Trump and his tariff on movies
Trump announced the US would impose a 100% tariff on any and all movies produced in foreign lands because foreign productions are drawing US filmmakers out of the markets and bringing propaganda into the US.
Okay, first of all, there are many components to movie making from financing to screenwriting, casting, acting, sound, visual effects, and distribution. It would be difficult to define which movies are made in or outside the US especially when most of the work is digital.
Also, it isn’t clear what “movies produced in foreign lands” mean in his context. Would this impact American studios that make films outside the US with international crews? (e.g. James Bond movies) If so, the biggest victim will be American studios that choose to shoot films outside to reduce cost and/or access international markets. If the tariff is imposed than the increased cost will directly go into the ticket price that would hurt American studios and domestic moviegoers.
Adding to that, how would tariffs work for movies, which are not physical goods since streamlined services replaced DVDs? I suppose they could tax the ticket sales or license fees for foreign films but it would be very messy to execute.
The US is the world’s largest net exporter of movies and I am not sure its film industry has become the target for tariff. This new tariff will impact American business a lot more than it will damage other countries because the US doesn’t import foreign films that much anyway. This doesn’t have anything to do with bringing manufacturing back home.
The UK, Canada, and New Zealand will also suffer because their movie industries are deeply interconnected with Hollywood. But their partnership with the US is not a zero-sum competition. Most of the US’s major movie studios rely on these countries for cheaper workforce. The Lord of the Rings series wouldn’t have even existed if it had to be made locally.
Last but not least, does it mean that the US studios cannot no longer make films set in other countries?
I suppose the real intention is to push China and other countries with screen quotas but this will backfire severely. For sure, Disney and Netflix will push back hard.
Are you Americans?