User:Danieldevito/President of Domestic Distribution

Introduction to Domestic Distribution
Domestic Distribution is the process in which movies are placed, sold, and marketed to movie theatres. Although it sounds fairly simple, in actuality it is very complicated and involves complete cooperation between all departments of a specific movie studio. The departments within Domestic Distribution usually consist of departments such as; In-Theatre Marketing/Exhibitor Services, Non-Theatrical and Digital Exhibition, Print Control Operations and Branch Operations/Administration. The President of Domestic Distribution overseas and is in charge of all of the departments within domestic distribution. The president deals a lot with dating films, dealing with the press, crunching box office numbers, negotiating terms and deals with exhibitors, maintaining healthy relationships with exhibitors, as well as managing all the sub-departments within Domestic Distribution. The following diagram represents the management breakdown starting with the President of Domestic Distribution atop.

Description of Departments the President of Domestic Distribution Manages:

In-Theatre Marketing
In-Theatre Marketing groups are responsible for getting all the marketing materials into and out of the theatres, making sure films are properly represented (i.e. having enough marketing materials present in the theatres), trailer placement as well as coming up with unique marketing materials and items for the exhibitors. Exhibitors are the people that work for the movie circuits, for example, the following is a list of some exhibitors: Regal, AMC Entertainment, Cinemark, Cineplex, Muvico and Bow Tie Cinemas. It is important for each film to be properly marketed at each specific theatre throughout the United States. All marketing materials that you see in and around movie theatres come from this department. The marketing materials are ordered based on how many theatres the movie will be playing in and then distributed to each theatre accordingly. All of the day to day decisions within the In-Theatre Marketing have to be approved by the President of Domestic Distribution before any action is made.

Non-Theatrical and Digital Exhibition
The Non-Theatrical and Digital Exhibition department is responsible for all of a studio’s digital and 3-D deals and relationships. Since 3-D and Digital technology is the future of the industry, the President of Domestic distribution has to play close attention to this specific sub-department. The President is in charge of all digital and 3-D deals across the nation.

Print Control and Operations
The Print Control and Operations department is responsible for the management all of a studio’s prints. The print department decides how many prints will need to be produced for a motion-picture. The amount of locations the movie has been sold to dictates the quantity of prints ordered and prepared. The print department also must decide how many prints the studio will hold on to after a release has come off screen and is no longer needed. The studio always holds on to a few prints in case a special screening is requested. The print department is also in charge of the basic logistics of how to get a print from theatre to theatre, as well as any special screening requests and security of the print.

Branch Operations/ Administration
The Branch Operations/Administration department is responsible for collecting and keeping track of how much a film grosses on a day to day basis. The Branch Operations and Administration department is able to estimate what a title will likely gross on an opening weekend and are also able to estimate what other studios’ pictures will gross daily. Once a picture has run its course the theatres are contractually obligated to pay a certain percentage back to the studio. This percentage is pre-negotiated by the Senior Vice Presidents and President of Domestic Distribution and each percentage differs from exhibitor to exhibitor and picture to picture.

Job Qualifications
A president of Domestic Distribution must have at least a college education. According to the President of Domestic Distribution at 20th Century Fox, “A few decades ago, one could climb the rungs of a movie studio, as did I, with just a college education, however in today’s more competitive world; a graduate degree may be absolutely necessary if someone wants to hold a position like mine.” Someone looking to one day be a President of Distribution should try to concentrate on receiving a secondary degree either in Law or Business.

Typical Salaries and Benefits
Salaries and benefits vary from studio to studio. Smaller studios will more likely pay less than an industry leading studio. Another major factor dictating salary is the amount of time an employee has held the position. A president can make anywhere from a few hundred thousand to millions depending on a wide array of variables.