The Big Picture

After undergoing a two-year, multi-million-dollar restoration and modernization, Houston’s beloved River Oaks Theatre is holding its grand reopening on October 3. Culinary Khancepts led the extensive effort to rejuvenate the theatre with a stunning new design that thoughtfully blends the theatre’s original rich burgundy and gold Art Deco charm with luxurious modern touches and a new full-service food and beverage experience, elevating the standard for both cinematic and live entertainment in Houston.

The Cultural Power of Cinema is the latest edition of Digital Cinema Media’s Building Box Office Brands series, created in partnership with experts, Burst Your Bubble. The study reveals cinema’s leading role in co-viewing experiences (98 percent) and how brands using the medium can in turn maximize commercial and social impact.

Sony Pictures Post Production Services is celebrating the completion of the final phase of a multi-year effort to expand and modernize its motion picture and television sound facilities. Aiming to establish an inviting, state-of-the-art space for filmmakers and creative sound artists, the studio has integrated the latest immersive sound technology across 14 mix stages on its lot in Culver City. It has also made extensive aesthetic improvements. Its historic Cary Grant, William Holden, Kim Novak, Burt Lancaster, and Anthony Quinn mix stages have been restored to sparkling condition, with new acoustics, cinema screens, creature comforts and creative support.

The film industry in New Jersey employed more than 8,500 people throughout 2023 – and that number is on the rise. Netflix is investing $1 billion to build its East Coast flagship production studio at Fort Monmouth, creating 1,500 industry jobs. Lionsgate is building a major studio in Newark, and 1888 Studios, the largest ground-up movie studio complex in North America, will soon call Bayonne home. It’s expected that by 2026, the motion picture industry in the state will amount to $1 billion per year and, by 2035, the industry will cross the multi-billion-dollar threshold. In recent years, the state has played host to a number of successful film and TV productions. According to the Motion Picture Association, New Jersey has seen $2.15 billion in wages through the film industry since 2020 – with more than 19,000 jobs created in the larger motion picture and television industry, including indirect and induced impact on local vendors. I recently spoke, via email, with Tim Sullivan, CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to get a sense of what lies ahead for his state in film and television production. Here is that conversation.