Special Report: Content Distribution in the Streaming Age
Winter 2018

Special Report: Content Distribution in the Streaming Age


Illustrated by Greg Mably

Since the late 1950s, when the then-Big Three broadcast networks dominated the airwaves, the multichannel universe has evolved so dramatically, it's as if every facet of entertainment and news is available at our fingertips, whether operating a remote, a laptop or a smartphone.

Within that evolution are the various ways we now receive our programming, with streaming services helping break down the foundation of traditional television delivery as we know it.

In order to address this expanding TV universe, we at DGA Quarterly felt the need to lay it all out in a way that our Guild membership can see in clear terms how their content is reaching consumers. In this regard, Chris Morris gives a primer on the various platforms by which we receive that content in Primer on the Spectrum.

 

Then, Alex Weprin details the evolving streaming channel landscape, with various networks giving their consumers more and more customized options to receive premium content, in Widening the Stream.

 

And finally, in Who Controls Your Future, Andrew Keen considers how Big Tech is seeping into every aspect of our lives, giving rise to the dangers of a monopolistic paradigm in a society that is ever more reliant on the digital world to keep up with the times.

 

We sincerely hope this Special Report helps offer clarity and meaning to this brave new world.

—STEVE CHAGOLLAN

Given that in the new millennium, consumers access TV programming in myriad ways, we present a thorough rundown of how DGA members' content is delivered to viewers.
Following in the footsteps of Netflix, Amazon and Hulu, networks like CBS, AMC and FX are getting into the custom streaming game, with exclusive content a primary selling point.
With Big Tech becoming increasingly invasive on our economy and private lives, we look at how antitrust battles of the past are relevant to the present, and the consequences of a monopolistic world on entertainment.

Michael Apted

Michael Apted's deep documentary experience informs his quest for authenticity, and as the issue of creative rights loomed after Thunderheart, that awareness sparked a decades-long involvement in DGA leadership.
Director Lily Olszewski and her team keep the country's most-watched morning telecast churning ahead of a hyperactive news cycle.

Kenneth Branagh and Patrick Doyle

Three decades of kinship have allowed director Kenneth Branagh and composer Patrick Doyle to work in cultivated harmony, dating back beyond Branagh's first feature, 1989's Henry V.
The continuity of vision that a single-director approach can bring to a series is gaining steam—but it takes incredible stamina and resolve, according to directors Cary Fukunaga, Scott Frank, Pamela Adlon, Mary Harron.
Director James Burrows has been the sole director on Will and Grace from the very beginning, and continues to demonstrate on the reboot his ability to orchestrate with elegant economy.
As stage managers Gary Natoli, Garry Hood, John Esposito and Valdez Flagg navigate a set's innumerable moving parts, the clock is ticking and the pressure is on.

Guillermo del Toro

Guillermo del Toro shares his passion for John Frankenheimer's large-scale yet intimate WWII drama, The Train (1964).

Casino Royale

Martin Campbell's second Bond outing is action-packed, but a pivotal poker game between 007 and his arch nemesis gave the director pause.

Iñárritu's 'Lumiére Moment'

As his recent VR installation Carne y Arena demonstrates, Alejandro González Iñárritu immerses the viewer in the experience of illegal immigration from Mexico into the U.S., bringing empathy to a divisive issue.

Atlanta's Siren Song

With its wealth of experienced crews, physical looks and soundstage infrastructure, Georgia's capital is gaining stature as the production hub of the South.

Reed Morano’s Hat Trick

The DGA and Emmy Award winning cinematographer-turned-director fuses the painterly with the emotional on her third feature film.

Viewfinders for the Digital Age

The tool most commonly associated with directors has been given various makeovers in recent years, as demonstrated by the latest apps from Artemis and Cadrage.

Problem Solving

Directors Joseph Kosinski and Hany Abu-Assad discuss working in extreme environments, and harnessing that authenticity, in the films Only the Brave and The Mountain Between Us.

Survival of the Fittest

The life-or-death struggle has been an integral part of drama since filmdom's origin, but when the bulk of the story involves simply staying alive, the stakes couldn't be higher.

Pitch Perfect

The recent World Series showdown between the Houston Astros and the L.A. Dodgers had more than the requisite drama, and director Matt Gangl made sure it was captured from every angle.

More

Jaysene Overton

Overton Gets Real

2nd AD Jaysene Overton explains her unique way of finding background actors for difficult crosses on medical dramas.

Chris Hines

Live Tapings Keep Hines on his Toes

Staging two live shows a week during seasons of The Voice is par for the course for stage manager Chris Hines.

Maureen Smith

Smith Contributes to a "Well-Oiled Machine"

Associate Director Maureen Smith loves traveling with The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Michael Beugg

Beugg's "Magic Moment"

Staging a big dance sequence on a busy L.A. freeway was just the challenge UPM Michael Beugg had been waiting for.

Tribute

Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life

A peek behind the scenes of Frank Capra's timeless holiday classic, It's a Wonderful Life.

DGA LAYOUT