The outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 was one of the most significant since the apparition of the Spanish Flu in the 1920s. But in a more globalized world, where the chances of spreading a disease via an airplane are much more likely since the number of flights at the beginning of the last century was almost nonexistent, One way or another, millions of new flights connecting almost the whole civilized world, hardly any human on Earth was able to avoid the new Sars-Cov-2 virus. One way or another, their lives were affected by this disease.
And of course, the film industry wasn’t immune to this either, with thousands of cancellations in terms of festivals, presentations, and, of course, a lot of problems on the film sets. Hundreds of films, including some high-budget behemoths, were forced to halt production or work with a slew of protocols in the midst of a pandemic, with the death toll from COVID-19 approaching one million in places like the United States (one of the world’s largest film producers).
In this context of uncertainty and cancellations, most of the festivals (including the Oscars) suffered greatly in a scenario where the restrictions and medical problems continued to rise. Also, the appearance of new variations of the disease complicated even further the possibility of setting the scenario for any kind of festival, concerts, or any kind of event that would congregate thousands in the same spot.
Even the famous and classic Cannes Festival was suspended due to the pandemic and forced to be postponed till 2021. This was a big hit, not only for the actors and those behind the cameras, but also for the film producers, who found themselves without one of the best markets for their films. This is due to the fact that Cannes was almost always used as a platform to sell new movies, ideas, and even present promising actors to directors or producers.
The downslope of the film industry
One of the main problems that the producers encountered were the inability to film in certain locations, the express restrictions on large groups of people, and, of course, the downfall of most economies and the violent collapse of most of the international markets. The first month of 2020 was the worst for the industry in a very long time, particularly for low-budget studios that were forced to abandon their projects, or in the worst cases, close their businesses.
But not everything was a tragedy for films and series. The fact that most of the world was quarantined was a good thing for producers that found an opportunity in this great crisis. The online audience for the streaming platforms Netflix, Amazon, and HBO was the highest in their history, marking new records in terms of audience.
This opened new doors for young directors and producers who found in this new audience a great market to present their products, like the famous series “The Squid Game”, which almost came out of nowhere and was an incredible hit. Also, The Mandalorian, created by Disney, used this increase in streaming traffic to their advantage, presenting a very polished product to a hungry audience that adopted it as their own almost immediately.
Also for Indie producers, the pandemic was a chance to shine with their own projects, most of them created with the help of stock footage and a mix of amateurish scenes, that ended in great (mainly short) films that shocked most audiences. This is because as the great Andréi Tarkovsky once said, “Cinema is a mosaic made with time”, meaning that if the director and the writer have a good idea, the film will be a success, no matter the budget or technical issues they might find along the way.
Online festivals
One of the main advantages of having the festivals in the online format is that millions of people could attend them without the repercussions of such a massive attendance in a COVID scenario. With the technology available today, most festivals could be held online without any problems, in particular those that need to play a movie for juries to decide. Of course, the awards could also be sent via mail and the recipients could deliver their speeches remotely.
Another advantage is the enormous reductions in terms of costs, since creating an online meeting, even for that many people, isn’t remotely as expensive as setting up a place to receive thousands of assistants. This allowed for many independent and low-budget festivals to exist, via the Internet, giving awards to those “indie” producers that, with a lot of effort and heart, were able to create some masterpieces even in the middle of a pandemic.
Of course, there are some downsides to these kinds of festivals, and that is the emotion and colour some of the most renowned award-giving festivals have. Like, for example, the Oscars and the red carpet, and, of course, the already mentioned Cannes, have a special magic and magnetism that invites most of the most renowned actors and directors to be there.
Eventually, the restrictions and problems associated with COVID-19 will be a part of the past since vaccination and other medical treatments are increasing in efficacy and soon this disease will be a part of normal life as many others are. However, there is a lesson to be learned from the pandemic, and that is one of the possibilities, particularly for Indies and young producers who saw this as a great opportunity to shine and create their own festivals. Perhaps in the near future, those creators will grow and open their own sector of the industry, as well as their own festivals, most likely online.
