The Audiovisual Business: An Introduction

Abstract

Cinema, television and today’s new media have been variously defined as industrial arts, forms of mass communication and cultural or creative industries. The creation of fictional audiovisual content, or ‘cultural entertainment’ (movies, TV series or video-games), should be contemplated from a three-dimensional perspective: art, communication, business. Any motion picture should be both profitable and a socially enriching work of art. Attaining this combination becomes more complex when government decides to get involved, in terms of content and/or economic regulation. Apart from that, this chapter offers a brief historical summary of the evolution of the audiovisual industry from its inception to the current moment.