I have issues with Dreamworks. Specifically their constant copying of Pixar. And their use of big movie stars instead of appropriate voice actors. Though Pixar has been heading in that direction as well.

It's called "cashing in the trends" phenomenon. Studios will always copy each other's movies if it's proven that those films can be huge hits.

DreamWorks is a completely separate company from DreamWorks Animation. DreamWorks deals with live action movies like Tropic Thunder and Revolutionary Road.

I'm actually really excited for the prospects of Disney picking up a contract with Dreamworks. While Pixar is the better animation studio, following the Disney story style, Dreamwoks carries the funny, mockery films that Disney has tried to develop. Disney could get their name on the best of both worlds!

yeah, if they join, Disney should totally up the ante for CGI animated movies. We'll see.

Disney would not be releasing any Dreamworks animation films, because they are still licensed to Paramount. Dreamworks Animation and Dreamsworks Pictures, even though share the same name are 2 different companies. Paramount has the rights to release Dreamworks Animation films till 2011. After that they have to renegotiate. It will be interesting if Disney does pick up Dreamworks Animation. That would mean Jeffrey Katzenberg is backing for Disney.

Interesting that nobody has any feelings on how this will effect Dreamworks live action films, the majority of their output.

I mean, I don't have strong feelings on the subject either.

Agree 100%. their animated output is the least interesting issue about this whole thing.

Fox..pttf.

I do have to say that I don't know how much pull Spielberg has with the company. I mean, I think he's more like the talking head while the board has the real power. And I think board and Steven aren't seeing eye to eye.

I dont know. DW extricated the Paramount deal a couple of months ago, and now Universal is backing out. I'm sure they're just too big-headed and asking too much from the distributors on the back of the Reliance production funding. I'm feeling for the (studio) distributors. They're considered as the parasites and the devils of the industry, but they're the ones taking the (financial) risks. That said, I hope DW will stay as far a way from FOX as possible.

Considering Dreamworks was created to go in direct competition with Disney (employing a number of Disney's old staff with ex Disney dude Katzenberg heading the studio), I'd find it somewhat... surreal if Disney handled their distribution.

Kind of like if Disney fired one of their animators and then 20 years later, that same man came back to become the Chief Creative Officer of all of Disney... but that would never happen.

cough *John Lasseter* cough

Steven Spielberg should be honored for his loyalty toward Universal. But its really clear that Universal has changed and not want to take a finical risk with some of the Dreamworks productions. I got a bad feeling when Tin Tin was not going to be produced with Universal. Im not sure how Spielberg felt having to go back to Paramount to ask them to co produce the movie. I would have felt embarrassed after the break up, and now going back to your old partner asking for help. Sometimes you can not go home again.

They should just do it like the old days and find a distributor on a per-picture basis. But it is a waste of money so I can understand the attraction of a blanket contract.

This is beginning of THE END of Hollywood folks. Don't believe me, do your homework. Paramount is on the verge of bankruptcy due to Viacom and Sumner Redstone, MGM is up for sale (again) with $3.6 billion in debt, Warner Bros. lay-offs, and DreamWorks and Disney will never have a successful relationship, especially when it'll come down to Jefferey Katzenberg vs. John Lassater. How is that going to ever work?

FX companies are shutting down, television advertising has gotten cheaper, but nobody's buying, DVD sales are down. The SAG strike/no-strike (mess) isn't helping things.

Even though SKG is a young company, let it be a lesson, that if the worlds most successful filmmaker (Spielberg) can't keep his studio afloat, what chance does the rest of Hollywood have? It's over, folks, Hollywood has come to an end.

Um... we're in a recession. Pretty much everything you've pointed out is an indication of that and while a lot of the smaller studio's will likely fall out of business, the larger ones like Warners or Paramount or Disney never will as long as they have assets to build upon or sell, and considering the back catalogue of movies they've already made works as their assets, they're pretty much set for life.

Yes, as far as the next few years will go, they'll cut back, make sacrifices and try to save money, but the big studios like that won't go out of business unless they start to have really terrible years (and even Fox, with a terrible 2008, will manage to keep its head above water).

So no, I doubt Hollywood has come to an end, it'll really take a lot more than a couple of studios going out of business and a few more making cutbacks in a time when literally every company in the western world is having to deal with such things, for a multi billion dollar industry to disappear. That's like saying we'll be left with no banks soon because a few of them have gone under.

That was extrmely dumb lol. You do know that studios like Sony Pictures, Warner Bros, Universal, and FOX are all owned by much larger multi media multi national conglomorate companies right? All of the major fim studios are owned by much larger companies and since the movie industry is the biggest of the entertainment industry and strives in times of economic downturn you must really be nuts to think Hollywood is coming to an end.

On the subject though I get the feeling that the big boys at Dreamworks may be pricks outside of Speilberg. Either way Spielberg will still have contact with Universal because of Amblin which is still his primary place since every movie he actually directs comes from Amblin production while only movies he produces come from Dreamworks. I really doubt they'd consider going to FOX so Disney or possibly Warner Bros would be the other main options.

Dreamworks have quite a few misses with the odd hit. Kung fu panda for instance...madagascar 2 for not

Re Spielberg. Let's say there's a new movie ideal for him to direct - would this best go tru Amblin - or Universal/Disney etc first?