looking down to other cultures, when one’s own culture is nothing to cherish for under Globalism, was a bad medicine. As a result, movie industry rapidly began growing elsewhere.
Eastern Nationalism
Filling Vacuum in Movie Making
Overall, China in 2020 has become the biggest movie making market in the world. It passed Hollywood for the first time. Of the 40 billion dollar global industry, Asia-Pacific led with about 17 billion dollars. Hollywood fell to 14 billion and the Middle East-Africa close third with about 11 billion dollars.
That in itself reflects how Hollywood hurt itself by becoming left-leaning pro-Globalist and anti-nationalist in the USA. All the while, India, Nigeria, China and Japan now make up the four biggest countries with movie industries. They are mainly promoting national values.
Based on these facts, it is easy to conclude. Hollywood simply moved away from nationalism to globalism and lost its shirt. First, it lost in domestic box offices. After that, overseas markets lost interest in “Made in America.”
China Took Over Hollywood
Not Because of Unions
In 2021, despite all these realities, America continues to live in the “La La Land!”
Reportedly in America, the number one reason why California is on the losing end of Hollywood, is Unions. If examined objectively, $15.00 an hour minimum wage is the least of all problems.
Unions may perhaps make it impossible to make movies in Hollywood but that could be for untold reasons. When it is mitigated, it becomes clear that autocratic rule in California is the root of the problem across the board past thirty years.
Democrats have trifecta autority in the Golden State since 1992 with an exception of a Republican Governor tenure. Plus, the lethargic nature of the state also contributes to the demise of the movie industry. Good weather and plenty of resources to enjoy, coupled with great Union benefits, there is not much incentive to work hard.
Nonetheless, it is useless to blame Unions at this stage. Instead, it is time to wake up and blame the Globalists or Globalism as an ideology that simply alienated half of America as a start.
Hence, Hollywood’s Peril: China or Unions are neither. It is rather a domestic American problem. It must be resolved internally. Blaming others, Unions or fast rising China like eastern powers do not stop the migration of movie makers to other “La La Lands.”
