The Economics of Movies: A Literature Survey

The film industry provides a myriad of interesting problems for economic contemplation. From the initial concept of an idea through production, distribution, and finally exhibition there are many aspects to the film project and the film industry that present new and interesting puzzles worthy of investigation. Add to this the high level of data availability, and it is little wonder that an increasing number of researchers are being attracted to this industry. To date, however, there are no comprehensive surveys on the contribution of economists to this literature. This article attempts to fill this void and unify what is known about this industry. It will also identify and discuss potential areas for new research. * This article is based on a lecture prepared for the European Science Days Summer School on ‘The Economics of Art and Culture’ July 2009. Author’s affiliation: Discipline of Economics, Merewether Building H04, University of Sydney, NSW, Australia, 2006. Corresponding email: [email protected]