Who's the leader of the club...
...that's made for you and me?
Well, it's sure not Michael Eisner anymore.
Eisner has severed all ties with Disney as of today, stepping down from the board of directors. And all I can say is, "it's about time".
In recent years under Eisner, Disney Feature Animation has been an oppressive, depressive environment akin to a terminal patient ward at a hospital. People who had been loyal to Disney for years just couldn't bring themselves to re-sign their contracts, because of the appalling mismanagement (if not outright mistreatment) of the artists there, and subsequently the degeneration of the films and the studio as a whole. Those who remain at Disney almost universally speak of a feeling of dread that hangs over the studio. It's the talk of the industry. Everyone, at every studio, knows the situation there, and laments the degree to which it's deteriorated.
Disney used to be the touchstone for the animation industry. Even when the rest of the industry was in the dumps, Disney could be counted on as a "safe" place. But then the bottom fell out. Films began to underperform (and outright fail) at the box office. The Florida studio was shut down. More than half of the Burbank studio was laid off, and those that remained faced huge pay cuts. Contract terms were shortened. Long-time employees were let go. Traditional animation was abandoned in favor of CGI, and animators who wanted to stay had to re-train in the new medium.
I've known many people who've worked at Disney over the years, and in the last several years Disney has been bleeding talent. Pixar, Sony, Dreamworks and others have been the fortunate recipients of many talented people who couldn't take it anymore, and have headed for greener pastures.
Now, I should point out that there still are many very talented people at Disney. Many of them have hung on, hoping that the situation would change. Now, hopefully, it can.
This is Disney's opportunity to fix things. To put the artists back in charge of the art. To get the suits and MBAs out of the creative loop, where they've had no business being in the first place. There was no good reason for Disney to fail. The talent was there. The creativity was there. The leadership was the problem. The art of became secondary to "the business".
Disney used to be an animation studio of artists, by artists. This is precisely why Pixar works. Artists make the decisions. They shape the films. They aren't told what to do by executives with marketing research data. They don't have to make a film to fit a target demographic. They just make good stories with great characters. Marketing takes care of itself after the fact.
That's how animation should be, and when it's done that way, it works.
Hopefully, Bob Iger, the new CEO of Disney, has figured this out.
Rumor has it, that Iger has been in talks with Steve Jobs, Pixar's CEO, about renewing their contract.
If Iger is the right CEO for Disney, look for that announcement to be made soon. There are several reasons for this:
- Disney stands to make a lot of money from Pixar films, even it it's only distribution rights and a percentage of home video and merchandising.
- Steve Jobs hates Michael Eisner, and would almost sign a deal with Disney now just to spite him.
- Disney needs Pixar films, since their own animated features have been performing abysmally at the box office. Disney needs marketable characters. Name one character from "Treasure Planet" or "Home on the Range". Now name one from "The Incredibles".
- Pixar could sign with anyone else, but haven't. They've been waiting for Eisner to leave, because the Disney marketing machine is still the best one out there. While Pixar could start over with another distributor, it makes the most sense to hold out for a better deal with Disney.
- There has been tremendous pressure from Disney shareholders to renew the Pixar deal. If Iger doesn't do it, he won't be CEO very long (and you can bet his contract incentives won't happen).
If they do reach an agreement, I expect it to go something like this:
- Ownership and/or control existing of Pixar-created films and characters are turned over to Pixar.
- Future revenues from existing Pixar films belong (or mostly belong) to Pixar.
- Disney retains theatrical and video distribution rights, along with some merchandising and licensing (theme parks and related products).
- Work on Disney sequels to Pixar films ceases production (or are taken over by Pixar, if there's anything salvageable). Currently Toy Story 3 is in pre-production. If a deal is signed, I don't believe the film as it currently exists will see the light of day. It's rumored to have had some major production problems, including finding anyone willing to direct it (although I think someone may be on board for that now).
And here's a long shot (although I think it's Disney's best option):
- Disney Feature Animation is taken over and run by Pixar, to make films for Disney as "Pixar Animation Studios, Burbank". Pixar's current studio would continue operating as-is.
The Burbank studio would be funded by Disney, located at Disney, making films exclusively for Disney, but Pixar would be running the productions and making the decisions.
This ties in with Pixar's desire to expand and make more films, and Disney's move to CGI-only animation. If Disney and Pixar re-sign a deal, there's no reason not to combine the studios.
Whether this happens or not is, again, a long shot. But I think Steve Jobs would go for it in an instant (what better way to satiate his ego and hatred of Eisner at the same time?), and Disney would instantly regain respectability in the animation industry and Hollywood, by having the top animation studio in the country supervising their creative efforts.
Now, this isn't to say Pixar isn't without problems - most of which involve a lack of competitive salaries. But a lot of that has to do with the obscene cost of living where Pixar's current studio is located (Emeryville), and a lack of major competition in that area. A Burbank-based Pixar would have to pay more competitive wages to keep people from going to Sony or Dreamworks, but that's what Disney's end of the partnership would be responsible for. (Truth be told, if Pixar opened up a studio in Burbank, they'd probably have to beat people away with a stick. It could even cut into the potential talent pool for their Emeryville studio, since the cost of living is so comparatively great up there. But I think that would be a minor issue in the long run.)
At the very least though, I believe we'll see a new Disney/Pixar distribution deal within days. Weeks at the outside.
Even if Iger decides not to re-sign with Pixar, hopefully he will at least learn from them. Or from Disney's own past. It's all there, right in front of him. Waiting. Hopefully, he'll see the light.
(As an interesting aside, when I was spell-checking this blog entry, the suggestion for correcting "Eisner" was "Ensnare".)
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