Not many people really know what a film producer is. There aren’t many film producers in Macao. But film producer happens to be one of the most important occupations in the film industry.

One of the known functions of film producers is finding investment for the film production. It does not sound like an easy job to do, does it? To appeal to investors, a film producer has to be seasoned and reputable. If a film producer does not have a decent network in the industry, it will be extremely difficult to make the first step for the production team. That is why film producer is an occupation with thresholds. Everyone knows that films are investment projects with high risks. Sometimes a film will just fail even if you think it will be a hit in the film market. Sometimes the audience just does not like the film and the box office will be a disaster. In some other times, films with low box office expectation turn out to be insanely successful. It is very hard to foretell whether some films will succeed or not. The reality is the audience’s preference is always changing and there are many variables that have an impact on the success of a film. No matter how much research you have done, you still cannot be sure that a particular film can receive success. Nobody can do that. This is the reason why many investors consider investing in film productions a gamble. Subsequently, it is no easy task for film producers to convince investors to make an investment. Even if the investors you are talking to are experienced in investing in films, you still need to convince them that the entire production team is trustworthy and is capable of producing a decent and satisfying film. In some aspects, the film producer is putting his or her reputation out there and asking for investors’ trust. Besides investment, film producers are responsible for finding sponsors as well, which requires them to think about potential returns that can attract sponsors. A film producer’s job does not just stop there. Film producers also need to consider whether some investments or sponsorships will have a negative impact on the film or not.

After getting the investments, the film producer needs to move on to the next task: figuring out how to make full use of the money. Of course, it is very important to keep the production cost within the budget. But it is also important to think about which parts of the production are worth spending money on. The film producer should be able to have such knowledge. To have the money well spent, the film producer first needs to know about the market price. Otherwise the production team might spend more money on some unnecessary places. Some film producers in the industry are known for their abilities to always keep the cost under control. But does that make them good producers? Let’s think about this scenario. If a scene in the movie costs hundreds of thousands of MOP when the production team has a tight budget, the most apparent solution is to ask the director and the production team to give up on the scene and replace it with a cheaper alternative. But if the director believes that the scene is worthy of the money and would like to spend less money on other parts, then the film producer has to make a decision. The film producer needs to have a deep understanding of the film and the production, which will enable the producer to participate in the discussion of what scenes really deserve more or less money. This will allow film producers to solve such situation. Some might wonder why not just find cheaper alternatives for everything to save money. The nuance here is that the film producer has to ensure the quality of the film as well. Cheaper alternatives often drag down the quality. The film producer will need to constantly balance between cheaper and better while keeping the cost within the budget. 

An ideal film producer understands how film directors think and knows how to find investments. I have been very lucky. I have had some amazing producers who understood my visions for the film and found me an adequate production team to work with. The production team is not always heavyweight, but the most important thing is that they worked well with me and helped me make better productions. Some emerging directors might not make a thorough consideration and would choose to work with very seasoned production teams when they are making their first feature films. Without prior collaboration, the director and the production team might not work well with each other. This will in fact have a negative impact on the film’s overall quality. During the production process, my producers would always give me some suggestions and they helped me solve many problems. They shouldered the challenges with me along the way. This does not happen to everyone.

Let’s turn our attention back to Macao. The problem with the film industry in Macao is that nobody believes that local films can bring profits. That said, film producers in Macao will encounter great difficulties when they start at the very beginning to work for the film production team. To become better producers in the industry, they will have to overcome these challenges.