Showrunners on the State of Television at Arts Summit: “Streaming Was a Drug and Now TV Is in Rehab”

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At the inaugural National Arts Advocacy Summit held in Las Vegas on February 13th, The Creative Coalition organized a collection of discussions involving key figures from Fortune 500 companies, government officials, entertainers, artists, and entertainment executives to discuss ongoing issues within their field. During one such discussion titled “The Business of Art,” moderated by Harry Hamlin, influential television showrunners and producers Bill Prady (of The Big Bang Theory), Jessica Sharzer (American Horror Story) and Gloria Calderón Kellett (One Day at a Time) were asked about the transformation in content consumption habits due to the emergence of streaming platforms: “Given the significant shift in how people consume content, how has this change affected your approach when developing and pitching shows?

Sharzer acknowledged the challenging circumstances, implying that the streaming industry has encountered severe structural issues due to flaws in its business model. “The streaming ‘bubble’ has popped,” she explained. “It wasn’t a viable business strategy, particularly without advertising. Now we’re seeing more ads, and it’s becoming increasingly difficult to market [shows].” She added, “The majority of these companies are vertically integrated under large corporations. It isn’t a prosperous period for television.

Prady commented that the idea behind streaming, “the belief that businesses would spend millions for just 12 episodes of something with no resale value, no potential profit beyond the initial sale,” was one of the most excessively optimistic moves made by an industry in history. “It’s like buying peaches for a penny and selling them for half a penny, thinking it will be profitable.

Expressing disappointment that due to the structure of vertical integration and the need for justification within corporations, there are fewer figures like Jack Warner who would say, “I like this project. Go ahead and produce it.” Instead, everyone is hesitant to approve projects, leading decisions to lean towards established intellectual properties. Prady suggests that this is the incorrect interpretation. The success of Game of Thrones was due to its uniqueness, not its similarity to other shows. Therefore, the lesson should be to create more unique content, but instead, Hollywood tends to produce more versions of shows like Game of Thrones. As content creators, it’s very disheartening.

Kellett advocates reviving old-fashioned one-sponsor TV shows, like “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour,” which was sponsored by Ford, and has been collaborating with line producers and financial experts to simplify costs. In essence, she explained her approach as follows: “This is the setup I require. This is how many scriptwriters I need. This is what it will look like. We can complete this project in these number of days using these sets. This is the budget we’re working with.

As a gamer, I’m concerned that the creators might rely solely on automated systems for script revisions during production and post-production, neglecting to compensate human writers fairly. This could lead to us missing out on valuable on-set training and guidance in the editing room, which are crucial for honing our skills.

Hamlin questioned the gathering about the artistic nature of television: Once known as the “writers’ medium,” with algorithms now dictating content production, is it still possible to create art? As Prady explains, “You may have friends who had a series picked up by streaming services, only to be informed that we won’t proceed because our recommendation algorithm doesn’t link your show to an existing one.

The conversation concluded with everyone reflecting on a recurring statement: “At what point does captivating narration cross over into merely creating something excessively engrossing?

As a show creator, I can attest that crafting an addictive TV series isn’t a matter of choice; it’s about striking the right chord with the audience. You hope your creation will spark interest and ignite a passionate following. However, predicting what will truly catch on is tricky due to the widespread skepticism surrounding the factor that drives success. Currently, television is heavily influenced by movie stars, making it challenging to secure their commitment for anything beyond a limited series. And let’s face it, nobody wants to invest in creating limited series.

Kellett expresses concern over a cultural change, as his kids binged-watched “Friends” in just three months, which equates to a decade of his own viewing time. He feels that our current situation is partly due to television shows being easily consumed in large quantities at once, rather than spread out over days or weeks as they used to be. In the past, viewers would discuss and ponder the show between episodes, but with streaming services like NBC, “Friends” was kept on constant rotation, eventually becoming a cultural sensation. Nowadays, there’s simply not enough time for such extended consideration.

Wrapping things up, Prady summarized: “Streaming became an addiction, television overindulged, and now television is recovering in rehab. It will take some time, and for now, viewers are going back to the traditional television shows they enjoyed, watching programs that were good and showing patience. [We should] return to the idea of people in power positions choosing shows based on their personal preference rather than the ability to sell an intellectual property. Television needs to remember it’s a form of commercial art – but it’s also an art form.

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2025-02-15 03:54